Puddle Review for Xbox 360

As interesting as the concept of Puddle is, the story behind it’s creation is even better.

Originally developed by six college students in France as their class project, Puddle won a Student Showcase prize at the Independent Gaming Festival at GDC 2010. This brought the game to the attention of Konami who picked it up and are publishing it as a downloadable title for Xbox Live Arcade, PSN and the PS Vita. Those students are now a part of Neko Entertainment and their tale is an excellent reminder for aspiring young indie developers.

Puddle is a physics-based puzzle platformer based around liquid and momentum. The goal is to guide your puddle of liquid through a host of obstacles and reach the exit with as much liquid remaining as possible. The game is controlled entirely using the left and right triggers, which tilt the screen causing the liquid to pick up speed and move along. I say liquid because it can be made up of anything from water, oil, or fertilizer to everyday drinking coffee. Each form of liquid brings it’s own unique properties for you to master. For instance, fertilizer can be used in a garden environment to fertilize seeds causing them to grow. It’s a pretty ingenious way to add variety to the basic game mechanic.

The challenge is in rotating the screen just the right amount forcing the liquid to move without causing it to break apart and separate. Many devious obstacles stand between your puddle and it’s destination. Managing gravity is a constant concern throughout the game, but other more direct hurdles soon appear. Fire and Venus flytraps litter the early stages, while later ones introduce electricity and cold bursts of air for you to contend with. There’s no time to become complacent as Puddle is always throwing something new at you.

A meter in the upper left corner tells you how much liquid you have remaining with a small red line indicating how much is required to finish a level. The game wastes no time in testing you as even the first few stages can cause a sweat until you get the hang of things. At the conclusion of every level you’re awarded with a score based on the time it took to finish it and how much liquid you have left. You can earn a gold, silver, or copper medal based on a scientific formula.

Despite it’s simple controls Puddle is not an easy title. Trial and error is the name of the game here as it often takes multiple attempts to memorize the placement of obstacles and finally master a level. Trust me, there are few things more heartbreaking than watching your liquid evaporate over a flame or losing a chunk of it because you came up too short on a ramp. If you hit a brick wall and get stuck on a particular level you have the option to “whine and skip it”. You only have two whines available to use and the only way to earn them back is to complete one of the levels you previously whined through.

The difficulty is contrasted by a charming aesthetic based around science, in particular chemistry. Beakers, glass tubes, and burners are frequently seen throughout. Your awarded medals are even given in their name on the periodic chart of elements – Au (gold), Ag (silver), Cu (Copper).

Puddle offers eight different environments in total, each with their own distinct theme. Locations like a laboratory and factory may seem like standard fare for a puzzle game, but how about following a sip of water through the human body on an x-ray? Or moving coffee through a filter? Each environment houses multiple levels to complete, culminating in something of a final stage at the end. When you include the hidden bonus levels, this is a sizable title. There actually is a something of a story if you pay close attention and follow the liquid as it transforms for each environment. Coffee gets filtered and becomes water, which later turns into steam, etc.

Don’t underestimate Puddle because of it’s simplicity, this is a challenging and lengthy puzzle game that will test your skills. Although a lot of time is spent using trial and error to solve the game’s levels, the relaxing atmosphere and tranquil music make it hard to quit. It’s well worth the price of admission.