Nitrome usually thinks big, but some of their best work is when they keep things small... really, really small! Flue is a puzzle game that, like Turnament, Ice Beak, and J-J-Jump before it, is a mere 50x50 pixels. Don't worry, you can make it bigger if you need to! Just click the screen to bring up a menu, and the icon in the lower left corner will make the game larger incrementally. Using [WASD] or the [arrow] keys, you're guiding some green goop through a series of tunnels to the exit in each stage. You're moving away rather than left or right, but if you bump up against the wall on either side of you, the world will rotate ninety degrees in that direction, as long as there's a platform for you to walk (ooze?) on. If you encounter a hole, it can be filled by pushing one of the little round balls into it to create a new platform. Just think carefully about where you're going, since the game is turnbased, and enemies move when you do!
It's hard to make a game this small engaging rather than repetitive, but Nitrome has pulled it off again. Levels are smart rather than simple, especially once the game begins introducing new elements later on, such as teleporters that spit you out around the area, or hazardous spikes that appear after every few moves. The one-hit KO is a little frustrating, especially when some levels take so much careful finagling and maneuvering, and for some players keeping a mental map of each level's layout might be more challenging because of the game's distinctive design. Still, Flue's tricky and constantly evolving level design will keep you on your toes (metaphorically speaking, you cute little blob of snot, you), and makes for a satisfying chunk of puzzling action... perfect for a coffee break!
Hmmm... stuck at level 2...
I was bothered by the lack of checkpoints in this game before realising that the levels themselves were short, and that completing the hardest puzzles in a level often meant completing it thereafter. Similar concept to their earlier release Turnament, and I think I prefer Turnament over this, but the ending makes up for it (just a bit).
The interesting thing about Flue is that the "turnbase" behaves a bit differently than Turnament. When you press the key, the main character moves first before any enemies and hazards, unlike Turnament, where the knight moves at the same time the enemies and hazards move. This means that moving into the same spot as an enemy in Flue causes the green slime to die because it moved onto the enemy first before the enemy moved to the subsequent spot, whereas the knight in Turnament could move into the same square as a working hazard and not die.
Oh, and the last two levels. I was almost on the verge of ragequitting level 14, but I remembered that it was turnbased, and that I could plan my moves without the need for fast reflexes.
I was stuck on level 2 for a while too. Don't forget, you can go backwards as well as forwards through the level.
Wow. Nitrome has managed to make SNEEZING interesting.
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