A small splash
Titan Souls took the world by storm last year. Born out of the minds of the tiny indie team Acid Nerve, everyone was anxious to see their follow-up.
While Telepaint, a bite-sized mobile puzzle game, isn’t quite as titanic as a hardcore boss rush project, it’s still very much representative of Acid Nerve’s talent as a studio.
Telepaint (iOS [reviewed on an iPhone 6])
Developer: Acid Nerve
Publisher: Acid Nerve
Released: March 10, 2016
MSRP: $2.99
Telepaint benefits from its mobile control scheme, which makes tapping specific points of interest a cinch. The gimmick involves portals, set at certain points within each level. Tapping two of them initiates a link (as seen above), and allows the main character to warp between them. The entire game is on auto-pilot outside of controlling said portals. Our adorable paint-can hero needs to be reunited with his brush at the end of every level, and you’ll facilitate that by warping him to and fro.
He’ll walk forward automatically, and upon bumping a wall or object, turn around and continue on. You’ll need to use this to your advantage often, as having the paint can move through a portal on the wrong side can be deadly. If it sounds simplistic, that’s because it is, but it works.
It’s fun to frantically look around and try to save the main character from danger, whether it’s through a quick portal tap or a collective meditation session at the start of the stage (which won’t begin until you tap something). As is the case with most mission-based mobile games, there’s a quick retry button if anything goes wrong, as well as a fast-forward option.
Like most well-paced puzzlers, new concepts are introduced every so often (like rapid warping, sequenced puzzles, and buttons that produce walls or hazards), ramping up in difficulty as to allow the player to acclimate. While portal hopping comprises most of the early stages, you’ll quickly have to adapt to new tactics like warping keys into opportune places. The art style is also endearing, cute, and backed up by a fun little VCR-style user interface that justifies the fast-forward feature.
That’s all well and good, but a lot of the ideas pitched in Telepaint have been seen before, and several levels actually retread over the same material, seemingly to pad the experience. While that doesn’t happen often, when it does, you’ll notice it, and will likely feel the urge to take a break before diving back in. Since the price tag is only a few bucks, it makes that pill a little easier to swallow, especially when the fatigue sets in.
[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]
