Game Card
Fading Shadows (PSP)
- Publisher:
- Ivolgamus
- Developer:
- Ivolgamus
- US Release:
- 02.2008
- EU Release:
- n/a
- Number of players:
- n/a
- Type:
- Puzzle
- Extra:
- Platform
- Age:
- Ancient Times
Review
We play Fading Shadows...
You may not have heard of international game
developer Ivolgamus, this is because they tend to specialize in niche
titles with unique gameplay. Puzzle-platformer Fading Shadows certainly
falls into this category. Exclusive to the PSP it promised to offer a
riveting and immersive storyline, action-packed gameplay and stunning
graphics – but sadly, as you know not all promises can be kept.
If the trusty dictionary is anything to go by we should’ve been in for a gaming story that engrosses us deeply. Unfortunately the background story to Fading Shadows is... um, well in the background, or to be more precise on the back of the box. Sadly that’s the only place where the story appears, so it’s by no means ‘riveting and immersive’ if it doesn’t even appear in the game! This is a bloody shame because it’s a masterpiece even Tolkien would be proud of, well that might be taking it a little too far, but it would definitely make a thrilling novel.
So what is this story all about? The game is set in a time of prophecy where the evil Master Gardal is using his dark forces to conquer the Castle of Heaven, and the only way for him to do this is by sacrificing the soul of a young boy called Erwyn. Help is on the way in the form of Erwyn’s clairvoyant sister Aira, who seals his soul in a protective orb which you must guide through the 40 single-player levels using a magical beam of light. It’s certainly not an easy task though as it will take brain power (damn!) to solve the puzzles and riddles laid out on each quirky level.
Each level is set out like a maze, very like the wooden games from your childhood where you had to guide the marble round to the end, and surprisingly this uses exactly the same concept. There are added extras, of course; the orb can take the form of three different states: wood, metal and glass, and each with their own set of positives and negatives. The metal orb is your good all-rounder: it has the ability to jump, but will rust in water; the wooden orbs’ only good use is crossing water, but easily catches fire with your powerful beam; and bash the glass ball against the wall and it will shatter, but is pretty nifty for hitting those underwater switches.
It’s important to look after your orbs as they count as lives and you gain more by collecting the crystals that are placed around each level. Also hidden in each level is a piece of puzzle which you can collect to unlock artwork in the extras menu, it’s just a shame that you can’t return to levels to collect the pieces you’ve missed. The forty levels will keep you occupied for hours, but once you’ve completed them all there’s no going back, so in terms of replay value it has a very limited lifespan.
The game does become highly addictive and you can spend as much time on each level as you like, but the game doesn’t get off to a good start. Let me explain: the beginning levels only take a matter of seconds to complete whilst you are learning how to use your beam of light and control the orbs, but once you have completed a level the time it takes to load the next one can take up to a minute. One word springs to mind: Tedious. The levels do get longer and more complex though, so the time taken to load the next level becomes a good break for your brain!
Graphically there is no faulting Fading Shadows, and surprisingly for a puzzle game the artwork is visually stunning. Even the menus have been injected with a touch of creation genius. The only thing stopping it from reaching perfection is a bit of messy camera work, the camera just never seems to focus on where you want it leaving you to fiddle around with the shoulder buttons, and even then it is not spot on. The graphics isn’t the only apple in Fading Shadows eye, the background music is the best an elevator has to offer, and that is meant in a good way. It’s very relaxing; works well with the gameplay and each sound effect has been perfected down to a tee.
Fading Shadows is definitely a new gaming experience and you are not going to find another game quite like it on the PSP, but there are just a handful of factors that let it down. The unforgivable being the amount of time it takes each level to load, and unlike other games in the genre there is little inspiration to get you to play again once completed. It could have been the new puzzler for the PSP bringing an in-depth story to the genre like never before, but sadly it just seems to fade in the shadows.
Top Gaming Moment: After twenty minutes of hunting high and low trying to work out the answer to the puzzle on level seven, you realise that you’ve forgotten to hit the switch over in the corner.
 |
 |
|
| It’s like a scene straight from Screwball Scramble |
It’s easy when you know how – honest! |
If the trusty dictionary is anything to go by we should’ve been in for a gaming story that engrosses us deeply. Unfortunately the background story to Fading Shadows is... um, well in the background, or to be more precise on the back of the box. Sadly that’s the only place where the story appears, so it’s by no means ‘riveting and immersive’ if it doesn’t even appear in the game! This is a bloody shame because it’s a masterpiece even Tolkien would be proud of, well that might be taking it a little too far, but it would definitely make a thrilling novel.
So what is this story all about? The game is set in a time of prophecy where the evil Master Gardal is using his dark forces to conquer the Castle of Heaven, and the only way for him to do this is by sacrificing the soul of a young boy called Erwyn. Help is on the way in the form of Erwyn’s clairvoyant sister Aira, who seals his soul in a protective orb which you must guide through the 40 single-player levels using a magical beam of light. It’s certainly not an easy task though as it will take brain power (damn!) to solve the puzzles and riddles laid out on each quirky level.
Each level is set out like a maze, very like the wooden games from your childhood where you had to guide the marble round to the end, and surprisingly this uses exactly the same concept. There are added extras, of course; the orb can take the form of three different states: wood, metal and glass, and each with their own set of positives and negatives. The metal orb is your good all-rounder: it has the ability to jump, but will rust in water; the wooden orbs’ only good use is crossing water, but easily catches fire with your powerful beam; and bash the glass ball against the wall and it will shatter, but is pretty nifty for hitting those underwater switches.
 |
 |
|
| There’s plenty to keep your mind boggled in each level |
It’s trickier than it looks, that orb sometimes has a mind of its own! |
It’s important to look after your orbs as they count as lives and you gain more by collecting the crystals that are placed around each level. Also hidden in each level is a piece of puzzle which you can collect to unlock artwork in the extras menu, it’s just a shame that you can’t return to levels to collect the pieces you’ve missed. The forty levels will keep you occupied for hours, but once you’ve completed them all there’s no going back, so in terms of replay value it has a very limited lifespan.
The game does become highly addictive and you can spend as much time on each level as you like, but the game doesn’t get off to a good start. Let me explain: the beginning levels only take a matter of seconds to complete whilst you are learning how to use your beam of light and control the orbs, but once you have completed a level the time it takes to load the next one can take up to a minute. One word springs to mind: Tedious. The levels do get longer and more complex though, so the time taken to load the next level becomes a good break for your brain!
Graphically there is no faulting Fading Shadows, and surprisingly for a puzzle game the artwork is visually stunning. Even the menus have been injected with a touch of creation genius. The only thing stopping it from reaching perfection is a bit of messy camera work, the camera just never seems to focus on where you want it leaving you to fiddle around with the shoulder buttons, and even then it is not spot on. The graphics isn’t the only apple in Fading Shadows eye, the background music is the best an elevator has to offer, and that is meant in a good way. It’s very relaxing; works well with the gameplay and each sound effect has been perfected down to a tee.
 |
 |
|
| Press the switches in numerical order to open the door, you’d think this would be easy! |
The design work is certainly what you would call ‘quirky’ |
Fading Shadows is definitely a new gaming experience and you are not going to find another game quite like it on the PSP, but there are just a handful of factors that let it down. The unforgivable being the amount of time it takes each level to load, and unlike other games in the genre there is little inspiration to get you to play again once completed. It could have been the new puzzler for the PSP bringing an in-depth story to the genre like never before, but sadly it just seems to fade in the shadows.
Top Gaming Moment: After twenty minutes of hunting high and low trying to work out the answer to the puzzle on level seven, you realise that you’ve forgotten to hit the switch over in the corner.
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Debut Trailer
Posted 26.11.07
Length 02:47 Views 896
