The humble puzzler is a staple of any gamer’s diet. Whether it be mixed with pixel perfect platforming, wrapped up in the biggest adventure or just loving life as its own standalone experience, there should always be a place for a game that tests the mind.
And the creative minds at Altered Matter obviously think the same as not only do they come with a physics bending studio name, but their latest creation, that of Etherborn, is 100% puzzler.
Having already been recognised with GameLab, EGX and Indiecade awards under their belt, Altered Matter and Etherborn looks set to be hitting PC and consoles (Xbox One, PS4, Switch) near you pretty soon, making the most of some crowdfunding over at FIG in order to ensure that their dreams become a reality.
A puzzle platformer, Etherborn works with gravity shifting in mind, allowing you to switch to any direction you wish… as long as you can find a curve. See, it is with these warps in the platforms you run on which play host to the mind bending moments of Etherborn, as you take your voiceless being through a world that delicately opens up every step of the way.
Running and jumping across platforms are just the first steps for Etherborn, and running off the edge of platforms, seemingly stuck to any curved structure at hand will see the perspective change, letting you reach previously unobtainable areas as perpendicular gravity forces allow you to continue standing proud. With white glowing orb keys floating in the most out of reach places, only on collection of these will you find bridges, platforms and more magically moving to help you out. There is a huge amount of exploration involved in Etherborn, with the theory being that if you can see a ledge, you can probably stand on it.
This has allowed the team at Altered Matter to be able to let their imagination run wild and when you combine the bending of physics with some delightfully simple, but gorgeous surroundings, will very quickly understand the creativity being unleashed. Throw in a backing soundtrack that really does push you to explore even more, and initial signs for Etherborn are looking very good indeed.
But why are you here? What is the end goal? Well, only by taking in everything that each stage has to offer will you ever be able to fully understand your existence, and it is this which is not just the biggest draw, but possibly the most exciting prospect of all. In order to understand everything though, we’ll just have to sit and wait for a release of Etherborn on PC and consoles at some point later this year.
If you are serious about your puzzles, or just want to sit down and have something really test your mind like very few games can, then Etherborn is quite possibly the game for you. Make sure you stick it at the forefront of your mind going forward, and if you fancy helping the devs at Altered Matter achieve their dreams, pushing the limitations of Etherborn even further, then you could do a whole load worse than hit up their FIG crowdfunding campaign.
