OCO (PC) Review

Controlling the small square "dot" needs the simple press of a key, which makes it to jump, and that's about it… but of course there's more. The purpose here is to guide said dot into "eating" all the pellets that are sprinkled around. The dot moves around a rotating set of platforms - a tiny planetoid that holds it down with its gravity - and the only way for it to change its course is to bump onto a solid obstacle. Essentially, players are tasked with finding the best route, and cleverly timing their jumps in a series of stages that get progressively more complex, and even add more mechanics that simple platforms that you need to jump on.

Trampolines, warp pads, speed boosts; you'll slowly but steadily realise that there's more than jumping around here. Note, however, that you should not come in OCO expecting a platformer. This is a puzzle game, and nothing more than a puzzle game. It's all about using your wits, as the interactive bit (pressing a key) isn't the thin that will challenge you here. Level complete? Great! Now you can attempt to do it again, and get a much better time, or - even tougher - try to win with the least amount of leaps possible. Rinse, rewind, for many more, cleverly designed levels.

Now, what makes the package worthy of its price tag is definitely the fact that you can craft your own custom levels, and share them with the community, with OCO being already "pre-packaged" with many of this fan-made puzzles. To be perfectly, honest, however, this can get a bit repetitive after a while, as the cleverly covered depth of this otherwise simple experience is nice and all, but not nice enough to get one hooked, unlike something as addicting as Tetris - unfair comparison, though, as Tetris is… well, Tetris. It also doesn't help that playing this on a PC, or even a laptop, feels "wrong." This is a title that would fit right in the library of a portable console such as Nintendo's Switch.

On a non-gameplay related note, music seems to be a big part of the experience here. Not that the OST is something special - in fact it is stupendously simple; just a set of beats, electronic buzz sounds, and simple synths. The special thing here, is how the music is interwoven with the whole thing, and how the little dot makes its own sounds in perfect sync with the background tune, in essence giving this a rhythm game vibe, without it actually being a rhythm game. One last, and completely personal note, is that this reviewer would occasionally get dizzy from the constantly rotating levels after prolonged game time. Blame old age for that, but be cautious if you think it might affect you as well.