Eat Your Heart out Crayola: A Crayon Physics Deluxe Review

In this age of gaming, trying to find something truly new and innovative is more difficult than trying to play Crysis with the minimum system requirements. Fortunately for us, indie game developers have taken it upon themselves to recreate dying genres, invent new ones, and bring back the classic feel to video games. One such amazing indie developed game is Crayon Physics Deluxe.

Crayon Physics Deluxe proves that not every game needs to have zombie Nazis and huge destructive guns to entertain gamers. Utilizing the “get object to goal” gameplay style as it’s basis, Crayon Physics Deluxe takes you to a whole new world of creativity. Where in most of these styles of games you are in direct control of the “object”, here you have no control over the little red ball what so ever. What you do have, however, is the ability to draw just about everything to influence the ball in the right direction. Seems simple enough, right? Well not so fast hot shot! In the early levels of the game, it is easy to spot the best solution, but once you progress past the first island all bets are off and the real challenge begins.

You can even draw on the level selection map!

This is where I would start talking about the bad points of the game…if there were any. Truly, there is very little that would make a gamer throw their mouse across the room in frustration or make you want to stop playing the game in general. The game runs smoothly, plays very well, and has an atmosphere that is charming and whimsical. The controls are fantastic, and if you have a drawing tablet or tablet PC handy then they are even more refined. You’ll lose yourself in the music while your mind is overtaken by the amusing and sometimes downright difficult puzzles. If you don’t mind putting on your thinking cap when you start up the game, there’s no reason not to check it out.

If you’re not sold on Crayon Physics Deluxe unique concept just yet, allow me to ease your troubled mind. Having been awarded the Grand Prize of $50,000 at 2008’s Independent Games Festival and as revealed in Slate magazine it received more praise and attention than Gears of War 2 at last year’s Game Developers Conference; with all this backing it up Crayon Physics Deluxe deserves your attention. If you’re up to the challenge the game offers you, then head on over to its official website, it even has a demo if you really must try before you buy. Not to mention the fact that if you’re an iPhone or iPod Touch owner you can also get the game for your nifty little device over at the App Store! Score!