Kalimba is the latest game to come out of Press Play, the development studio responsible for bringing us Max: The Curse of Brotherhood. Originally named “Project Totem,” Kalimba is a puzzle platformer set to be released on Xbox One on December 17th.
You play as two parts of a totem that work together to navigate through obstacles and enemies to acquire a totem piece at the end of each level. The goal is to return perfect spiritual harmony to the island of Kalimba, which has been taken from the Kalimbis by an evil shaman. While the story isn’t a huge factor in this game (as is expected in a puzzle-based platformer), it is made entertaining by the fun narration of Hobear, who helps with tips about the gameplay, but also paints the picture of the motivations behind our actions.
You control the totem pieces simultaneously, which is tricky given the fact that they don’t always encounter the same obstacles and enemies. This was a pleasantly surprising part of the game. While it doesn’t demand as much from a controls perspective as a game like Brothers, it is something you have to get used to nonetheless. I found it to be a particularly enjoyable element because it adds another layer of complexity to the game, especially as the puzzles get more elaborate and force you to think about how to appropriately guide your totems.
The essence of the game revolves around being able to control both characters, but also swapping their positions to avoid liquids of a different color to their own, which takes time to get used to. Just when you think you’re getting the hang of things, Press Play makes things harder for you. When you perfect the jump and swap, you have to double jump and swap. When you master the double jump, you have to control one of the totems upside down. As you progress through the levels, you learn new abilities and tricks that help you maneuver your way through the increasingly difficult terrain, which consistently tests your ability to adapt. But after all, this is what keeps things intriguing and forces you to improve as a player. That’s the fun part.
Overall, the different levels are remarkably different, and will occasionally give you a lot of trouble as you try to figure out how to get past a certain feature. No two levels are the same, and the gradual evolution of your abilities and the difficulties you encounter make for a fulfilling experience when you progress through the levels. Additionally, for perfectionists, the game requires that players collect all available tokens without dying in each level to achieve a golden totem piece at the end of each level. There are also mini games available on certain levels that you can replay from the menu. So even after you beat the game, there’s always more to go back and do.
This game has a lot of potential to succeed. The co-op aspect will be entertaining because of the synchronized nature of the characters. This unique and challenging aspect will make for a frustratingly fulfilling experience that will take time to get accustomed to, and will likely cause blame to be thrown around the room at an alarming rate. The single player will see the same thing, only you’ll be yelling at yourself as opposed to a dear friend. The game is well put together, and the controls are crisp to the point that you know that any time you die it was your fault. The desire to overcome these challenges and your own mistakes makes you persist, though, even after multiple (and I mean MULTIPLE) failures.
Kalimba can be played as a single player, or a “couch co-op” game (if you think you can find a friend who can synchronize the jumping totem pieces with you and you don’t mind arguing with). Either way, the game is a challengingly fun, and puts your hand-eye coordination and peripheral vision to the test.
Kalimba will be released on Xbox One on December 17th, and will cost $9.99. For more detail on what to expect, be sure to check out the video.
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