Previews

Second hands-on with Chillingo's arthouse casual-puzzler Contre Jour

Contradictive

Second hands-on with Chillingo's arthouse casual-puzzler Contre Jour
|
iOS
| Contre Jour

[Pocket Gamer editor Rob Hearn got his hands on Chillingo's Contre Jour back in June at E3. Click on the link to read his preview. Here's what smartphone editor Will thought of it when he had some hands-on time yesterday.]

Every hit game is followed by a legion of clones, and puzzle-platformer Contre Jour belongs to more than one of these legions.

It might be considered a clone of Cut the Rope, because it involves using ‘ropes’ to collect stars (in this case floating blue things).

And it might be considered a clone of Simigo's Bumpy Road, because it involves pushing up the landscape to propel your character - which looks like the star of Spoing, another Chillingo game - along.

But it combines its influences to produce a game that feels fresh.

Play it again

Using the gameplay mechanics described above and more, you need to get Petit - the helpless star of the game, named after The Little Prince - to a series of portals across three worlds.

Gameplay aside, the most striking thing about the game is the atmosphere - Contre Jour is like the offspring of Xbox Live Arcade hit Limbo and 2D Boy's World of Goo. (Two more influences to add to the list.)

It looks gorgeous in motion, with details like giant Venus Flytraps adding to the creepy mood, and its visuals are complemented by some extremely haunting piano pieces.

The controls, too, are smooth and intuitive, and the whole game exhibits a high polish.

We’ll find out whether Contre Jour has enough to push Om Nom, Spoing, the boy from Limbo, and its other influences aside when it launches on iPhone and iPad later this month.

Will Wilson
Will Wilson
Will's obsession with gaming started off with sketching Laser Squad levels on pads of paper, but recently grew into violently shouting "Tango Down!" at random strangers on the street. He now directs that positive energy into his writing (due in no small part to a binding court order).