I’ve not played through the entirety of Death Squared’s single-player campaign, nor have I had the opportunity to test the multiplayer mode, but what I have experienced is definitely a tonne of fun. Developed by Sydney-based SMG Studio, the game tasks players with the seemingly simple objective of placing a sentient cube-shaped robot onto a correspondingly-coloured disc to complete the level. I say ‘seemingly’ because, much like Portal, it soon becomes apparent that each fiendish, head-scratching puzzle will take a lot more thought and patience to complete than at first sight. This, I like.
The gameplay is simple. To begin with, players are tasked with guiding just two robots, red and blue, to their coloured plates. I played the Steam version, so for me one robot was controlled with the arrow keys, the other with WASD – I found a lot of deaths were caused by simply pressing the wrong key. Players navigate a 3D level comprised of silver cubes; some contain spikes that will instantly destroy a robot, for instance. Hazards can also shift dependent on the position and movement of a particular robot, so players must systematically learn the carefully choreographed dance that will lead to the level’s completion. Lives are infinite, but upon completing the level players are taunted with a tally of just how many times each cute little cube was sent to oblivion. Much like Portal 2’s Atlas and P-body, the cubes respawn, but each death feels somewhat uncomfortable, kind of like throwing the poor Companion Cube into the incinerator in Portal (although I must remind test subjects that the Cube is not sentient).
One of 10 recipients of the Australian Games enterprise funding, SMG is still going strong despite funding being cut after just one year; they have since managed to repay not just their funding but have made the total back numerous times in corporation tax. This is unsurprising as SMG, headed by founder Ash Ringrose, are responsible for the horrendously addictive mobile game One More Dash (among others), which I had to delete from my phone for fear of being entirely consumed.
Whilst Death Squared is SMG’s first console release, it’s not their first foray into gaming as a whole. Mobile apps aside, the original team had already spent many years working together at SoapCreative creating Flash advergames that reach a combined total of over 250. In the space of 3.5 years, the team has almost quadrupled in size, with several long-standing members providing their talents for this game, including Mick Lauer (aka RicePirate) who provides voices and Brad Gentle who, in addition to being the game’s composer, is also in a heavy metal band – as a metal fan, I approve.
Death Squared has changed very little during its development, with only minor changes to levels to prevent players getting stuck in unwinnable situations, therefore taking the fun out of the game. This was an intentional move, in order to keep the game appealing to the widest audience possible – “Even your grandma can play, and, more importantly, your ‘I don’t play games’ partner you’ve wanted to play co-op with since forever,” says Ringrose.
The two biggest influences on both story and aesthetics were The Stanley Parable and Portal 2, with the latter providing a lot of inspiration for the visual feel of the game. To me the gameplay itself is reminiscent of the trial-and-error style of games such as Super Meat Boy, but designer Patrick Cook was determined for the puzzles to have a greater emphasis on logic rather than continuous ‘die until you get it right’ repetition; perhaps this perception demonstrates just how much I suck at games in general!
Opting for a game mechanics and a visual style more akin to Portal was a decision based upon the desire to put out a more polished and focused game at launch, rather than spend an inordinate amount of time creating stunning graphics. This meant the majority of development time was spent on the design of Death Squared’s mechanics, puzzles and thus, its overall quality as a game. This tactic is something learned from the studio’s experiences in mobile gaming.
In terms of the game’s future, SMG believes the current game has the potential to be expanded, with more levels, modes or challenges, including more skill-based levels similar to Super Meat Boy, or hazards such as ice and wind, conveyors and timed switches. Elements such as these were ultimately left out for the launch, allowing the team to focus more intently on tweaking their finished product. Ringrose himself insists SMG have only scratched the surface when it comes to not only puzzle mechanics but also multiplayer interaction. Suffice it to say players can expect patches with additional content after the game’s release, and I for one look forward to this.
Death Squared is set to release on Steam, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on 14th March, and is available for pre-order now.
With thanks to founder Ash Ringrose for his contributions!
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