Oct
9
Blinx The Time Sweeper
Filed Under Uncategorized
It is a sad day, indeed, when the world’s only Time Factory malfunctions and, as a result, an evil organization of pigs (self-named Tom-Tom Gang) seize the opportunity to gain power by stealing time. This is where Time Sweepers come in, a group of detectives who make sure that the flow of time will fairly be distributed to the world. Among these brave detectives, only one can stand against the test of time (no pun intended) and save the world from sure destruction. Our hero is Blinx, a cat equipped with a special vacuum that can control the flow of time to save time before time runs out.
Blinx the Time Sweeper was appropriately marketed as “the first 4-d game,” the 4th dimension, obviously, being time. Because Wolf’s book was published before the game had been released, the game is naturally not mentioned. However, in retrospect, if a new book were to be published dealing with time in videogames, Blinx would unquestionably be on the list for taking the idea of time to the next level. Before I explain the revolutionary features of Blinx the Time Sweeper, I’d like to note that Blinx does have a simple title sequence that displays the logo and the developer (Artoon). Additionally, the game boasts a number of interludes that set the tone of the game (the beginning cinematic, for example) and some other interludes between levels in order to move the storyline.
Where Blinx the Time Sweeper shines, however, is its implementation of interactive time. To best explain what I mean, I’ll use a VCR as an example. When watching a movie, you can fast-forward, rewind, pause, record, etc. disrupting the flow of time within the movie itself. Take all the features that a VCR provides, add interactivity, and you have the essence of the gameplay in Blinx the Time Sweeper. All of the time functions affect the game world. For example, by clicking on the pause function, everything in the game world will pause (except for Blinx, of course) so that he can go behind an enemy and hit its weak point, for example. This is an innovative take on stillness and movement. Likewise, if a bridge were to collapse in the game world, the player would have the ability to rewind time as to rebuild the bridge. This would be an innovative take on repetition and cyclical time. Furthermore, Blinx has the ability to slow down time and fast forward time which has strong effects on his speed.
If Blinx the Time Sweeper didn’t include its innovative time manipulating capabilities, the game would be impossible to beat. Time manipulation is a positive influence on the game, because without it, there’d be no possible way to cross a broken bridge without rewinding time and restoring it. Without crossing the bridge, Blinx would have failed his mission, and the world would end. Time is of the essence in Blinx the Time Sweeper. If interested, watch the following video to see the game’s revolutionary features in action: http://youtube.com/watch?v=r4_dToOykqw