Pid Review

As I mentioned in my recent review for the Vita game Dokuro, I’m not an exceptionally talented puzzle gamer, but I’m still intrigued by and regularly drawn into the genre. As a pretty and unique puzzle-platformer, Pid does a great job of differentiating itself from the crowd of like-minded games, of giving itself a unique and welcoming aura that will appeal to all kinds of players. Then again, it’s an imperfect game, too, one that didn’t quite live up to the experiences I had playing the game multiple times in months past.

In Pid, players are put in the role of a young boy named Kurt. After an unusually eventful bus commute, Kurt finds himself on another planet, one full of mysterious (yet mostly welcoming) inhabitants. All Kurt wants to do is go home, and it’s up to you to get him there.

Hectic combat, gravity wells deployed.

Pid’s cartoonish premise fits in perfectly with its fantastical gameplay, which revolves around the use of an orb Kurt finds very early on his homeward journey. This is no ordinary orb, however, for this orb -- which Kurt seems physically unable to relinquish control of -- manipulates gravity. And it’s this orb and its strange ability that turns Kurt from a helpless, stranded child into a surprisingly powerful adversary for the evil forces that intend on making sure he never returns to his native planet alive.

Kurt’s ability to control gravity comes by way of gravity wells that the orb creates on command. Two gravity wells can exist at one time and can be launched anywhere Kurt (and eventually his slingshot) can reach. Planting a gravity well on the ground will allow Kurt to be lifted upward. Throwing gravity wells on vertical walls will send Kurt away from the wall horizontally. Tossing a gravity well on the ceiling pushes Kurt downward. So for instance, if there’s a platform above Kurt that he can’t reach, he may plant a gravity well underneath him to lift himself up to it. But if the platform is to his right and there are spikes above him, he may again throw a gravity well on the ground and then toss another well on the wall to his left to push him to the right before he collides with those spikes.

But gravity manipulation isn’t all there is in Pid. Kurt’s situation is exponentially complicated by the presence of wily enemies, some smarter than others. Thankfully, Kurt will encounter a full array of tools that will help him combat (and outright avoid) his foes. Blue bombs will damage enemies instantaneously, while red bombs use a timer that lets you place them more strategically. Firecracker-like items allow Kurt to jump extremely high and stay out of harm’s way. Smoke bombs will keep Kurt obscured from the probing view of flashlights and spotlights. And, should he be embroiled in combat, Kurt can find vests that allow him to withstand more damage.

Color also plays an important role in Pid; especially the colors blue and red. An enemy colored red can be affected by gravity wells, as can any projectile he fires. But if an enemy is colored blue, it's invulnerable to gravity and must be dealt with in other ways. This pattern carries over to inanimate objects as well. If a floor, wall or ceiling is blue, gravity wells won’t work. But gravity can affect many other items in the environment – platforms, boxes and the like – to assist you in certain sticky situations.

For the most part, all of these elements combine wonderfully, especially early in the game. But Pid has the tendency to be a bit inconsistent, with some strange difficulty spikes and a couple of outright confounding puzzles, one of which I had to actually ask the developer for advice on. Pid can, at times, up the frustration with other troubling issues as well, such as spotty collision detection. For a game that relies on pinpoint puzzle solving, these issues prove completely unavoidable.

Thankfully, Pid has plenty of enjoyable aspects that keep it sliding too far outside of the realm of the great game. For starters, it’s gorgeous, not necessarily in terms of its technical fidelity, but in how all of its aesthetic elements are put together. Backgrounds and foregrounds are vibrant, vividly colored and simple, and each location in Pid is completely unique. The game’s characters are endearing and strange, with bizarre voiceovers and appearances. Bosses are especially amazing, and the unique battles surrounding them are among Pid’s most memorable moments.

One of Pid's strange bosses.

But perhaps the biggest presentational standout is Pid’s soundtrack, which is amazing. Pid’s musical score is as varied as its locations, drawing inspiration from a multitude of different genres ranging from old-school chiptunes to smooth jazz. The game’s varied levels are each heightened by their sonic accompaniment, which heightens the game’s already significant ambience to even greater heights. The musicians behind Pid’s soundtrack should be applauded.

Of course, a wonderfully realized world doesn’t necessarily make up for some of Pid’s pacing and gameplay issues, but then again, those issues were never paramount to begin with. Pid’s still a game worth paying attention to, even if it’s not quite as grand as I had hoped it would be.