Sometimes it's nice to sit down with a game that is so simple, so easy to learn and play, that you don't have to think at all. Turning gameplay into something serene and light, much like a delicious snickerdoodle handcrafted by mom, is an admirable thing to do. Jed falls into this category of game, and its simplicity of thought combined with some clever retro stylings make it a definite must play for any puzzler-platformer fan. It may not be complex enough or long enough to warrant an essay on, but it's certainly good enough to warrant a mention!
Jed has you playing a robot out to save other little robots. There's a storyboard at the beginning that explains some things, but honestly, this is not a game which requires a story. You are out to save some robots. So get saving. Nobody cares about who, when, or why. There are several levels for you to journey through, and an unlockable to snag as well, so you'll be kept busy for a little bit at the least.
The gameplay behind Jed is a straightforward platformer with a twist. You jump around, grabbing robots who then follow you. If you take a hit, you lose one robots. You are judged based on how many robots you made it to the end with as well as how fast you completed the level. The catch? There are robots hidden inside the background which are only accessible through collecting a black and green square to shift between the foreground and background. It's not especially innovative, but it is used to great effect to craft puzzling and complex levels to platform through.
The gameplay is really that simple. The rest of the game follows this aesthetic, with the graphics being extremely low-resolution (but in a charming way) and the sound being classic platformer style goodness. The best part about all of this, though, is how the sound ties into the music. Not since Everyday Shooter have I heard a game that allows for a procedural generation of music through game actions. It's very sexy and, apparently, unintended! Sometimes the best things in games are the ones you never expected.
That is all there is to Jed. It's easy to learn, provides some challenging platforming fun, and mixes music, graphics, and gameplay into a sort of experimental procedural generation machine. It may not warrant a ton of thought, but it also doesn't require a lot of thought to realize that this is a game that is worth playing. You can download Jed for Linux and PC through the TIGSource forum thread. Have a good time hunting those elusive robots, and try not to drop into the water too much! We'll see you on the other side.
For another look at freeware games, take a peek at Joystiq's Free Game Club weekly feature!
The gameplay behind Jed is a straightforward platformer with a twist. You jump around, grabbing robots who then follow you. If you take a hit, you lose one robots. You are judged based on how many robots you made it to the end with as well as how fast you completed the level. The catch? There are robots hidden inside the background which are only accessible through collecting a black and green square to shift between the foreground and background. It's not especially innovative, but it is used to great effect to craft puzzling and complex levels to platform through.
The gameplay is really that simple. The rest of the game follows this aesthetic, with the graphics being extremely low-resolution (but in a charming way) and the sound being classic platformer style goodness. The best part about all of this, though, is how the sound ties into the music. Not since Everyday Shooter have I heard a game that allows for a procedural generation of music through game actions. It's very sexy and, apparently, unintended! Sometimes the best things in games are the ones you never expected.
That is all there is to Jed. It's easy to learn, provides some challenging platforming fun, and mixes music, graphics, and gameplay into a sort of experimental procedural generation machine. It may not warrant a ton of thought, but it also doesn't require a lot of thought to realize that this is a game that is worth playing. You can download Jed for Linux and PC through the TIGSource forum thread. Have a good time hunting those elusive robots, and try not to drop into the water too much! We'll see you on the other side.
For another look at freeware games, take a peek at Joystiq's Free Game Club weekly feature!
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FYI: You're missing a letter F in a pretty amusing place.Posted at 6:24PM on Feb 27th 2009 by James