Two brothers have created a video game that blends the melancholy of Nier: Automata with the poetic scale of Shadow of the Colossus. In Motorslice, you play as P, a protagonist accompanied by his droid Orb, and your mission is to take down enormous, out-of-control construction machines. Each colossus functions like a puzzle: you must climb them, find weak points, and attack at the right moment. The influence of the classics is clear, but the game has its own cold and sterile identity.
Climbing Steel Giants: Level Design as a Mechanical Puzzle 🎮
The technical development of Motorslice relies on a level design that requires thinking about the environment. It's not enough to just strike; you must use traps, synchronize movements, and take advantage of the geography to bring down the titans. Exploration between battles recalls the 2008 Prince of Persia, with a vast world that is elegant in its complexity. The camera, however, plays tricks in some areas, which can break immersion. Even so, the chemistry between P and Orbie sustains the experience.
Orbie, the Droid That Makes You Feel Less Alone (and Less Clumsy) 🤖
If you're the type who gets lost in open-world games, don't worry: Orbie is there to remind you that you're a disaster. This droid not only gives you hints, but also looks at you with that mix of pity and patience when you miss a jump for the fifth time. That said, when you manage to solve a colossus's puzzle, the feeling of victory is so sweet that even the droid seems to smile. Or so you'd like to believe.