PN Review: Q.U.B.E: Director’s Cut (WiiU)

Q.U.B.E is a first person puzzle game from ‘Toxic Games’. This interesting new eshop title challenges the player with the task of saving planet earth from an unidentified object hurtling through space that could end life as we know it! Problem is, you’ve somehow ended up inside of this murderous death machine! So suit up, get ready to save humanity and don’t forget to tell your significant other that “you’re leaving on a jet plane, and don’t know when you’ll be back again.” ;D

The player wakes up to the sound of a woman’s voice over the radio. She tells you that you have been unconscious for 15 days, and that you’ve also probably lost your memory (how nice!). As you begin to explore this unfamiliar white, padded room the mystery woman continues to catch you up on your mission, saying she’ll check back with you whenever possible. There’s not really any kind of tutorial, but then again I didn’t think there was a strong need for one. Using the awesomely futuristic gloves you have on, you can interact with the (colored) blocks around you. Moving them in your favor so you are able to progress.

For example, you may see one red block in a room full of white blocks. By walking over to it and pressing either ZL (extrude and object) or ZR (depress an object) you can move it in a specific direction. Not all of the blocks do the same thing. Their uses are categorized by color, so its easy to remember that blue does this and green does this, etc. The surroundings are extremely simple, yet somehow realistic enough to pull you in. That’s most likely due to this game using Unreal Engine. Even though there’s not a ton to look at, it gets to the point and it looks good doing it. Pressing A will make you jump while the left joystick is used to walk and the right joystick is used to look around.

It takes little time to get familiar with the controls and gameplay itself. You start out in easy sectors at first. But as you make you’re way through the eerie corridors the game’s difficulty level begins to rise. New blocks, with new uses are added, switches that change the location of certain blocks and even blocks that will launch you up into the air to reach those high spots. It seems a little overwhelming but it actually makes you stop and think about your next action instead of just rushing through each level.

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The story mode is just a few hours long depending on your skill level. However since this is the Directors Cut there are a few extra features for you to enjoy. Including an all new original soundtrack and a special time trial mode, cleverly named ‘Against the Qlock’. That way after you’ve saved planet earth you can still enjoy some challenging puzzles, but under the pressure of a time limit instead of impending doom!

Overall I really enjoyed Q.U.B.E for the WiiU. It was fresh and unexpected compared to a lot of the cheap looking/feeling games that have recently been released on the eShop. It’s definitely a must have for the puzzle fans out there but it has more to offer than just that. The graphics, gameplay and story are worth experiencing as well. ‘Q.U.B.E: Directors Cut’ is available for $7.99 which is a great price in my opinion. If you’re up to the task of saving earth and you enjoy a good enthralling game this will be one you’ll want to checkout.