The HD Adventures of Rotating Octopus Character was originally a PlayStation Mini for the PSP. It was ported to the Vita with increased resolution and trophy support. It is a sort of platform puzzle game with simple 2D graphics. The premise is that you are an octopus. It has to find and save all the baby octopuses scattered across the levels, avoiding enemies in the process. The game features two modes, a Standard Mode, and a Challenge Mode. The gameplay is the same between both modes, the difference mainly being that they have slightly different progression.
The octopus constantly moves / rotates. You can only control when it will jump or when to move in the opposite direction. This control scheme makes it quite difficult in the beginning. The thing that will throw you off is that straight after you jump, you cannot pause to get your bearings; rather the octopus just carries on going. The other annoying thing about jumping is that you never get used to which direction the octopus will instantly move towards to after a jump. In later levels where it is crucial in avoiding an enemy right after you land, it’s frustrating and feels like luck of the draw. More often than not, you’ll find yourself dying because of this.
The direction of where the octopus will jump to will depend on the angle of the surface it is on. This makes curve surfaces harder to predict on where you will land. You’ll face the same issues on uneven ground. The game isn’t too long, there are 76 levels spread across seven world. Some levels are chilled and you can take your time, while others are tenser with enemies moving around that you must avoid. This can be annoying especially when enemies have homing attacks as you forced to be continually moving and makes dodging a big pain.
In Standard Mode, you are given a limited amount of lives to go through the whole world. If you lose all your lives, you will have to start again from the beginning of that world. Most worlds are comprised of ten stages, so that means you must ace through ten stages in order to unlock the next world. There is also a time limit to which you must finish the stage by, or you would lose a life. It’s sad that you can’t even patiently scope out the level to carefully complete it.
There are a limited amount of water bubbles scattered across each stage. Collecting enough will give you an additional life. However, touching an enemy means an instant loss of life. The fact that the octopus is a one-hit wonder and that you have to repeat all the stages means it is a cheap and artificial way to block your progression. There is nothing more infuriating than getting to the last stage, die, and then have to repeat all nine stages before it in order to attempt it again. The Challenge Mode is more like a time trial. You will be given a time limit to finish the stage. It’s better than Standard Mode in that you play one stage at a time, and finishing one will permanently unlock the next one.
Overall, The HD Adventures of Rotating Octopus Character is a simple game that isn’t that great. The core mechanics are okay but having to constantly move, and dying in cheap one-hit attacks, or having to repeat all the stages in the world if you die makes it a game that is hard to recommend.
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