Contrast (PC) Review

Running and leaping about in three dimensions has been the norm for videogames for quite awhile now. It took a long time to get that far - from Space War to Super Mario 64, games evolved from 2D lines and sprites to 3D polygons. When first introduced, those three dimensions of movement gave new freedom for designers and players, resulting in some of the best platform games ever made. For a while, games were content to keep pushing the possibilities of those three dimensions.

In recent years, however, some developers have been exploring the very concept of dimensionality itself. Not content with just having three dimensions, they play with the whole idea of what a dimension is. Games like Crush 3D, A Link Between Worlds and A Shadow's Tale play with perspective and "projections" - that is, a higher dimensional shape cast down onto a lower dimensional one.

The projection most people are familiar with is shadows, in other words 3D objects projected down to flat shapes by how the light falls around them. As the 3D shapes of the physical world change, their shadows also change, and as any child that has played with making monsters from their hands knows, shadows can be made to do many wonderful things.

Contrast is a game that takes advantage of this idea, and arguably does it better than any others thus far. Dawn, a character that seems designed very much with her silhouette in mind, is the one being controlled, and aside from leaping and dashing about, she can dive into shadows at any time, whereupon the game effectively becomes a 2D platformer. This mechanic lets Dawn reach new places in the 3D world as shadows frequently provide routes up to new ledges or areas not accessible via 3D space.

While the 3D platforming is fairly standard - run, jump, dash - it's this constant switching between 3D and 2D that makes the gameplay shine. Often, lights or objects have to be moved to create the shadow landscape necessary to reach somewhere. While not hard as such, these puzzles are inventive and satisfying, and quite surprising, too, in some cases.

Dawn's mission seems to be to follow and protect a young girl called Didi, who instigates pretty much everything. Her passion for exploring and meddling with people's affairs causes essentially all the tasks to be completed. In particular, Didi is trying to help out her father, an unreliable guy in trouble with loan sharks. The story takes a few simple twists, but is essentially helping him get on his feet again and make good with his family. Where the storytelling excels is not in its originality but in its presentation. Didi's parents are presented only in shadow form - in fact all the games characters other then Didi and Dawn are presented this way. This gives a unique feel that not only is a great stylistic choice, but also ties subtly into the story later.

While the story and gameplay deserve much praise, Contract sadly falls down when it comes to length. It's not just short, it's a very short, to the point where some will finish it in a little over four hours, and there is not even much else to do after that. While there are a handful of collectables that are essential for opening all story avenues, they are also pretty easy to find. They could all be found on single playthrough with just a small amount of looking around. Meanwhile, Steam achievements get unlocked every few minutes merely for playing, thus, spoiling the flow a little while adding nothing much to the actual longevity.

It is also worth noting that when first launched, there were lots of bugs. The unique challenges of its engine proved too much at the time, resulting in a game littered with glitches, many of which were game breaking. Thankfully, the newest version, at least on PC, seems rock-solid, showing off its impressive mechanics and stylised world very well.