Reviewed on PlayStation 4
→ August 12, 2014The carnival is in full swing: the Ferris wheel is packed and spinning madly, while elsewhere party goers are bouncing atop umbrellas and staring at their warped reflections in fun-house mirrors. All that’s missing is one final piece from the rollercoaster. It’s currently zooming happily along its tracks, but the single gap in its carriages cries out to be filled. I cruise through the air, soaring and circling, looking for something, anything, I’ve missed in this flat-shaded fever dream.
Hitchhikers hop onto my back as I surf the skies. So far I’ve dropped them all over this world – into Ferris wheel carousels, onto see-saws and atop plinths. I’ve even scooped them back up as they drift slowly down, umbrella in hand, after being spat out of the curious vacuum-like machines hovering in mid-air. This is a world with its own often-opaque internal logic, and I’m momentarily stuck as I try to decipher it.
The electric fences! That has to be it. I glide up near the towers, back to an area I‘d been avoiding after accidentally frying my precious carnival-going cargo and watching blackened corpses fall from the sky. I realise that the electric shock from flying into one of the electric fences lasts just long enough to illuminate a nearby string of lanterns.*I methodically move from lantern chain to lantern chain, and when they’re all lit, the final piece of the rollercoaster makes its appearance. I carry it back down to complete the carriage, and my reward is a creature much like myself – a space-worm-thing - who proceeds to shadow me around this strange, vibrant and colourful carnival.
I want to go to there.
Intrigued? You should be. Hohokum is one of the year’s most refreshing experiences. This cross-buy, cross-save PS3, PS4 and Vita title blurs the line between game and interactive art, and there is most assuredly nothing else like it. The area described above is just one of many, and they run the gamut from entirely abstract spaces through to very distinct places: windows into fascinating – and wonderfully creative – little worlds.
Over the course of Hohokum you’ll carry a man and his lantern through a pitch-black cave complex, shattering jewel-encrusted treasures lurking in the darkness before depositing him into a snug-looking living room. You’ll clear a path for a jellyfish-like mermaid between a series of pulsing watery globes and discover the joys of swimming with schools of hyperactive fish. You’ll even attend a wedding, picking out the bride or groom, then scooping drinks out of an undulating scarlet sea to serve to all the guests.
Lois in the sky with diamonds.
And throughout it all, you’ll have only a tenuous idea of what’s going on and what you’re supposed to be doing. In a structural sense, there are literal eyes hidden throughout each level to be opened (you can see how many there are to find on the pause menu) and each main area has a creature like yourself – unlocked with discordant fanfare – to discover. They’re linked to activities that sometimes feel like puzzles, but are better described as play – you’re really just looking for things to interact with and seeing what will happen.
And what generally happens is magical. One minute you’re helping the inhabitants of wind-swept mountain tops fly their kites, the next you’re harvesting colour swatches to feed into a hat-making machine.
Even attempting to describe this game is madness.
Hohokum is very much a game to play with an open mind and a relaxed attitude. This is not a title that’s about deep mechanics or clever puzzles: it’s a playground to be explored and experienced... and even to get lost within, as navigating between its many interconnected spaces can be quite convoluted. You will have only a hazy sense of purpose; the real goal is to simply delight in interaction. Cause and unexpected effect.
To that end, Hohokum is a huge success. Yes, it’s deliberately obtuse – you won’t always know when there are ‘puzzles’ and when things should be taken at face value, and yes, the loading times could be improved – as could the frame rate, which hitches occasionally - but it’s also overflowing with personality and a steady stream of delightful surprises.
This sequence is particularly surreal. Two words: magic beans.
Hohokum is one of those games that could only have been created by a small team, so distinct are the voices within the presentation and design. Artist Richard Hogg, in particular, deserves high praise. Every environment is striking yet distinct, and layered with expressive animations and flourishes. Hohokum is less playable while zoomed in, but you’ll want to do so anyway, just to catch the little touches – the hitchhikers raising their umbrellas when you pass through a waterfall, or the frenzied dancing at the conclusion of the wedding, as fireworks light the night sky.
More...
→ August 12, 2014The carnival is in full swing: the Ferris wheel is packed and spinning madly, while elsewhere party goers are bouncing atop umbrellas and staring at their warped reflections in fun-house mirrors. All that’s missing is one final piece from the rollercoaster. It’s currently zooming happily along its tracks, but the single gap in its carriages cries out to be filled. I cruise through the air, soaring and circling, looking for something, anything, I’ve missed in this flat-shaded fever dream.
Hitchhikers hop onto my back as I surf the skies. So far I’ve dropped them all over this world – into Ferris wheel carousels, onto see-saws and atop plinths. I’ve even scooped them back up as they drift slowly down, umbrella in hand, after being spat out of the curious vacuum-like machines hovering in mid-air. This is a world with its own often-opaque internal logic, and I’m momentarily stuck as I try to decipher it.
The electric fences! That has to be it. I glide up near the towers, back to an area I‘d been avoiding after accidentally frying my precious carnival-going cargo and watching blackened corpses fall from the sky. I realise that the electric shock from flying into one of the electric fences lasts just long enough to illuminate a nearby string of lanterns.*I methodically move from lantern chain to lantern chain, and when they’re all lit, the final piece of the rollercoaster makes its appearance. I carry it back down to complete the carriage, and my reward is a creature much like myself – a space-worm-thing - who proceeds to shadow me around this strange, vibrant and colourful carnival.
I want to go to there.
Intrigued? You should be. Hohokum is one of the year’s most refreshing experiences. This cross-buy, cross-save PS3, PS4 and Vita title blurs the line between game and interactive art, and there is most assuredly nothing else like it. The area described above is just one of many, and they run the gamut from entirely abstract spaces through to very distinct places: windows into fascinating – and wonderfully creative – little worlds.
Over the course of Hohokum you’ll carry a man and his lantern through a pitch-black cave complex, shattering jewel-encrusted treasures lurking in the darkness before depositing him into a snug-looking living room. You’ll clear a path for a jellyfish-like mermaid between a series of pulsing watery globes and discover the joys of swimming with schools of hyperactive fish. You’ll even attend a wedding, picking out the bride or groom, then scooping drinks out of an undulating scarlet sea to serve to all the guests.
Lois in the sky with diamonds.
And throughout it all, you’ll have only a tenuous idea of what’s going on and what you’re supposed to be doing. In a structural sense, there are literal eyes hidden throughout each level to be opened (you can see how many there are to find on the pause menu) and each main area has a creature like yourself – unlocked with discordant fanfare – to discover. They’re linked to activities that sometimes feel like puzzles, but are better described as play – you’re really just looking for things to interact with and seeing what will happen.
And what generally happens is magical. One minute you’re helping the inhabitants of wind-swept mountain tops fly their kites, the next you’re harvesting colour swatches to feed into a hat-making machine.
Even attempting to describe this game is madness.
Hohokum is very much a game to play with an open mind and a relaxed attitude. This is not a title that’s about deep mechanics or clever puzzles: it’s a playground to be explored and experienced... and even to get lost within, as navigating between its many interconnected spaces can be quite convoluted. You will have only a hazy sense of purpose; the real goal is to simply delight in interaction. Cause and unexpected effect.
To that end, Hohokum is a huge success. Yes, it’s deliberately obtuse – you won’t always know when there are ‘puzzles’ and when things should be taken at face value, and yes, the loading times could be improved – as could the frame rate, which hitches occasionally - but it’s also overflowing with personality and a steady stream of delightful surprises.
This sequence is particularly surreal. Two words: magic beans.
Hohokum is one of those games that could only have been created by a small team, so distinct are the voices within the presentation and design. Artist Richard Hogg, in particular, deserves high praise. Every environment is striking yet distinct, and layered with expressive animations and flourishes. Hohokum is less playable while zoomed in, but you’ll want to do so anyway, just to catch the little touches – the hitchhikers raising their umbrellas when you pass through a waterfall, or the frenzied dancing at the conclusion of the wedding, as fireworks light the night sky.
More...
