When you look at Iconclasts it seems that this is another "pixel" platformer, which a group of indie enthusiasts did in their spare time. In fact, this is the result of almost a decade of work by Swede Joakim Sandberg (Joakim Sandberg), alone engaged in every component of the project of his dreams. And it's impressive to the point that you involuntarily start to consider each pixel and admire every second animation, simultaneously gaining great pleasure from the gameplay.
The player takes control of Robin - a girl-mechanic living in a society with an authoritarian regime. In this world it is impossible to do what you like and choose the desired job, for people this is decided by One Concern. Do not obey their rules - prepare to be behind bars or even be killed. But Robin does not frighten all this - so much she does not want to let go of the wrench.
Therefore, she decides to use her skills for the benefit of the suffering people, enlisting the support of several protesting residents. And how much effort was invested by the developer in Iconoclasts, can be seen even in conversations with random people. The author managed to recreate the world, in which you believe, despite the "pixel" graphics. Citizens are frightened by the threat of punishment for the slightest oversight, they do not always trust Robin because she is a "freelancer", her mother forbids her son from communicating with the heroine, since she has a "bad influence" on him. The plot is full of surprises, and on the way you constantly meet interesting characters, although their dialogues and monologues sometimes seem to be drawn out.
It's great to combine a discussion of serious topics, the experiences of heroes, good jokes and a pleasant atmosphere. And the tempo of the narrative is very rare - there are few unnecessary or boring episodes in the game.
In its structure Iconoclasts- "Metroiding", where already in the first location you see a lot of secrets, access to which is blocked until you get the appropriate skills or tools. And you will get them either in a few hours, when you return to the chosen zone, or during the "New Game +" - there the equipment is unlocked from the very beginning.
With these secrets, many puzzles are connected, since even with all possible items in the inventory, the path to the treasure chest is not always obvious. The Robin wrench is used in a variety of situations: it twists the bolts and thus opens the doors, then it clings to it with the help of dangling circles in the air and rises high (it is not trained for the standard double jump), then it spins it and beats off the projectiles. Later, the key becomes even more useful, and with those strange blue wires that you saw at the beginning of the passage, finally give something to do.
To solve puzzles, firearms are also used. Prior to receiving the "upgrade" (which, incidentally, is accompanied by one of the best scenes in the game), Robin can only shoot in different directions with flying not very far shells, but soon it becomes possible to switch between them and bombs. Then puzzles are even more interesting - you need to determine in which order to activate with the help of bombs buttons, which platforms to get up and where to shoot. Usually when you get new opportunities you have to use them all the way - if you give an improvement of a wrench, in the next location you will have to swing it at every step. And the ingenuity of the author, who could come up with so many different puzzles, can only admire.
It is interesting here that the rewards for finding secrets and the solution of optional riddles are not at all worth the time. But you still want to get to each chest - the process in this case is more important than the result. In the boxes, Robin finds the materials used to create the improvements, three of which can be equipped at the save points. One of them will allow you to breathe longer underwater, the other will increase the force of the impact with a key. You find new schemes in almost every location.
And this element of the gameplay seems completely ill-conceived and made only so that the player had a reason to solve cool puzzles. The performance improvements are so insignificant that their effect is invisible, even if you put on all three "upgrades". In addition, when you take damage, these pieces wear out, and they need to be replaced from time to time. But you almost forget about their existence almost immediately - even when I had a bundle of various materials in my inventory, I did not want to spend time on "Kraft". Although it is possible that for access to some chests the possibility of long breathing underwater is still useful.
But the pros of Iconoclastsmuch more than flaws. The combat system, for example, does not offer revolutionary ideas, but it fits perfectly into the gameplay. Ordinary opponents are either extremely weak and die with a couple of shots, or are forced to use the entire arsenal - to swing the key in order to kill their shells, throw bombs at the poor fellow, and thus move to the abyss, stun and jump on them from above. Fights do not take much time and do not irritate - they rarely spend more than a few seconds.
Quite differently, battles with "bosses" were built, during each of which the heroine is locked in one room with a huge enemy. It is necessary to learn "timings", remember the techniques used by them and again find use almost the entire arsenal. And if the rest of the opponents die quickly, the bosses have a large health reserve and gain new skills while inflicting significant damage to them. There are also episodes in which the assistant joins Robin, and in such situations, you have to switch between them, which adds dynamics to the already exciting fights.
Fortunately, with the management of problems does not arise during battles, nor during the usual exploration of locations. The heroine reacts quickly to button presses, easily clings to the necessary objects with a wrench, and also grasps the ledges if she could not jump to the next platform. It can shoot only in three directions, but when approaching the enemy includes a kind of help with aiming, saving time. The only thing that seems to operate in a completely illogical way is the character's interaction with the boxes: you can lift them only by jumping on them and pressing the "up" button.
Thanks to the excellent management of exploring locations - a pleasure, good and they look great. In every detail there is a long-term work of a single developer who was able to draw a variety of zones, populate their unusual opponents and add a lot of secrets. Some of them are hidden so well that even after careful examination of each pixel, the counter in the menu will still report the missing chests. Then in the suspicious wall when approaching the opening opens, then when the stones are destroyed, a small loophole will be available, and you will run past it without even thinking about its existence.
You can also praise the animation, which gives all the characters emotions and feelings no worse than conversations, and a pleasant style that will suit even those who are tired of the "pixels". Ten years is a very long time, for which many things and phenomena can become obsolete. But "metro-dating" with puzzles, good stories and excellent battles with "bosses" will not become obsolete, probably never. And it's great that now we have an example of how one person can go to his goals for years, polish each element of his project almost to the ideal and succeed. Iconclasts does not offer something completely new to the genre, but it does not prevent it from being one of its best representatives.
Rate:8/10
