TP Bullet is a game about a secret agent marksman who needs to solve various puzzles with a limited number of bullets. The twist? Bullets are used, not to defeat enemies, but to teleport.
This bite sized puzzle game features 80 levels, which slowly introduce different teleportation mechanics as the game progresses. Each level has a coin that the agent needs to acquire in order to progress; to get it you need to combine basic platforming skills with the agent’s magical teleporting bullets that allow him to swap places with specific blocks.
Each level has a limited number of bullets that need to be used to solve the puzzle. The first levels allow for one shot, but slowly increase up to a total of three. As more bullets become available, additional blocks get placed in the level which need to be manipulated.
Many of the puzzles are fairly straightforward but some can give pause while you need to work out their solution. Hazards are also introduced that can block bullets and result in death if your agent carelessly throws himself into them.
These hazards are actually what resulted in the majority of my failures while playing TP Bullet. For example, lasers will start to appear which can kill your agent, as well as block your bullets. Blocks would often be placed on the opposite side of them and if your timing is off, then you’d be forced to restart the level. Thankfully, these levels are incredibly short and most of the time, restarting doesn’t lead to a ton of lost time.
Despite the fairly high level count, the achievement list can be ticked off at the 40th level. This makes TP Bullet an appealing game for anyone who may be looking to boost their Gamerscore. But sadly, casual and hardcore gamers alike are going to have a harder time justifying the purchase.
The puzzles, on the whole, are not that challenging. There were a couple of times I felt I was able to complete the levels in an alternative way, but this felt more like an oversight than an intended feature. I learned that by hitting the jump button right after hitting a block with a bullet, I was able to jump again. This lead to being able to solve some puzzles quicker and easier. Rewarding? Perhaps.
That feeling didn’t last long after hitting the 40th level though. Once you start progressing past those stages, TP Bullet introduces a block that allows you to jump after you hit it with a bullet. For some of these puzzles, you need to actually jump as soon as you hit them and then jump again to use this new power up properly.
The timing on the first jump can be a little tricky and nowhere in the game is it explained that you can even action the first jump. So if that trick hasn’t been discovered up until this point, then there will be a lot more trial and error – and button mashing – to figure out how to actually progress.
Paired with the clunky and somewhat awkward controls, TP Bullet starts to require a level of precision that it just isn’t made with. The controls are frustrating on occasion, sometimes leaving you to brute force a completion.
However, once those systems start requiring you to interact with them fully, it all becomes downright tedious. Making the same jump over and over again, to make sure you can line up your shot and time your jumps properly, ensures that the puzzles are more frustrating than fun.
It’s a real shame because the concept of TP Bullet isn’t a bad one. After all, one of the most famous puzzle solving games in the world involves using portals to teleport from place to place. A 2D game that uses teleportation mechanics for solving puzzles could be fun, but TP Bullet needs more varied solutions and tighter controls.
At the end of the day, TP Bullet is a short indie game that offers some level of challenge, a greater level of tedium, but a fast track to 1000 Gamerscore, which is sometimes all a gamer will want. The level and sound design is fairly forgettable, but should you be willing to put up with some awkward controls and fancy trading a little bit of cash for some easy Gamerscore, then TP Bullet will be your bag.
A secret agent with teleporting bullets? That’s TP Bullet! – https://www.thexboxhub.com/a-secret-agent-with-teleporting-bullets-thats-tp-bullet/
Buy TP Bullet on Xbox – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/tp-bullet/9P730WC5TTFL