Oh no, it’s like the end of that movie Sunshine all over again. Pass the shades!
When asked in many years’ time, ‘Do you remember Tetris?’, the makers of this latest lateral-designed game might hope you reply: ‘Yeah, it was good… until Flat Heroes crushed it.’ Are we looking at the dawn of the latest, most fantastic line-drawn puzzle game, or just another beige imitation of the great game past? I had to find out.
The first thing to tell you about Flat Heroes is that if you’re looking for an excellent relaxing game to play in the ten minutes after you’ve eaten your evening meal and before you’ve fallen asleep on the sofa, this isn’t it. Flat Heroes will test your grey matter and not stop until either a) you complete it or b) you switch your attention to something less tricky, such as learning how to perform stand-up comedy in Portuguese.
Flat Heroes is hard to master yet really easy to play. It is a minimalist, two-dimensional world of logical puzzle problems that can all be solved, even if the makers who designed some of them must have been dreaming up their devilry for weeks for just one level. The action is actually quite demanding, and with up to four players allowed, you can rope in your friends to complete that bit you’ll later claim you did in ten seconds with one eye closed.
The controls in Flat Heroes are enjoyable. Although I found them challenging to use, I quickly started putting that down to my inability rather than the game mechanics. Moving around each scenario gets more accessible and straightforward, with the levels getting more complicated. To me, that’s a perfect storm, and I loved trying out the playable demo.
Whether competing against the real-life grey matter or the hyper-intelligent computer AI, each model offers something different.
There are over 300 levels to date, with the artwork and design truly a one-off. I’ve never seen or played a game quite like it, and even though it draws from many other games out there, they all look pretty pale by comparison once you get playing Flat Heroes.
You can only dash, run, jump or attack, but doing so at the right time is crucial, and working out the sweet spot for each level takes time. There are ten end bosses to fight, too, which will test your grey matter and daring in equal measure.
With unlimited levels in Survival mode, a terrific Campaign mode, Daily Challenges, Leaderboards and of course, the all-important co-op Versus mode, Flat Heroes has a lot to offer. For gamers who are looking for a complex puzzler that fulfils both the action and cerebral parts of their mind. I found the demo a challenge, and it’s definitely a game I’ll be downloading upon its release on August 2nd.
You can follow all the latest news about Flat Heroes on their official Twitter page. With the game usually available for $9.99, there’s 20% off Flat Heroes on Steam until 9th August, where it costs you just £4.79 with a free playable demo to download immediately. You can watch the trailer to learn all about the lateral fun you could be having right now!