Release Date: 05/11/2013
Played On: Win
Available On: iOS / Mac / Win
Time Played: 1h
Progress: A Bunch Of Attempts
Developer: Cypher Prime Studios
Publisher: Cypher Prime Studios
I always think it must be difficult to carve out a visual identity for a game development studio, as it kind of puts the cart before the horse in a lot of ways. After all not every game will fit into the same style guide, unless their scope remains limited as well. Is it worth giving up a little bit of depth to retain a strong identity? I'm still not sold either way.
Much like the credits at the end of a movie, I rarely pay attention to who's behind the things that I watch. It's only the big studios and big names that tend to register long-term, so when a little indie studio like Cypher Prime manages to stand out, you know there's a reason for it. I haven't played all their games, but I've messed with enough of them to recognise a certain continuity throughout.
To their credit, the thing that always stand out for me is the level of polish they put into their games. Considering their limited scope, I've always appreciated that extra little attention to detail and time spent on the aesthetics of their experiences. Suffice to say, I've yet to be disappointed by a Cypher Prime games, at least artistically anyway.
Intake is no different, as its graphics feel smooth and precise from front to back. Sure they're not pushing any boundaries on the fidelity or polygon counts, but the thing I enjoy about these games is that they fit their purpose well.
Before playing Intake, I worked my way through Splice, which is a puzzle game about dividing cells (essentially). Splice was simple and straight forward, but it looked and played buttery smooth. There were loads of little animations choices and additional effects that really brought everything together and made the whole experience pleasant and comfortable.
The same can be said about the aesthetics of other Cypher Prime games, including Intake. The point I'm trying to make is that there's something about this developer's approach to aesthetics and visuals that can be felt in all their games. It's not like they all use the same palette, or the same artistic styles. Instead it's like you can see common signs in each game that point to a familiar creator.
Maybe I'm just blowing smoke up the butts of some relatively tiny little games, but this is why I was drawn to Intake in the first place. Not only was it from a studio that has previously delivered me some excellent gaming experiences, but it looked visually striking and interesting. As soon as you glance over a few screenshots, it's clear that this game is bursting with colour and vibrancy.
Sadly though, Intake actually turned out to be little more than a bunch of colours flashing pleasantly on the screen. Without mincing words, the overall gameplay loop loses its lustre super-fast, and leaves you with a bit of a sore wrist in the process. Turns out that looks and pedigree aren't actually anything to bet the farm on.
Essentially though, Intake attempts to be a fresh take on classic shooters (another reason I was interested), but with a contemporary twist. The basic gameplay mechanic is that different coloured pills will fall from the top of the screen to the bottom, while you attempt to shoot them before they land. Your mouse moves a cross-hair over the screen, and right-clicking switches your shots from one colour to another, so you can hit the corresponding coloured pills as they fall.
It's a simple mechanic that actually works quite well, but I feel like it would have been better suited to touch devices instead of mousey keys. I can imagine playing it on my phone with one thumb on a button to change colours, while the other hand is free to tap on pills as they fall from top to bottom.
Instead, my wrist tends to get quite sore when I make rapid and precise movements with my mouse for extended periods of time. Having to click both mouse buttons in rapid succession also adds to the claw seizing up and having to take a break after short spurts of gameplay. I found that I could only stand playing Intake in five to ten minute bursts if I wanted to avoid any cramps for the rest of the day.
There are other systems at play, like unlocking power-ups and other styles of gameplay. Even the soundtrack is hidden behind unlocks, so after a couple of games you'll probably want to turn it off entirely as I did. Turns out there's only a finite number of times I can hear "Be Aggressive" repeated before I want to murder my PC speakers.
However, it's not all disappointment after all, as Intake still comes with that Cypher Prime level of visual quality that honestly carried me over the other hurdles. I probably wouldn't have played for even the short time that I did, if the game didn't look half as good as it does.
Considering you need to use colours to even play the game, it's a fine thing that Intake has such a strong visual palette. Thankfully there are even colour-blind options available, but I never tried them out as I have no use for them. Knowing that the option is there not only speaks to the importance of the game's visuals, but that some care has been taken to ensure that you're not left out if you have trouble with the main system in the game.
Although, with so many gameplay elements locked behind unlocks and achievements, I also think Intake would have been more interesting if I had been able to access everything from the beginning. On the game's web site they hint that you can unlock a proper shmup version of the game, which sounds awesome to me, but not when I have no idea how long I'll have to slog through to get there. At the end of the day I'd rather save my wrist the pain and go play some other shmup that gives me the good bits from the beginning.
So despite having the Cypher Prime polish that made me love their previous games, Intake managed to fall flat in just about every other way for me. I used to think that gorgeous aesthetics and strong visual design was enough to keep me hooked into a game, but this one has changed my mind.
It's a little disappointing to be honest, as their first game Auditorium has been one of my favourite mobile gaming experiences ever. Although maybe that's the thing I need to remember about Cypher Prime, as I still think Intake would have been better on mobile as well. Perhaps I need to adjust my expectations away from mousey keys and relegate this studio to the touch screens instead.
At least I might be able to avoid some RSI for a little longer.