Microsoft kick off their summer of arcade with the delightful Limbo from developers Playdead. Coming in at a whopping 1200MP’s it is not cheap but it is staggeringly beautiful and a good old fashioned 2D platformer that you are sure to enjoy.

If video and photography are now very much acceptable forms of art, then its about time that video game was also considered. If this isn’t Art then I don’t know what is. Its use of a simple black and white contrast to built the game world is a bold move. The world they have created between the light and the shadows is reminiscent of a really disturbed Childs nightmare. Imagine if you will Tim Burton was asked to remake Little big planet and you are starting to get the idea.

Not only is Limbo a visual work of art but it is also a bloody good game. Since it isn’t tied up in next generation super HD 3D graphics it is necessary for this game to fall back on good old fashioned game play. This is the tried and tested formula of platforms, ladders, switches and leaps of faith. As I have mentioned it is in a similar vein to Little Big Planet with puzzles that involve moving boxes, bear traps, flicking switches to flood the level, turning gravity on its head etc. The level design is so well thought out that puzzles will have you baffled for an eternity. But 30 mins. of trying different combinations and then suddenly figuring out what to do, is so satisfying. At the same time once you crack a puzzle you will be in disbelieve that it took so long to think of your escape. It all seems so simple once you know what to do.  

There isn’t much of a story you play a small boy who is looking for his sister while lost in Limbo. Working through forests, cities, industrial areas and back to flowing meadows. While the story sounds quite nice the game can be in fact quite gruesome. The sound of bones breaking, necks snapping or skulls being crushed have a greater impact on you than games with full gore as your imagination is always far worse than anything game developers can come up with. This one is definitely not for kids crawling over dead bodies, watching as some one falls and the noose around their neck snaps them like a twig, even though there is no blood and is always humorous it is still a very very dark humour.  

Over all a stunning piece of work a game so simple, yet so pleasing on many levels. Aesthetically divine, emotionally satisfying and an utterly fulfilling game there is very little I can say bad about Limbo, but as with everything there has to be some down sides and the only one that jumps out is the price. The game is quite short and while very enjoyable for 1200 points it is on the expensive side. Being able to play your own music will add to the game greatly and as I completed the last level  with Badly drawn boy’s “I love NYE” as the back ground music matching the slow motion perfectly I sat back and watched what is now one of my all time favourite gaming moments and thought to myself that was money well spent.


SCORE : 95%

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