Realms Review

In an App Store stuffed with some of the most soulless corporate cash grabs imaginable, it’s always refreshing to get a really hippie game like Realms. Its imagery is implying some pretty far out stuff once you start to think about it - at least in the right kind of altered consciousness. But even if you don’t choose to read too much into possible subtext, this is still a soothing, beautiful, but still exciting reflex game.

Even just a description of Realms sounds like somebody was under the influence. Players guide a speedy orb of light as far as they can down treacherous dark caverns by tilting their device. Objects are constantly and subtly warping, which gives players a fair amount of uneasy leeway. However, they still must always be ready to make a sharp turn or maintain a straight line as the walls close in on them. Power-ups like speed boosts, screen-clearing explosions, and a limited shooting ability provide occasional help along the way. Smooth controls accurately translate the player’s movement while keeping the game from feeling too jittery. But the difficulty is all over the place in the randomly generated realms that make up each level. Sometimes the first stage is a cakewalk while other times players will crash within seconds.

When the presentation is this pleasant though, the retries become much easier to swallow. Easily the most impressive visual element is the orb itself. Its soft radiance, surrounded by an intricate glow, is incredibly pleasing to gaze at; as are the swirling fiery tendrils that make up its tail. At first the look of the jutting obstacles seems a little plain in comparison. After all, they're just colored rectangles on top of oblong black shapes. However, in motion they look much better as they shift and distort in strange ways while the light of the orb reflects against them. Meanwhile the piano music, much like the game itself, manages to be simultaneously relaxing and exciting.

However, it must be said that between the shape of the orb and the overall premise of guiding this life-bringing traveler down dangerous crevices, it’s hard not to get a whole “sperm and egg” vibe from the game. Just saying. But whether or not you choose to you use it as your own personal Rorschach test, Realms is a really cool little game that plays as neat as it looks. Go with its flow.