VVVVVV

Review is based on the Itch version, which should be the same as the GOG version. What really makes VVVVVV truly special among games is the accessibility options. As someone that gets migraines from the exact same graphics that give other people seizures, I only needed to turn off the screen effects that would involve shaking and flashes. However if you're more severe on either migraines or epilepsy, you can go a step further and also disable the moving backgrounds. The game does retain one potential problem spot of a room with a giant elephant that flashes colors. I did not check this room with backgrounds turned off. For people with disabilities, you can slow down the game or turn on invincibility mode. Having mild carpel tunnel in my wrists from childhood injuries, the option to slow down the game was extremely helpful in a level area called The Tower that would otherwise not something that I would not be able to get through. There is something very refreshing about a game where the developer put a lot of care into trying to make a game that would be playable and fun for as many people as possible and didn't worry about trying to dazzle people with fancy graphics. The minimal graphics also means that it is going to be playable on a lot of computers. Even if you don't normally play platform games, this is one that is worth picking up. Gameplay centers on navigating through the areas and reversing gravity as needed. You don't need to fight anything, just avoid anything dangerous. The game is also very generous when it comes to continue spots, and lets you keep retrying as much as you want or need.

It's a classic, the one that I completed on many platforms including Linux. While it works ok on Linux I have to say that I wasn't expecting this game to be long standing one when it first came out. I have to give it 10/10 and definitely highly recommend it.

Awesome.

There's a lot to love about this title - great music, fun puzzles, an innovative core mechanic (gravity reversal). But what made me give up on the game after about half an hour of gameplay was the very frustrating controls. This is a game that demands precision platforming and exact timing. since If you so much as brush a spike or enemy you die. Yet the controls are both sluggish and overly-responsive. There are delays between inputting a command and seeing a response, and there is also an extremely annoying tendency for your character to slide forwards as if under the effect of inertia after you've stopped giving commands. As a result, you will die over and over again trying to execute simple maneuvers because your character will not respond appropriately. I'm talking 30-40 times per room. I always got through the rooms eventually, but the fact that the arbitrary controls were dictating outcomes was a dealbreaker.

Fun puzzle-like platformer with super simple controls. The music is retro and outstanding. Give it a try.