Each week Iain Simons finds you something for the weekend - a chance to while away some hours at your desk. Enjoy responsibly and don't let the management catch you...
Relax, at least to begin with.
Danny Miller’s Boomshine delivers a cloud of coloured dots which float hypnotically on the screen. Your challenge is to destroy them by choosing a point, clicking your mouse and setting off a chain reaction of explosions. The simple aim being to reach the set goal of detonations for each level. Boomshine starts off as feeling almost like a gentle therapy, with the first few levels easing you in gently to the concept.
By level 6 things have started to become a lot more challenging, considerably less relaxing but also hugely addictive as the 52 million games of it that have been played testify. Also worthy of note is the soundtrack, a piano led piece by Tim Halbert which either eases your nerves or becomes gratingly repetitious depending on your taste. The sonic design of the ‘detonations’, replaced by short tones is reminiscent of the sublime audio of the hallucinogenic 'Spheres of Chaos’ and feels like an area that could be pushed further.
Casual game developers often discuss one-button gameplay, making play as accessible as possible to the player by removing any potential complications in the interface. Boomshine takes one-button gameplay to the apex of simplicity by offering the player just one-click - per game… At least you won’t be getting any R.S.I.
Play Boomshine
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