Making its way to the Playstation 3, 4 and Vita is an ambitious title called The Swapper. It appears to be an interesting and unique concept for a puzzler. When it was announced, I can’t help but wonder what lies ahead in terms of its gameplay as well as its story. Let’s take an exploration into this eerie little game.
The Swapper centers its story on a civilization that has crumbled down to the point that they must end up on board of an abandoned space station. Right off the bat, this is a science fiction type of game, which should appeal to fans of the like. When you take a look at the atmosphere, you will notice the various locations represented by subtle cues from the objects within the abandoned rec rooms and the botany dome, to name a few.
As the story unravels, it is easy to get fully engaged and, as such, your attention span will be retained for quite a bit of time. Throughout the game, you’ll have a mysterious woman and talking rocks to help explain what’s going on in a surreal fashion. Furthermore, the implementation of the philosophy behind The Swapper speaks volumes to the amount of thought put into this work of art. There certainly is some depth in the underlying ideas behind this game.
You take control of an astronaut equipped with a device that has the ability to create and control clones. Additionally, her consciousness can be transferred to any of those created. Hence, you can swap controls from one body to the next. There can be up to four clones at a time as long as it is within your line of sight. Conversely, the clones will follow your astronaut’s movements from walking to jumping.
Throughout the world, there are no enemies to encounter. But instead, there are areas indicated by colored lights that can handicap your abilities. Those in blue prevent clone creations while red blocks the swapper’s beam, thereby stopping you from switching between clones. As well, the purple areas have both handicaps, thus adding a lot of challenge to the puzzler gameplay through trial and error. Additionally, there are areas where the gravity is reversed. As a result, the difficulty can be quite high to the point that players can get stuck and end up frustrated sometimes. Still, The Swapper never feels dull or repetitive as it gives a good balance of difficulty and fun.
In terms of the presentation, The Swapper looks and feels very creepy. And that’s a good thing whether your play on your home console version or the Vita. The background gives that eerie and strange impression that strikes you with awe and exhilaration. On top of that, the models presented in clay have a great degree of detail and beauty attached to them. As well, the lighting from the environments helps to set the mood. The audio also works hand in hand in maintaining that spine-chilling atmosphere.
The sad thing about The Swapper is that it can be completed in approximately four hours if you can get through the puzzles with no problem. Nonetheless, the challenges and obstacles are enjoyable and addicting. It’s just a pity that we couldn’t get more if we wanted to. You can always replay to get a different ending. However, considering that the puzzles don’t change for every playthrough, it’s not going to be as challenging and thrilling as the first time.
The Swapper is one of those titles that make you glad that you own a Playstation home and/or portable console. Despite its short length, it is definitely a game that you ought to try out and experience for yourself.
