Eversion (Computer)
User Review
Product Information:
- Release Date (NA): October 15, 2013
- Publisher: Transducers
- Genres: Horror, Platformer
Game Features:
Single player
Local Multiplayer
Online Multiplayer
Co-operative
Introduction:
"Sounds - possibly musical - heard in the night from other worlds or realms of being."
-H.P. Lovecraft
This quotation from Mr. H.P. Lovecraft is the inspiration for creating the game entitled Eversion. Eversion as defined in the Webster Dictionary is the act of turning inside out or the state of being turned inside out. In this game your goal is to use eversion in order to save the princess. But what is it that you need to turn inside out, and what secrets will you unearth once you use eversion. Honestly when I first saw the game I had my doubts that it had any way to induce fear to its player. In the first level the music is cheery the background is sunny and even the AI’s that are trying to kill you have cheerful smiles on their faces, plus you’re using a sunflower with legs, of course initially I thought that was the weirdest part of the game. Well half way through the game I realized that I have never been so wrong.
Gameplay:
The game is basically a very short 2D platformer type game much like the games from the early 90’s such as Super Mario Bros. Once you start up the game it’ll place you directly into level one, which is very similar, again, to Super Mario Bros, also if you would remember in the Mario games there are distinct question marked blocks that have different bonuses that you can get when you hit them, eversion also incorporates that system, only this time the blocks have faces that change expressions whenever you evert, the faces are one of the distinctions of which layer of the world you are currently in. The default controls are: arrow keys to move your character (Zee-Tee) obviously press the right arrow to move right, left to move left, up to jump and basically the down button doesn’t do much. What sets the game apart from other platformer games is your ability to change the world you’re playing in entirely with the use of “eversion”. Eversion can only be used in certain points of the game, when you are in a spot where you can use eversion, the background and background music will suddenly change. That shows the resulting layer you would be in once you evert the world, in order to find out which points those are you have to press the “evert” button (the default button for evert is the spacebar) near the designated area and you’d find that it would be marked by a small circle which would fade away slowly. Now it’s very tedious to find these spots but they are very important as they are the bridges connecting you further into the game. There are 8 different layers of eversion, each with several distinctions from one another. In order to know which layer you are in, take note of the faces on the blocks, the background music, the enemies, the small shrubs, and the clouds, because these are the things that change once you evert.
Now the goal of the game is to save the princess that is trapped by God knows who. Also in playing the game it is very important for you to collect the different gems scattered in different levels (240 in total) as they are an integral part to finish your journey.
Plot:
Again much like the Mario games; your goal is to save the princess, but mario’s journey is a cakewalk compared to how Zee-Tee’s, our friendly walking sunflower, quest. As I have mentioned the game features an eversion system, that lets you turn the world inside out, to dig through the world’s dark secrets and journey through them. If I would describe Zee-Tee’s journey, I’d describe it as a journey through hell to hell, I won’t say why though, because that would just spoil the ending, and we would not want that now would we. But basically there are a total of three endings (As I am told, since I could only get one). Now there are a total of eight layers of the same world which are basically similar to the phases of the moon, different versions of the same satellite that orbits us. Now each layer of the world, as I would describe, is like being from good to bad, and from bad to worse. And whether you like it or not you have to go through each world, and I warn you that it is not exactly that simple as the game has several difficulty curves that would show themselves as you progress through the game.
Sound:
So the music in the game is very good and it adds to how the game is supposed to make the player feel, scared. The ambience and the feeling of the game itself changes once the sound changes, so advise you to play this game with headphones so you can feel the game in its entirety.
Graphics:
The game has 8-bit graphics that would remind the older audiences of the 90’s. Be that as it may the graphics are still very impressive as they can change dramatically when you evert the world. The graphics like the sounds also play an important role as they play hand in hand to create a feeling of horror.
Conclusion:
Imagine a game where you play as a walking sunflower in cheery and sunny world, then suddenly you find yourself slowly falling into the depths of darkness itself, where everything out there is out to kill you, and then there are those giant bloody hands that suddenly fly out of nowhere that kill you, plus there’s this black smoke that when you touch it, it kills you. Not many players would endure the torment that playing the game would bring, but as a player who has already finished the game, it’s very much worth it.
Author’s notes:
In a sense the game is not technically that scary, since the game’s horror only shows a creepy place and creepy enemies. But Eversion can’t be compared to other horror games since the horror shown in this game is far different from other games. Not many people would dig through what the message of the game is. Most of us would only think that the game only shows us a horrific and demonic setting, and that in itself is of course scary. But if we would “evert” the game and find out its real message then we’d know how scary it really is. Think about it, when you start the game you’re in a happy cheerful setting, but as you progress you suddenly see yourself in a darker place, a sinister place, and a dangerous place. It kind of tells us that in our world, we may experience a lot of good things but beneath those good things there are a lot of bad things that lie beneath it, and in the end of our lives we would all return to darkness…at least that’s what I have inferred with the game. Why don’t you guys try the game, and see for yourselves, how dark a sunny setting can really be.
About the game:
Eversion is created by Zaratustra Productions. It was first released on December 29, 2008. It is free to download on the internet, but a new updated and HD version can be purchased on Steam.
Verdict
What I Liked ...
- *It is somehow shows how great the classic platforming games are
- *Sounds and graphics gives you a great feeling of terror in it's own simple way
- *Gives a lasting message that could really scare it's players
What I Didn't Like ...
- *Somehow it's a bit plain for the current generation of gamers
- *The difficulty curve is sudden and dynamic that players may not cope with
- *It's too short give it 30 minutes - 1 hour
7
Gameplay
The game is basically a 2D platformer type game much like the games from the early 90’s such as Super Mario Bros. Once you start up the game it’ll place you directly into level one, which is very similar, again, to Super Mario Bros, also if you would remember in the Mario games there are distinct question marked blocks that have different bonuses that you can get when you hit them, eversion also incorporates that system, only this time the blocks have faces that change expressions whenever you evert, the faces are one of the distinctions of which layer of the world you are currently in. The default controls are: arrow keys to move your character (Zee-Tee) obviously press the right arrow to move right, left to move left, up to jump and basically the down button doesn’t do much. What sets the game apart from other platformer games is your ability to change the world you’re playing in entirely with the use of “eversion”. Eversion can only be used in certain points of the game, when you are in a spot where you can use eversion, the background and background music will suddenly change. That shows the resulting layer you would be in once you evert the world, in order to find out which points those are you have to press the “evert” button (the default button for evert is the spacebar) near the designated area and you’d find that it would be marked by a small circle which would fade away slowly. Now it’s very tedious to find these spots but they are very important as they are the bridges connecting you further into the game. There are 8 different layers of eversion, each with several distinctions from one another. In order to know which layer you are in, take note of the faces on the blocks, the background music, the enemies, the small shrubs, and the clouds, because these are the things that change once you evert.
Now the goal of the game is to save the princess that is trapped by God knows who. Also in playing the game it is very important for you to collect the different gems scattered in different levels (240 in total) as they are an integral part to finish your journey.
8
Presentation
Sound:
So the music in the game is very good and it adds to how the game is supposed to make the player feel, scared. The ambience and the feeling of the game itself changes once the sound changes, so advise you to play this game with headphones so you can feel the game in its entirety.
Graphics:
The game has 8-bit graphics that would remind the older audiences of the 90’s. Be that as it may the graphics are still very impressive as they can change dramatically when you evert the world. The graphics like the sounds also play an important role as they play hand in hand to create a feeling of horror.
10
Lasting Appeal
The game's appeal is indeed lasting since it can leave the emotionally weak scared out of their wits. The rage you also feel while finishing the game can also last a long time before you get over it. The ending of the game also leaves a very lasting impression on its players. Either in a good way or a bad way the game is certainly memorable to the people who play it.
9
out of 10
