Contre Jour Review

By , on August 29, 2011


Contre Jour
Download on the AppStore
4 out of 5

PROS

  • Gorgeous visual style; World of Goo contre-jour.
  • Interesting physics puzzle gameplay; almost Cut The Rope in reverse.

CONS

  • Landscape manipulation can be fiddly.

VERDICT

It's slowly getting harder and harder to love new cutesy physics based puzzlers, but Contre Jour breaks through with its elegant visuals and interesting approach to world manipulation.


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Mayhap we'll never see the end of this trend of cute-sy characters combined with puzzle gameplay dominating the store, but one thing's for sure, Chillingo has a vested interest in keeping the motif rolling along. While Contre Jour by Mokus may not be as traditionally cartoonish and colorful as recent titles, it fits the template nicely with its scowling, yet playful main character (who happens to be a giant eyeball) as you manipulate his world to get him to each exit.

If you've played Cut The Rope you may experience a bit of deja vu here as the game treads a similar path of trying to get an object (or in this case the main character) around the level while manipulating physics-based modifiers such as ropes (elastic and fixed) or the very world itself as you push, squeeze and stretch the landscape like virtual play-dough. Of course there are three collectable bonuses in each stage to aim for, adding further challenge on top of the already difficult prospect of surviving the tricks and traps in your way.

Momentum is a big factor in Contre Jour and while you can't manipulate the main character directly you can prepare other elements like the ropes to be in the right place at the right time to keep him moving in the right direction. Unfortunately directing the landscape to change in to the correct shape at the right time isn't as simple, though few puzzles hinge critically upon this mechanic and you can get away with the occasional slip-up.

The game is also simply gorgeous, with designs that look like a back-lit version of World of Goo, which is apt considering the game's title refers to a photographic technique that literally mean 'against daylight' - otherwise known as backlighting.

If you love your physics-based puzzlers you should be adding Contre Jour to your collection as soon as possible. Those who are already tired of the genre may still get a kick out of it, but ultimately it's more of the same, albeit with a beautiful presentation.

Screenshots

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