Game Review - Transistor

It's easy to love Transistor from Supergiant Games (the studio that brought you Bastion) because of its enchanting music and stunning art direction, but sadly, a confusing story and some frustrating combat mechanics hinder its greatness.

NOTE: All games are reviewed on the same level: no matter if they're Indie, AAA, or made in a garage by a guy named Johnny Fingers.  Also, all games must adhere to the same principles: they must work, they must make sense (story or gameplay), and most importantly…they must be fun.

STORY:

Red, a singer that has had her voice stolen, comes across a giant talking sword.  Without thinking twice, she yanks the weapon from its resting place and begins to drag it through Art Deco environments in search of the bad guys that stole her voice.  Standing in Red's way are various robots and mechanical beasts.  Superb audio, pain-in-the-ass dogs, annoying young ladies, and frustrating speed tests ensue.

"Oh, what a lovely sword."

"Psst.  Hey you, Red.  Come here.  Why don't you place those long, lovely fingers around my hilt and fondle away?"

"Oh, and it talks with innuendos too."   

THOUGHTS:

Transistor is a hardcore gamer's delight.  When others gamers are throwing their controllers against the wall from frustrating in-game tests, the hardcore gamer is laughing maniacally while urinating in their Depends to deter any lost concentration.  It's true, Transistor has a few oddities that the casual or mature gamer will find a tad aggravating.  The first thing you may notice is its non-willingness to share any helpful information throughout your play through.  Transistor is a game that'll take you around seven hours to conquer, but about half that time is spent in the menus trying to figure out how to play and what ability to use.  You want help dealing with those nasty Fetches or unrelenting Young Ladies?  Fat chance, kid.  Transistor isn't the parent that holds your hand while crossing the street.  It's the parent that stands on the other side of the road and waits impatiently for you to make the wrong move.  Then instead of watching you die and try again, it removes one of your legs (abilities) and just waits longer.

The other little oddity squeezed into Transistor is its confusing story.  There's really no three part act taking place.  It's more like you’re wandering around in a cloud—or Cloudbank as the game calls it—wondering just what to do next.  Is there any revelation in the game as to why any of this is happening to Red?  Nope.  Do the bad guys tell you exactly what the process is or how is came to be?  Nope.  So what does the game share?  A few bits and pieces of narration from a talking sword.  And if the gamer has enough imagination in their pixelated brain, maybe they'll find a way to fill in the blanks.  Just don't expect a fully flushed out story once the credits roll.

"Excuse me, waiter.  This menu is a little confusing.  What do you suggest?"

"Sorry, Madame, you are on your own."

"In that case, I'll have the buffalo dragon wing, the umbrella with cheese, and a puree unicorn on the rocks."

AUDIO DONE RIGHT:

This is by far one of the areas in which the game excels.  Not only is the music beautifully crafted to fit within the cyberpunk theme, but the narration (the talking sword that Red holds) goes above and beyond the call of duty throughout the story.  Not only will the player be walking through environments, fighting baddies, or reading the news (not kidding), but you’ll get to do all that while having a sword talk your ear off.  It may remind some players of Excalibur from Soul Eater, without all the silliness of course.  "FOOL!"  And one little charm to playing Transistor on the PS4 is the ability to have the narrator's voice come through the controller instead of the TV.

"Man, I sure hope there aren't any left or right turns coming up..."

GAMEPLAY & COMBAT:

Transistor runs smoothly without a hiccup.  Red will execute a move when told and all manner of button-mashing works perfectly.  So what's the problem?  Funny you should ask.  See, the combat is a teensy weensy more involved than Bastion.  The Kid usually made his way through colorful environments shooting everything in the face.  Red on the other hand, has to study her options, because the awesome, yet bulky sword makes her slow as crap.  And if she's constantly getting hit, then the game does something remarkable: instead of letting you die and try again, Transistor removes one of your processes (abilities).  Hence the hardcore gamer's delight.  So you could be traversing a whole level, bashing and mashing baddies and robot A-holes, and then BAM—you level up and attain an awesome new ability to crush the bad guys.  It's just too bad a moment later when you’re taking some heat, the game rips that ability away and now you’re stuck with the old crappy ones again.  But the fun doesn't stop there.  If you continue to take hits, Transistor will remove another ability, then another, and then another...until you have one junk ability left and a boss fight coming up.  As if the developers wanted you to be handicapped and never truly reach full potential.  For example, in Diablo 3, towards the end of the game, your powers make you feel unstoppable.  In Transistor though, you always feel like you're being held back.  This pulls the fun right out from under you, making the game feel more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.

But there is a saving grace.  You didn't think Transistor was all doom and gloom, did you?  To weave your way a little easier through the enemies, Transistor gives you the "Turn."  The ability to stop play and strategically choose movements (not too many, it wouldn't want you to have too much fun) and then execute your strikes in a faster, much more efficient manner.  But here comes the downside.  While your Turn Meter fills back up, you're left without any abilities to use.  Oops.  Sure, in the later levels—once stacking becomes available—you have the option to use one process during the filling of the Turn Meter, but that's only if it hasn't been taken away already.

"I will vanquish every last dark soul in this room, but first, every bit of furniture must be destroyed."

FRUSTRATION:

There's a fine line between fun and frustrating in a game.  Developers can give a gamer the chance to choose how hard they want the experience, but even then, sometimes a game is made to be exceptionally hard or disruptive.  Is that a good thing?  Only if you have the time to sit down and replay a part in a game over and over again.  If you don't have the time, then you'll probably get up and go do something else or—*gulp*—switch to another game.  For instance, there are backdoors located throughout Transistor that lead to a beach type area where certain tests become available.  These various tests allow the player to gain experience points and level up.  But some of these tests—like the speed tests—have nothing to do with skill, and everything to do with luck.  Attempting these tests over and over again without prevail, tends to strip a game of its most important feature: fun.  And at the end of the day, it's the fun that'll keep people returning, not a frustrating challenge.

PRICE AND LENGTH:

Just a few weeks ago, Child of Light made its debut and for a decent price gave you at least twelve hours of pleasant, magical, fun.  Transistor landed in the market place for twenty bucks and gives you about seven hours of gameplay.  Cost and length must be factored into a purchase because most gamers cannot buy everything.  One must pick and choose their pixelated battles.  And when you have Child of Light cheaper, longer, and for some, less frustrating...sometimes the choice is simple.

"You stay right here, Mr. Chatterbox, so I can go freshen up."

"Hurry back you sexy minx."

CONCLUSION:

Transistor brings back the wonderful audio and voiceover talent that gamers remember from Bastion.  The art direction is gorgeous and the music is beyond exceptional.  But with slightly monotonous levels/enemies, an almost non-existent story, and no helpful knowledge in menus or gameplay, frustration can become a major factor throughout play.  With a price tag in the slightly high range for its length, you may be better off waiting until a price drop.  But if a hardcore-gaming-cyberpunk-machine world is your cup of tea, then Transistor will be your paradise.

3 out of 5 Stars (minus one star for confusing story and another star for frustrating combat mechanics)