Point and click gaming is one of those game styles that has seemed to run it's course long before The Walking Dead came knocking. Anyone who has been gaming for a while will remember point and click masterpieces like Myst and Riven, which kept players enthralled in a rich visual world requiring a click here and there to move your player or solve a puzzle. 

Small scale downloadable titles seem to be taking over and with good reason. Some believe the cost has a lot to do with it on top of accessibility. It only takes some beers and a demo to get me pulling out the old credit card and plunking down the $5-$15 bucks. In the past I would be lucky to play these cheapo titles more than a few times and at such a minimal cost I am ok with that. 

Enter a slew of top notch small scale downloadable titles like Limbo, Braid, and Shadow Complex to name a few and now you have a serious problem. The issue here is the fact that these games are fun, inexpensive (when compared to a retail title) and instantly playable. More and more of these titles are releasing with critical acclaim while many retail releases score low and ultimately fail (I am looking at you movie tie-ins). 

Studios are now paying more attention to the avenue of digital distribution and it shows in the games that are coming out. Our review game today was announced at the beginning of 2012 and Tequila Works has been busting their butts to hit fans with a AAA small scale title. So does Deadlight hold a match to other recent critically acclaimed digital titles? Let's take a look and find out.

The year is 1986 and you are tasked with the role of Ex Canadian park ranger, Randall Wayne. Randy is on his way to Seattle looking for his wife and child amidst an epidemic that has the dead walking and wiping out the human race. 

The plot is very typical for this type of game, show or movie. If you have seen The Walking Dead on AMC or played a zombie game you will have no issue following along. The world is almost all gone with the occasional survivor or radical group coming along. Nothing new to see here and even Randy's dialog at times seemed forced like when he finds an air freshener and says it reminds him of the Canada he left behind.

The game utilizes the Unreal Engine with its 3D/2D side scrolling game play. This type of simple play can be a lot of fun because there is not a load of controls to master. You will move up, down, left and right through various dark levels. At times this feels a lot like Shadow Complex which uses the same engine to feed the same style of game play. Both were 2D side scrollers but things become a little different when mentioning controls.

Deadlight's overall controls seems sluggish and a bit out dated. Having to nail a jump on the very edge of a pit will take a few tries. Be prepared to restart a more than not. If the controls don't force you to restart, a lack of light may be just the ticket. There were so many times I died or walked off an edge because I had to run and could not see a damn thing. Sometimes I got lucky and noticed an on screen cue saying to smash a door and other times I just died. Most times the game is fun enough to warrant the many restarts. 

At the core this is a puzzler much like Limbo without the polished controls and unique art look. Not to say this game is bad but Limbo was good, really good. You will be expected to utilize different pieces of the environment including the undead to open a path to the next area. One room or path may have you luring zombies in to crush them with a hanging crate, while others require the shooting of locks to open new areas. The game play is varied enough to keep most players attention all the way through to the end.

The game looks good and the use of a 3D landscape adds depth to a 2D playing field. I loved watching enemies shamble in from the background. If you love a dark and dreary post apocalyptic world, this game is for you. The detailed hand drawn look was also very cool and happens to give the game a bit of an artsy comic book vibe only re-enforced by the comic book tile like cut scenes. 

The 80's feel is there not only in the look of this title but also the audio. The game carries a nice 80's horror/Sci-Fi synth score. The effects and music are done very well and provide yet another layer to keep you drawn in as the world attempts to expire. 

Was it just me or do first aid packs only appear when your health is full? I noticed this a lot early on but maybe that is because I was dying over and over so I would restart with full health only to find a nearby pack. Dealing with the "shadows" or zombies as we call them was a real mess if anymore than 2 appeared at one time. If you are up against 4 or more there are two things you need to know, first, you probably messed up and missed a switch or something that would have laid these pricks out, and secondly, you will probably be dead because combat is useless, even with a weapon. 

The name of the game here is avoidance. Do everything you can to keep away because to put it plainly, hand-to-hand combat sucks. I am chalking the bad combat up as intentional on the developer's part. They want me to get the hell out of dodge. This is no Left 4 Dead, run while you can.

My last complaint lies in the game's length. Initially I was kind of pissed because it takes a sitting or two for completion. Then I stopped to think about it. That timer is counting play through not the 900 restarts. I was worried for a second because either I was going insane, stuck in a time warp or someone was stealing my time. None of the above was true and with all my restarts I think it is safe to put this title at 3-4 hours. I know still low right? Well how about full retail releases like Prince of Persia that took the same amount of time and costs way more? Nuff said case closed, I retract my complaint. 

So how does the latest XBLA title fare in a very crowded world of the undead?

Pros

Cool look and 80's vibe

Nice use of the Unreal Engine

Loved the score and sound effects, very effective

Cons

Too damn dark

Controls lack polish

Some may feel it's too short

If you like zombies and gore you may want to look elsewhere as this game is more akin to I Am Alive than Left 4 Dead. If you want a solid side scroller with some decent puzzles and an excellent score, welcome home.

Deadlight is an XBLA exclusive available now for $15.

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I have never been much of a mobile gamer. Back in my younger days I owned a Gameboy and loved it but I feel like part of me has grown away from mobile gaming. I do own a Nintendo DS but my wife has logged many more hours using it. The 3DS was neat until it started giving me headaches. So I gave up on mobile gaming until I purchased the new iPad. Someone mentioned a virus simulator called Plague Inc. and my interest was piqued but being a mobile game I did not bite right away. What a dumb move on my part.

Plague Inc. is indeed a virus simulator. Not far off from the surprisingly good Pandemic 2.5 this title also tasks the player with wiping out the human race. The game begins by allowing players to name their very own "bug" and release it in the country of their choice. Once released, players must mutate, spread and control their virus to bring about human extinction. As you work to kill off the less fortunate DNA bubbles will appear on screen. If you are fast enough to pop these you will receive bonus DNA points on top of the points you receive for spreading the infection. 

If a country feels the infection is too high and closes it's borders you can choose to transmit the germ through birds and insects. When a cure is being created (it will happen) the player can choose upgrade the cellular construction of the disease or make it immune to drugs meant to destroy your apocalyptic fantasy. The amount of strategy here can be staggering at times because you never want to move along too fast to draw attention but wasting too much time can lead to a quick cure which means game over for you.

The game's interface is easy to use and thoroughly explains each option/upgrade. I really loved the ability to compare different types of transmission depending on where you released the virus. If you happened to be in a hot area, it might be a good idea to make your disease heat resistant to avoid the slowing of infection. There is also the option to devolve your disease and try a different transmission, mutation or defense. The clock does not stop ticking for these changes so make them sparingly and worthwhile. 

The scrolling banner of news is very entertaining. Everything you read via the news wire will be relevant to current events and some in the future. The Olympics are mentioned in a time line matching the real one and even 4D TVs are released down the road. The addition of real world events and people hit home and help to immerse the player into the epidemic. 

The game has an excellent soundtrack. Nice and dark without getting too serious. All of the sound effects pop nicely and seem to fit the action on screen. The world map is very colorful and I could not find a country that was missing. Having so many countries adds to the strategy allowing players to start their disease in even the most remote regions. 

I really loved the fact that you could tap on any country and see the population and current infection rate. This really gives a cool vibe as you watch neighboring countries fall because of your custom disease. Once the virus is established it can randomly mutate and gain new symptoms. This throws another element into the works and may even show a different avenue for infection or death.

The only real complaint I have is the damn random info pop ups. I needed to tap the bubbles on screen to get DNA points and that was usually a pretty easy feat unless a text box pops up. When these came up I could not hit the bubble and it would disappear before I could pop it. This is not a deal breaker but annoying when you are up against a rising cure rate and need every last DNA point. 

My only other slight gripe would be the addition of a deeper tutorial for once you are up against a cure. I played many games initially and lost because I could not defeat a cure in it's last 25% of creation. The addition of creation bubbles to tap and pop was a great help in slowing the cure when things get hectic. 

Pros

A steal at less than $1

Loads of strategy and fun to be had

Great soundtrack and effects

Cons

Damn info boxes popping up and causing missed DNA points

Could have used an advanced tutorial 

If you have an iOS device this title will give you hours of enjoyment. It is not the first epidemic/virus simulator but one of the most polished. With a load of unlock-able virus classes Plague Inc. fans will be trying to destroy humanity for quite a while.