Reader Review: Child Of Eden

I loved Child of Eden. Easily my favourite game for Kinect since its launch. Jonno Phillips seemed to enjoy it – enough to write this reader review at least.

And don’t forget the best review each month will recieve a Blu-ray pack from Madman.

Child of Eden
Ten years ago Tetsuya Mizuguchi caught the collective hearts and minds of gamers around the world with Rez. Now ten years later he hopes to repeat the magic with the spiritual sequel Child of Eden.

Loved
Audio: The sublime sounds of J-Pop mystery group Genki Rockets provide the aural soundscape for the game. They supply heavenly (star?) music that will make your toes tap and your spine shiver. I would happily pay for a soundtrack if one ever gets released. However the music would be nothing if it wasn’t coupled with the…

Visuals: Remember the look of Rez? All wireframes (yet full of a distinctive art style). Now imagine Rez while at an aquarium on a potent hallucinogenic. It truly is a sight to behold ranging from the simple schools of fish swarming through the background, the pulsating balls made of fragments and light all the way up to giant celestial whales studded with gems. And any game that features a screen filling neon lit Phoenix flying through space gets two thumbs up from me.

Two Ways to Play: You can choose to play with either your controller or via Kinect. Sadly I’ve not had a chance to play with Kinect yet but I’m trying to line up a visit with a friend for this very purpose. The game also provides separate leaderboards for each play method. You can also set your controllers to work like the now legendary “Trance Vibrator” that came with Rez, providing vibrations and feedback to the experience.

Adaptive Gameplay: This is one that didn’t strike me immediately. As I replayed levels I started to get the impression that the enemies I was facing in the levels were subtly different (appearing at other times or with different enemies). But I had just thought I was imagining things. However a quick check on Wikipedia provides the following statement “Each Archive will be replayable, changing each time depending on the player’s performance and style of play in the previous run”.

Hated
Length: The game is short. Like Verne Troyer short. Only coming in with 5 levels (or Archives if you prefer) plus one bonus score attack level. However game length is increased with the option to play with controller or Kinect. The game also cushions the blow of replaying levels with unlockable visual styles to give them a new look for your next playthrough.

Checkpoints: Are you right at the end preparing to deliver the killing blow to the boss just as you get struck down by an enemy you didn’t see? Well, it looks like you are going all the way back to the start. Now a lot of people (me included) won’t see this as an issue. I personally wouldn’t want check points interrupting the flow of the game. Each of the levels is really made to be seen in its entirety. I think the experience would be lost if you were able to start halfway through if you die at the end.

If you’ve played Rez, you have already purchased Child of Eden. If you never got a chance to play Rez I recommend you either rent Child of Eden before purchasing or alternatively download the HD version of Rez as the game won’t appeal to all, but those who find a place for it in their hearts will forever have an experience to reminisce over.

So how did you guys enjoy Child of Eden? Let us know in the comments below!


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