REVIEW : Sockventure (PC)
Don’t be put off by Sockventure’s horrible start; this platformer from Nighthouse Games and Versus Evil is very probably the best platformer I’ve ever played on Steam, and it’s already one of my all-time favourites in the genre.
It’s important to note that I’m clearly defining Steam. Granted, I don’t play many platform games on the platform and instead prefer consoles. Even so, there are some fantastic games out there – Get-A-Grip Chip comes to mind.
Sockventure, on the other hand, is the talk of the town, and I adore it. You’ll notice a lot of socks in this review, but you can blame the developers for that because of their corny wording.
Sockventure Review (PC via Steam)
When your mother orders you to clean up your room, the story begins. You begin the game as the boy, a pseudo-Cocomelon character who appears to have been constructed in the dark. I’m not one to be critical, but the game’s first impressions were bad, and it reminded me of a public domain game found on an Amiga cover disc.
Cocomelon youngster heads to the washing machine, but it’s developed teeth while picking up a fistful of rocks scattered all over the house (based on true occurrences — any parent may relate). Mum throws a few hints here, as if she were Mufasa from The Lion King, but without the clouds and wisdom.
Was all of this build-up necessary? Yes. I was ready to abandon Sockventure within the first few minutes. It just didn’t feel like the Versus Evil quality you’d expect. The graphics within the machine, on the other hand, were infinitely better — strong, vibrant colours, a wide range of level design options, and a character that, while not resembled a sock, felt like one. We’re approaching the heights of Super Meat Boy, one of my all-time favourite games.
Float Like A Butterfly
In this game, the sock, unlike the skinless chap, virtually floats. It takes a few minutes to get used to – maybe two or three minutes – and then you’re done. There are no hard moves to learn; all you have to do is push or hold the button to glide ever so slightly.
You’ll hear some comic strip ‘tap tap tap’ or ‘Yeah!’ as your sock goes about. This was first adorable, but it had no actual meaning, and you quickly forgot about it. Moving around is snappy, and the floating element helps you land with precision.
You’ve got it the instant you take your gaze away from the reward. Sockventure needs your complete focus, or you can slip into a trance and allow your gaming background to take over if you’re skilled enough. Everything about it seems perfect.
You’ll be looking for all of the socks that have been strewn about the washing machine — there are roughly 20 of them, and they all have some strange skin and abilities. A wall jump that evolved into a wall hanging was one of the first powers, followed by the renowned double jump a little later.
Aside from locating these stinking clothing, you have three main challenges to complete, all of which are optional. Complete the stage in the allotted time, without dying, and collect all of the coins. This is a tall order for a first playthrough, but it makes for a very replayable game if you want to complete all of the achievements.
I Want Socks For Christmas
Sockventure’s level designs are reminiscent of a fiendishly designed course from Super Mario Maker 2. You might cry if I took screenshots of some of the stages because they seem silly. However, when your Supersock bounces and glides with the grace of a passing game played by FC Barcelona at their peak, Sockventure restores some confidence in your platforming abilities.
This game is, however, really difficult at times — bordering on savage. Still, as previously stated, if you apply yourself (and I don’t mean to come across as condescending), you can do it, but it may take several tries to get there. Grasping onto the sides of moving platforms was one point when I struggled.
The goal is to grab to the side so that you can pass beneath sharp, pointy objects, but you only have a limited amount of time to hold on, so you must jump onto the platform when the timing is right. My problem was that I would either jump ahead of the platform or just behind it to cling on, then plummet to my death. Platforms move quicker than you because of the floaty nature of jumping. Thus timing is crucial.
But that was one of the few things I wouldn’t say I liked because I was constantly performing the same thing (dying). Checkpoints are ok, and respawns are quick. Because it’s instadeath, there’s no such thing as a health buffer, so perfection is necessary, but each region is self-contained, so you don’t have to start from the beginning each time.
I had hopped past a machine that you have to trigger to unlock your skills in the early rounds of Sockventure. Attempting to wall jump without the skill resulted in the greatest number of deaths recorded in human history. There was a pop-up after what seemed like hours of dying to adjust the difficulty, so disregard my earlier comment about settings. But it’s one of those ‘You’re having difficulties, aren’t you?’ types of situations. ‘Would you like it to go into a baby mode?’ No way, no how! This is something I can handle!
