de Blob (Wii) Review
deBlob is a fantastic addition to any Wii owners library. deBlob goes to show that 3rd party Wii offerings can stand tall next to some of the excellent software that comes from Nintendo themselves. Blending a simple gameplay formula with great visuals and an excellent soundtrack, deBlob reigns supreme as one of the best Wii games in quite some time. Read on to find out what makes deBlob such an enthralling and entertaining experience.
deBlob started life as a project by a group of Dutch students. After realising the potential for deBlob (which, in Dutch, translates to ‘The Blob’) to be realised as a console game, THQ acquired the rights to the build game based on the painting mechanism. The Wii version of deBlob was developed here in Australia by Blue Tongue Studios in Melbourne. And kudos to Blue Tongue Studios as they have taken a really interesting concept and turned into a most enjoyable game that will appeal to a wide range of gamers.
The plot of deBlob is pretty simple. You take control of Blob, a character who has to stand up to the evil INKT corporation who have taken control of Chroma City and have turned what was a colourful, vibrant city into a dull city devoid of any colour or life. With the help of the Colour Underground, a group of rebels hell bent on taking INKT down, it is up to you to reclaim the city and send the INKT corporation packing.
As said, to take back the city, you must restore the colour that has been sucked away from the city by INKT and its evil creations. Doing so requires Blob to absorb coloured ink and then simply touch the many objects in the city that need some life put back into them. Throughout the levels are small machines that have stolen the coloured ink from the city. By smashing these machines, you absorb the ink that was stolen. Ink comes in the three different primary colours: red, yellow, and blue. However, you can also mix colours meaning you can also turn purple, green, orange and brown. For instance, if you are blue and you smash a yellow ink machine, you will turn green. As you absorb more ink, Blob will get bigger and bigger. You can hold a maximum of 100 ink points, and painting the city will take away some of these ink points. However, you will also need to avoid enemies (called Inkys) and traps that will decrease your ink points. If an enemy attacks you with their black ink, your ink points will decrease quite fast. If they reach zero before you touch water, which makes you transparent (i.e., you have no ink), you will lose a life. deBlob might seem easy initially, but the enemies become more frequent and powerful as the game progresses, and if you’re not quick to reach some water, which becomes scarcer later in the game, you are in trouble.
Technically, it does not matter what colour you use to repaint the various objects in deBlob, as painting it any colour will still award you with points. As you navigate the city and paint all the black and white buildings and surroundings, you will accumulate points. Once you accumulate a certain amount of points, you will be allowed access to other areas. Scoring more points also opens up switches that, when pressed, will re-colour certain small areas, awarding you with more points. However, you also need to consider that you have a time limit which is constantly ticking down. Accomplishing objectives (which will be discussed below) and painting the citizens (Raydians) of Chroma City will award you with more time. Clocks can also be found hidden around the level which, if found, will award you with more time. You can also find different style icons hidden around each area, which give you different painting patterns as opposed to just painting Chroma City in solid colours.
deBlob is made up of 10 rather large levels, each divided into three sections. As mentioned, you will need to accumulate points if you are to access new sections. The simplest way to accumulate points is to paint as much as possible. Despite being a seemingly simple task, painting is incredibly fun. And if you are a perfectionist like me, you will want to make sure you have painting every square inch of the game. This involves making your way to some hard to reach areas. Thankfully, Blob can jump by swinging the Wiimote, though I would have preferred a button for jumping as it can be a bit finicky at the best of times. Regardless, the levels in deBlob are quite large and it takes considerable time to paint everything. Of course, you don’t have to paint everything but I certainly tried too.
Also spread throughout the levels are a series of challenges set by your friends in the Colour Underground. There are four characters as part of this rebellious team, each of whom had different types of challenges. These challenges involve racing to a certain area in a set amount of time, painting an area (E.g., a block of apartments) a certain colour, defeating a number of enemies, and bring life back to major landmarks which requires that you have a certain amount of ink power (e.g., 70 red ink points). Each area in the game is scattered with a number of these challenges, with each challenge ranging in difficulty from the easy to the quite difficult. As mentioned, completing these missions will award you with more time as well as more points, which are necessary to progress to the end of the level.
Once you finish each level of Chroma City, you will proceed onto the next. In between each level is a cutscene that helps you piece together what is happening in terms of the games plot. The cutscenes are quite funny and it is clear a great deal of effort has been put into these scenes. They look remarkable and with all the great characters in the game make for great viewing. Furthermore, when you finish a level, you will also open up two bonus levels which are smaller but still entertaining nonetheless. You will also be awarded with a gold, silver, or bronze medal for each level depending on many points you scored. On top of this, you can earn awards for accomplishing certain objectives. In all, there are 10 for each level and they include freeing all the Raydians, painting all the landmarks, and even painting a blimp that flies around each of the levels. These awards give you plenty of reason to return to the level for a second or third go. And with 10 levels all up, plus the bonus missions, there is plenty to keep you busy with deBlob.
deBlob also includes a multiplayer mode which supports up to four players. There are several different game modes to choose from, although they all revolve around painting. In one mode, you compete against the other players to see who can paint the most of the level. In another mode, the objective is the same except only one player has the ability to paint meaning the other players have to track that player down and steal the ability to paint. Another mode has the winner decided by who can paint the most again, although in this mode only certain buildings can be painted. Although the modes are pretty similar, they are still a decent distraction from the main game and can be enjoyable in short spurts. Whilst the single player mode is the heart and soul of deBlob, the multiplayer is a welcomed addition and whilst not being brilliant, it is certain solid.
The soundtrack for deBlob is a fantastic mix of funk, jazz, and rocky tracks that are each designed to represent a different mood. The tracks work well with the game, providing the gamer with a nice backdrop to paint too. The graphics are also hold up well, especially considering some of the lesser efforts we get on the Wii on a constant basis. Character models are great, and the transition you witness as the city goes from black and white to a vibrant city filled with colour, life, and cheer is something to behold. The game also offers a great deal of life with a 10 huge levels plus bonus levels. Added to that are the awards and multiplayer mode, and you have a game that will remain in your Wii for some time.
I have no reservations recommending deBlob to any Wii owner. It is a fantastic platforming/puzzle game that has a unique premise and is executed almost perfectly. It is charming, entertaining, and most importantly, a whole lot of fun. If you have not picked up deBlob yet, do yourself a favour and do so.
