Review | Chime

Format: Xbox360 | Genre: Puzzle | Publisher: OneBigGame| Developer: Zoë Mode | Release date: 03/02/10 | RRP: 400 MS Points (£3.40)

Chime offers a slightly different take on the block-placing puzzle games we’re used to. Although the similarities between games such as Tetris and Lumines are clear, Chime defines itself by concentrating on the creation of blocks – or quads, as Chime refers to them – formed by an array of different shapes you can place on screen. As you place the shapes, a bar moves from left to right while the background music plays, and as the bar passes over shapes and quads the music changes, essentially being remixed by what your doing. As more quads are formed, the track progresses further along, until you reach the end of your time limit.

It’s your goal to fill the screen with quads to score points, increasing the size of a quad from the minimum 3×3 to however large you can make it within a set amount of growth time. A quad, once passed over, then disappears from the play area having changed the background colour to signify the zone has been covered, once the entire play area is covered the screen is reset for you to continue increasing your score until the time runs out.

It may sound complicated, but Chime is self-explanatory once you start playing. The puzzle aspect is easy to fathom thanks to its similarities with other shape puzzle games, and the same can be said of the musical aspect, but despite the continued comparisons, Chime does have an entirely different personality.

This personality shines through due to the level of interaction with the music. Every time you play you’ll notice subtle differences in the track, all down to the way you arrange the shapes and quads. As a result, you feel connected to the game and the music, and replayability becomes unlimited. As with most games of its type, Chime proves to be addictive. Leaderboards and achievements help to provide an additional lure, but it’s the original feel of the game that keeps you coming back for more. Chime is relaxing: even during the last seconds of a level you’ll find it hard to scramble for points, and will more likely continue at a comfortable pace, nodding along to the music.

REMIXED
In total there are five tracks: Brazil by Philip Glass, Ooh Yeah by Moby, For Silence by Paul Hartnoll, Spilled Cranberries by Marcus Schulz, and Disco Ghosts by Fred Deakin. Each song is a level, providing not only a different background song to remix but a slightly different canvas to cover, with the occasional obstacle in the way to increase the challenge. Each song also has three different lengths – three, six, and nine minutes – so depending on how much time you have to play or what level of challenge you desire to cover the screen, you can choose the length that best suits you. The choice of music suits the mood of the game perfectly – and it’s a great way of introducing artists and a different musical genre to people who may otherwise have missed out.

Unfortunately, it’s not all great. As Daniel’s interview with developers Zoë Mode explains, Chime was a prototype game made up to be release-worthy, and it feels like that at times. The visuals are understated and lacking flare, and more stages and more songs would have been appreciated. But with the addictive property Chime possesses, their addition may prove, in the long term, to be unnecessary – and the fact that you’re left wanting more is testament to how enjoyable Chime can be.

Of course, it’s also for a great cause. Chime is being published by OneBigGame, a videogame industry charity initiative that will be donating all proceeds to children’s charities around the world. Chime being its first release, so despite visual drawbacks and issues with quantity, the 400 MS points seems a more than reasonable donation to ask for.

Chime is different, and engaging, and it’ll be interesting to see what Zoë Mode will go on to do with the huge potential this effort suggests. By Greg Giddens

7/10

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