Well folks, Fez is finally out, after being in development for almost 5 years. The game has been under a spotlight for the longest time and has even won awards before its release. Fez has also made its rounds with the help of the highly praised Indie Game: The Movie. The game is priced at 800 Microsoft points ($10) and has been receiving some generous scores on Metacritic.
Here's the lowdown:
100 - Joystiq
I haven't smiled as much while playing a game since my first multiplayer run of LittleBigPlanet, and even then I was only smiling because I was terrible and enjoyed frustrating my friends as they ran gracefully through the levels. Fez is comparable to Braid or Limbo in terms of recent indie platformers, but it is infinitely more heartwarming than Braid and less terrifying than Limbo...There's a lot to be said for a game that can make a grown woman squeal with glee dozens of times in a playthrough.
95 - IGN
Curiosity, envy, and excitement dominate conversations about bewildering thematic patterns, creative solutions to intelligent puzzles, and unforgettable level design. Players are likely to gush about the beautiful aesthetic and childlike sense of wonder in equal measure.
90 - Edge Magazine
The route you pick through Polytron's floating world is nearly impossible to verbalise, while its puzzles resolve themselves in your mind unexpectedly, in clear, wordless chunks. There's really no language to cover many of the things you get up to in Fez. For a videogame in 2012, that may be the ultimate endorsement.
80 - GameSpot
Small problems occasionally get in the way, but Fez has such intricate puzzles and enticing aesthetics that it's still an engaging journey.
Now I purchased Fez and played it for about 4 to 6 hours. I have to say that it's good enough to stand out, but I don't understand the all the hype for this game. Fez is good, but not on the level of Super Meat Boy, or even Braid. The game reminds me of SEGA's Crush or an 8bit Paper Mario, without the RPG element. There's nothing really too challenging, except for figuring out where you are or where you have to go; after that it's quite simple. The 8-bit graphic style is always a welcome visual for me. I'm still waiting for the music to hook me the way Daisuke Amaya's Cave Story did.
Let me clarify something, the game is not bad at all, I just feel this game is getting such a high praise because it's "cool" to say the game is amazing. It almost seems as if you say the game is incredible, you'll earn the ranks into some elitist group gamers. I guess it would be cool to make a game all by yourself and hear others brag about it, but I'm one that believes that working with a team will give you much better results.
Let me pose this question to you; what are your thoughts on Fez?
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