When you first see the title screen for Redd, you may be confused by the lack of punctuation. I raised an eyebrow as I saw “Redd The Lost Temple” and wondered if this game was literally about playing as a lost temple named Redd. Not since Final Fantasy 8 have I been asked to pilot around a large habitat, but alas it turns out that Redd is not a temple; instead he is an Indiana Jones wannabe, complete with the stupid hat and magnetism for giant rolling boulders. At least there is no Shia LeBeouf…
Redd is a top-down adventure game where you navigate through the dangers and puzzles of a multi-level dungeon. Like most adventure games, you collect coins, keys, and other collectables as you explore. These items unlock further parts of the dungeon or are spent on upgrades to a number of Redd’s items and powers. Things such as faster walking speed, more powerful weapons and extra lives are all available from the in-game shop, although their value and effectiveness varys wildly. Redd’s only real weapons are bundles of dynamite that are limited but slowly regenerate after non-use. The ineffectiveness of this item is quickly apparent as most enemies are constantly moving and the dynamite takes an inordinate amount of time to count down and explode. The bottom line winds up being that this game is much more about avoiding enemies, traps, and dangerous terrain than it is about combat.
Graphically, Redd is a bit of an inconsistant mess. While it helps to be able to see a lot of dungeon real estate at once, it makes it difficult to make out some of the small sprites that you are looking at and makes it hard to be precise along narrow ledges or when trying to avoid choking to death on toxic gas. Also, the art style can leave a little to be desired as half the time you are being attacked by enemies that were apparently designed by some sort of insane person. Giant virus-looking blobs and rotating, patterned lights are going to be your main enemies and I can’t help but feel like better choices could have been made in that respect. I was more relieved than scared when I ran into my first giant bug because at least I could tell what the hell I was being threatened by.
Redd also does something that I find rarely in XBLIG indie games – it has unique moments and set pieces! From the very beginning when you are chased by a giant boulder into the temple, you feel like you’re stepping into the shoes of an archeolgist adventurer. This theme is repeated several times throughout the game as you neatly dodge giant walls of fireballs or take down a large boss in a frantic fight in the dark. It gives you many unique situations and set pieces that not only are exciting but are easy to understand and defeat while still making you feel in immediate danger. This is how a lost temple should feel, and having one-shot encounters helps keep things from becoming too repetitive in a way that other low-budget offerings sometimes do. In addition, Redd offers very solid voice acting which gives you more incentive to care about the characters and laugh at their jokes than if they were simply written on the screen.
Redd: The Lost Temple has its quirks and issues. In some spots it lacks a little polish, but the best aspects still shine through. The dungeon and its puzzles require enough depth that you can’t simply breeze through, yet none of the obstacles you face ever feel too daunting to be approachable nor does it ever feel like a chore. Everything about this game screams that it is trying to make you feel like Indiana Jones, and the most important thing is that it actually succeeds. From the voice acting, to the set pieces, to the ridiculous plot, it all rounds out a very memorable package that gave me several hours of adventure and enjoyment.
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Redd: The Lost Temple was provided for review by Blazing Forge Games. There is a free demo on the Xbox Live Marketplace and it is available for $3.
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