Now You See It… | Optika Review

Minimalist, edgy, ambient, zen; the recipe for cool in today’s indie gaming scene. But the question is: If there is a recipe for cool, does the formula become uncool? Does the sensation of been there, done that trump what was once a diamond in the rough in the world of video games? After playing Optika, I can’t help but feel this light puzzler from Bulky Pix is ironically a cookie cut of previous success. Much like “Indie Music” it seems that Indie Gaming can be a derivative description rather than simply meaning independent and original.

Optika, from the get go, shows its hand. You are playing with light beams, attempting to influence certain tools in order to channel a beam into a target, thus completing the puzzle. The background is a subtle morphing fluorescent color scheme and the objects are simple black shapes with white lines that do little to distinguish one from another. As for personality, we get the steam punk professor Opticus and his young assistant Sofia. These characters are nothing more than single framed concept art, but they do add a charm to what otherwise is a bare bones game. The soundtrack takes inspiration from Brian Eno with an ambient backing. The slow pulsing notes and chimes are pleasant, but don’t expect it to be included on the next Kompakt release.

The initial purchase of Optika puzzles is, like the rest of the package, brief. You get 18 levels of tutorial and 20 levels  of “Laser Lover.” When playing the game nothing really seems that remarkable. Rotate this to bounce light off that, speed up laser, block the laser, change the color, so on and so forth. You must not only bring the lasers to their destinations, but hold them there for a few long seconds. When the puzzles are simple, they are therapeutic. Breezing through the early levels is not exactly fun, but it does bring  your pulse down in conjunction with its presentation. Unfortunately the more complex and challenging levels offer frustration. The controls are not nearly as precise as they should be, especially considering exact positioning is essential to completing the puzzles. For example: one level requires you to reflect the laser between two parallel barriers just so, so that the angle will result in a perfect bounce. I tried for what seemed like an eternity to achieve this angle with little success. Eventually I got it, but I had to place the laser in a position that actually went through the tip of the black barrier. This lack of polish is prevalent through the entire game segment that I played, with the complex puzzles being complex for all the wrong reasons. Throw in extra objects, more lasers, new colors, and the results are messy.

Optika is a game that presumably was thought of in concept and then rushed in execution. Worse yet, the base package is extremely slim, with merely 20 post tutorial levels that should take anywhere from 1-3 minutes to solve. Yes this is iOS, and yes it is only $.99 per additional level pack, but the lack of love and fun for the first 20 did not have me yearning for any additional levels – especially at an extra cost.

This review is based on a review copy of the iOS version of Optika published by Bulkypix.