A Double Fine Production generally means quality and something a little quirky. That is definitely the case with their new XBLA / PSN cutesy role-playing title “Costume Quest. In Costume Quest you play the role of a twin brother or sister (your choice, thank you Double Fine for NOT assuming the players gender) on Halloween night. You go out together and your sibling is kidnapped, it is of course up to you to get them back. So goes the story in Costume Quest.

Gameplay in Costume Quest is a simple affair with the addition of a cute collecting, upgrade and experience system that lends the game more depth. You play either sibling (male or female) looking for the other, as you collect candy and various costumes along the way. The action takes place in third person with cutesy graphics and characters. You also gain a little help, not only with party members, but also with the aid of different costumes and power-ups for each. Off you go around the neighborhood (and other areas I shall not spoil) collecting candy, knocking on doors to trick-or-treat, doing quests and kicking ass in some turn-based tomfoolery.

Prepare to Fight!
Battles in Costume Quest are – as just mentioned – a turn-based affair where the action cuts to the characters battling it out in ultra-stylized versions of the little costumes they’re wearing in the game. This is yet another charm ridden touch by Double Fine and one to be commended. Whatever costumes you are wearing in game dictates the animation of the super stylized versions you will see in the fight sequences, some of these are hilarious, so well worth trying them all out at least once. You can switch costumes at any time in game, other than when you are in battle.

Environments consist of quirky little neighborhood streets, beset with houses done up to the Halloween nines, with parks, sewers and more for the investigating. I won’t give away too many story elements, because the fun of Costume Quest is in discovering the charming story as you go along, later levels are set elsewhere. Audio in Costume Quest is good, though voice acting consists more of grunts and squeals than actual speech. Conversations take place via speech bubbles, so nothing is lost on the deaf or hard of hearing gamer. Needless to say being a Double Fine Production there is plenty of humor to be had.

Female Gamer Angle
As mentioned you get the choice whether to play the brother or sister, so you’re not stuck playing the usual hero brother model in search of his sister (yes I’m looking at you Limbo). As well as the lead character there’s also a plethora of amusing peripheral characters that are part of proceedings, but again, discovery is all part of the fun.

So is it worth getting?
Definitely. Costume Quest is a quirky little wonder, that whilst a little short, is also charming and different. Graphically it’s adorable with peculiar characters and worlds of wonder. The only real downsides to Costume Quest are its length of play (you can finish it in one sitting if you don’t mind a numb bum) and overall simplicity, though the latter may actually be an asset. Essentially Costume Quest is fun with a capital F and that’s what gaming should be about. There may be those who will find the repetitive aspects of the gameplay mechanic to be a little old hat, but these are probably the same people who dismissed Animal Crossing as mind numbing collecting. At the very least, try the demo for Costume Quest, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Image Credit: [Lesbian Gamers].

How does one review a game that isn’t a game, but more of an interactive poem, that, in the words of the developer, exploits “the tension between urban bustle and natural serenity”. Well, we’re not really sure there’s a specific skill in it, but we’ll give it a try.

Flower is a new ‘game’ by “ThatGameCompany”, which incidentally was co-founded by a woman. Now we’re not sure if this has anything to do with what some see as the softly softly approach of Flower, but if it does then the world needs more female headed game companies. The team behind flower have outdone themselves by thinking out of the box.

So what is flower? Essentially you take on the roll of a petal floating on the gentle sweeping breeze. It is your job to tilt the SixAxis thus setting your petal on its journey across various landscapes, swooping and floating through other flowers in the fields which in turn opens them up, gives you more petals on the breeze and makes the world a better place.

If you haven’t already guessed, what sets Flower apart from other video games is that it doesn’t really feel like a game. Perhaps this is in some part due to the non existence of those things that permeate the gaming genre, be it guns, energy level, or the must win premise, or perhaps it is that Flower reaches farther by doing less.

The simplistic nature of Flower makes it a delight to play, it is almost meditative in its process, there is no stress, no alarm, there is only the breeze, sweeping grasses and landscapes in need of the color of life and it is your job to utilize the breeze and make the world a brighter, better place. If it sounds pretentious then that is doing Flower a disservice, for what may begin as a boring foray of confusion, will – for all those without a stony heart – lead to a wonderful experience.

In many ways Flower returns to the roots of gaming, when you didn’t need 8 buttons to do one thing, when playing was for fun and there was little to it, but it was just as affecting as the most astounding cinematic experience. There is a distinct lack of haste, a lack of confrontation within the framework of Flower, it is art, poetry, truly thought provoking stuff that for some may bring forth questions of ecology and what we’re doing to the planet, it is in a word ‘affecting’.

Graphics and sound in Flower tie in perfectly with all else we’ve said, they are resplendent, relaxing, sweeping and even disturbing in their urban setting. As each flower tinkles with life as you wisp on by, as darkened ground flourishes into green and colored wonder there is a delicate melody playing out, it is beautiful.

Female Gamer Angle
Needless to say there is no female game characterization in Flower, but there’s also no male character content either, so Flower doesn’t fall afoul of having a multitude of characters that fall into the ‘male playable’ mold. Flower has no gender identity so the lack of female representation is neither here nor there.

So what is wrong with it? It’s short and it’s not going to be for everyone, which in a way is saddening, because everyone should be able to play this game and take away something positive from it. Some will find the simplistic nature a bore and in a way we have to feel some sense of pity for those people, too caught up in the thuggery and manic nature of the modern video game experience to take a step back and enjoy something gentler in nature.

Flower is a delightful foray into fields of pleasure, whilst it also gives us a lesson in nature and the urban landscape. If you’ve got a PS3 you really must download Flower and give it some of your time. The only true downside of Flower is that it’s a PlayStation exclusive, which means other console owners will never get to taste its breezy magic.

Review by Angela