Space Filler Review

A Cozy Space Puzzle 

At first glance, the premise of a spaceman sealing up their ship, full of holes, may sound like the furthest thing from cozy, but Space Filler turns the experience into a light hearted puzzle game. You push blocks around the ship, plugging holes for 30 levels until the ship and your little spaceman are secure. 

On Startup, A Stylized Feast For The Eyes

Upon opening Space Filler, players are met with a minimalist UI and relaxing, mellow backing track, both fitting the theme of gentle space. The seamless transitions between menus also stands out, as the music plays continuously. The track doesn’t switch or restart between levels or when clicking play, keeping the cozy atmosphere consistent throughout. 

When you do press play, you are thrust straight into the opening level; no narration, tutorial or title drop here. During this level you will see the only text displayed throughout most of the game, a simple outline of the premise and mechanics: your ship has been damaged and you need to repair it by pushing blocks to fill in the holes – yellow blocks are magnetic and cause blocks to stick together. That’s it, short and simple.

Level Design and Mechanics

Besides the text displayed in the first level, the basics of Space Filler’s puzzles are left for the player to figure out. This is where some puzzle games fail, leaving mechanics too open-ended, resulting in player frustration and that all too familiar ‘quit moment’. Space Filler however achieves success through incredibly intuitive level design. 

With the only movement options being left, right, up or down, players will quickly find that moving into the green blocks pushes them around the screen and when combined with the yellow block they move as one. 

The block layout, 2D environments, and great colour grading all also help to make gameplay intuitive, keeping players focused on the puzzle at all times. The walls and backdrop of every level are a muted purple, purposefully placed in stark contrast with the vibrant greens, yellows and whites of the blocks. 

Sound Design, Relaxing In Retro Space

With smaller games like Space Filler, aspects such as great sound design, that can be largely ignored in triple A games, become real standouts. Minimalist design and pixel art allows the eyes to relax and the ears to take over. Whether it’s the adorable shuffling of the spaceman’s movements or the old-school victory beeps, reminiscent of a retro Game Boy experience, there is always the perfect sound effect.

Puzzling, The Reason You Play

Simple, in-depth, limited, repetitive. All words that could be used to describe Space Filler’s puzzle system and yes, there is only one central system. Describing anything as both limited and in-depth may seem counterintuitive, but although Space Filler is limited in premise, in practice the central mechanics present a multitude of possibilities. You may push two green blocks into a yellow block, combining the three; but the yellow block is in the wrong position, so you have to use the wall of the level to shift it around the existing blocks, separating and combining the three until you reach a desired shape. Masterful level design. 

However, there was still a part of me that kept hoping for a new mechanic to be introduced, as by late game only having access to two of the same pieces of the puzzle did start leaning towards a more repetitive gameplay loop.

Challenging is most definitely another word you could use to describe Space Filler, as the developers did not hold back when it comes to difficulty. Immediately after the opening level the difficulty shoots up, pushing player understanding to another level. This will be that ‘sit up in the chair’ moment for most, as the whiplash from level 1 to levels 2-9 is immense.

One factor I did notice was that all levels are not made equally. This is often the case with puzzle games and sometimes even intentionally done to either mark difficulty spikes or to make important levels feel more rewarding. These examples are standardised and completely fine, but random levels in Space Filler have a rather annoying feeling – the feeling that there is only one route to success. Sometimes you can spend half an hour shuffling blocks to no end because one move you made 10 minutes ago wasn’t in line with how the level is supposed to be completed, soft-locking you and forcing a restart. 

Thankfully these levels are still rare in Space Filler, often completely overshadowed by the majority of incredible designs such as in the final level. Level 30 took me by far the longest to beat, but left me with a sense of accomplishment like no other. It’s like the developer’s saying, ‘you have mastered our puzzles, now just enjoy this last one’. A long challenge, endless routes, and a thematic heart shaped hole to fill, level 30 was everything I wanted from the last level of this cozy venture through space. 

Perfect Character Design That Begs For A Bigger Story

It quickly becomes clear that narrative is second to gameplay in Space Filler. Outside of the opening text, the ‘story’ is largely neglected. This decision is not inherently negative, especially considering what the game is trying to achieve, but the character design, space theme and basic story all scream for some narrative development. 

The spaceman has a simple design using stand-out colours, vigorous animations, and cutesy sounds. The walking animations use subtle visor squints and head tilts alongside loud shuffling sounds to add emotion and character to this little space man. With subtle additions like these, he becomes more than just a conduit; now he is rushing, full of drive and determination, mirroring the emotions of the player. 

Players that form attachment to characters sharing their emotions, may be left wishing they’d learnt more about their space adventure. Rather than a developed narrative that may not fit the vibe, a simple idle animation or emote might have provided that pivotal bit of storytelling that feels missing.

A Simple Block Shuffler With Incredible Vibes

If you are looking for a ‘by the books’ puzzle experience with little story to distract you, then Space Filler is worth picking up. It boasts amazing style and atmosphere through its space theme, fitting music, player character, and block-shuffling puzzles. On top of all this, the game is very affordable and doesn’t waste your precious free time. 

Space Filler ends as soon the mechanics reach their apex. Once you complete the last level, there is nothing more to learn, leaving you with a simple, but rewarding experience; no annoying bells and whistles.

Space Filler could be a great introduction to gaming for a non-gamer. With no complicated mechanics or gaming terminology as roadblocks, it’ll be like completing a beautifully stylised space-crossword, with a cozy backing track to fit.

Important Links

Fill the Void! Sokoban Puzzler Space Filler Launches on Xbox and PC – https://www.thexboxhub.com/fill-the-void-sokoban-puzzler-space-filler-launches-on-xbox-and-pc/

Buy Space Filler, Optimised for Series X|S – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/space-filler/9NQCZGSBRJLZ/0010

Or take in an Xbox One edition – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/space-filler-xbox-one/9NKTP5B30FTT/0010

Go big with a Bundle – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/space-filler-bundle/9P9CSZV921MD