The Swapper

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chameleoneel

[H]F Junkie
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So I was activating a humble bundle on Steam and happnened to see a Marquee for "The Swapper".

I....can't remember if I watched the preview video. I don't think that I did. I peaked at the screenshots and read a couple of hype quotes. For whatever reason, the space aesthetic grabbed me and the hype quotes got me to look up a review. I basically guessed the main mechanic from the screenshots. But there is of course a lot to this game mechanically, that I had no idea about.

I skimmed the Eurogamer review very lightly, although they do a good job of avoiding directly talking about spoilers. Through experience, I've found Eurogamer's reviews to be a pretty good gauge for my own tastes. They pretty much praised the game through and through. Saying that not only is it a good game, but it has an intriguingly presented story, that fills out an experience larger than the game one is directly playing.

I decided to buy it. In basic terms, the main mechanic and overall setup make it sort of like 2D "Portal". It also shares in having a story aspect that is more than the gameplay.

I have not finished it yet. I don't play a lot of these indie 2D games as I would usually rather play an actual platformer, than some gimmick puzzle platformer. I am quite absorbed. If any of this sounds or looks good to you, I recommend it. If you have any questions, I will try to answer them without direct spoilers.

Included are some screenshots that give you a tiny taste from the beginning chunk of the game. I tried to illustrate how the game looks as played and its typical presentation. It pretty much gets more beautiful and visually interesting as you go.

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*1080p versions of all above screenshots: https://www.dropbox.com/s/74nwd0li2ry7b41/TheSwapperscreens.zip

I believe the game is OpenGL based, is locked at 24fps, and makes heavy use of visual filters. It looks great.

The controls seem a bit weird at first. Why they are the way they are becomes clear as you learn about the game. But to a certain degree, the aiming setup probably could have been improved. Due to the 24FPS lock, there is heavy mouse lag. I mapped to a dualshock 3 using Joy2Key. The game plays pretty well this way. So far it doesn't require lightning reflex like Portal. So the controller works well. To be clear, it does not use portals. I was just loosely comparing it to Portal in general gameplay.

It is somewhat metrovanic. Which is to say, it is not completely linear. So far it goes in chunks or branches. Where these branches weave about, but once you are done with that chunk, you probably won't go back to it ever. This could change. I don't think I am particularly far into the game yet. It also does this thing where sometimes (as far as physical location) you will end up way back by an earlier section, but separated by a wall or some feature you may not have really payed attention to earlier. I describe this as a cross between 2D Portal and The Lost Vikings II (SNES). But The Swapper does not have a bunch of linear rooms like those two games.

*and that may be redundant, because Portal is already like The Lost Vikings.

I have noticed some optional branches, as well. The map is fairly vague on purpose. Hiding some things, encouraging you to explore and try some things.
 
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If you want 60 fps, you can change:

IsFilmlookEnabled True

to False in the commonsettings.pro text file. But I left it on at 24 for the effect.
 
geraltofrivia said:
If you want 60 fps, you can change:

IsFilmlookEnabled True

to False in the commonsettings.pro text file. But I left it on at 24 for the effect.
Click to expand...

Good to know.
Still thinking about this one. The music is mesmerizing.
Do you know how long the game is?
 
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I hear the graphical assets are based on clay models and miniatures
 
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You seem to get the first upgrade very quickly. Are there other upgrades later on in the game or is the swapping the main gimmick?

This game at first was said to be Metroid-esque but with the limited abilities of your character and no combat, I don't think Metroid-esque is a fair comparison.
 
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bigdogchris said:
You seem to get the first upgrade very quickly. Are there other upgrades later on in the game or is the swapping the main gimmick?

This game at first was said to be Metroid-esque but with the limited abilities of your character and no combat, I don't think Metroid-esque is a fair comparison.
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It is metrovanic (see: Metrovania. although this link also tries to discredit the term, it does define it well)-----which is to say, it is not completely linear. Many of the areas are branched and loop back to other areas or near previous areas. Thus ends similarities to Metroid or Castlevania.
 
I think I would love this game if it weren't puzzle-based. Kinda getting sick of these gimmicky "puzzle" mechanics.
 
MavericK96 said:
Obligatory TotalBiscuit "WTF is...?":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSnHDPtUmUE

Apparently it's clay-mation-esque and very beautiful. Might have to give it a shot on a sale...too many games to play right now.
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So I watched that video yesterday, and then I bought it. (Thanks, btw:))
I played 4 hours straight. It's mesmerizing and once you figure out movement (I'm talking about launching and flying about through the air), the game gets nuts! It's metroidvania in a way, even though you don't level up new abilities, there are points that you need X number of "keys" to pass. Actually though, its more like Mario64 with the amount of stars you have opens the next door/area....

The platforming and movement is really fun. It's fun to just run around shooting yourself into the sky and finding new ways into interesting spots and crevices. I quit after 4 hrs, cause I got stuck, but was tired too, or I might have persevered. Great title for a cloudy Sunday. I totally recommend it.

Oh and I dont know about the 24fps thing. FRAPS was running and it was pegged at 60 the whole time, so...... bug? fixed already? *shrug*
 
Finished this. I guess it took me 10 hours?? (that's about double the time I've been seeing in reviews). I did do a lot of jaw dropping and staring at the visuals and setting up screenshots. Otherwise, I never got super stuck on the puzzles. There are a few mind benders near the end that will delay you, however.

I think overall this game deserves status and accolades similar to Portal. Portal's gameplay is a little more thrilling, due to the first person viewpoint and the way you can launch yourself about. But the mechanics here in The Swapper are no slouch, offer plenty of variety for your brain to wrap around, and the mechanics synergize with the story and themes. (you'll see what I mean if you play The Swapper). Whereas with Portal, using portals is just a mechanic. You could swap Portals with some other thing and still have the same story. The Swapper is more beautiful than Portal. This game is a landmark in artistic and visual achievement for videogames.

The Swapper is also expertly paced. The game finishes before the puzzle mechanics have a chance to overstay their welcome and the puzzle types never repeat. Every puzzle is quite different. There are also a few supremely beautiful expositional moments sewn into the experience, that make for a wonderful break from the running around and puzzling.

I think my only complaint is that the ending seemed a tiny bit abrupt. Once the big reveals start rolling in, it's not long until the credits. It didn't seem like quite enough time to fully digest and contemplate the things presented. I mean, the game answers most of the questions for you and does it in a great way. But I just felt like I needed a couple of more minutes to look at the finished puzzle, so to speak.
 
Yea, I'm pretty burnt out on puzzle platformers, but this one looks pretty good.
 
Completely not what I was expecting from the thread (and game) title. They are probably losing sales just from that...(and i'm not being sarcastic).

Going to put it on my wishlist and catch it when it goes on sale.
 
It is on my wishlist. Like what I have seen but it is a crowded wishlist.
 
I understand people are used to paying almost nothing for Steam games. But "The Swapper" IS on sale right now. FYI

lilbabycat said:
Completely not what I was expecting from the thread (and game) title. They are probably losing sales just from that...(and i'm not being sarcastic).

Going to put it on my wishlist and catch it when it goes on sale.
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I'm not really sure what you mean. The title is the game's main gameplay mechanic. It is also simple; not some pretentious string of vaguely cool sounding words. And the importance of the title becomes even more clear, once you have played the game through. The whole thing is well thought out.
 
Simmonz said:
Unless it is free then I'm shit out of luck because that's what I have until Monday lol.
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Well I didn't quote anyone because I wasn't trying to attack anyone. I was just saying, the game is on sale right now, for 25% off. 2 more days.
 
I picked this up on the sale the other day and was completely caught off guard by how amazing it is. It's easily the most enthralling puzzle game I've ever played.
 
they used a lot of real world stuff to design the levels (for example, all the rock etc is actual rock). i thought that was pretty cool.
 
Everything above 48 orbs is hard. I'm stuck on the last puzzle. It's driving me bananas.
 
finally got it earlier today, been wanting to play it for some time now. hopefully I can enjoy it without having to swear to much :)
 
Going to pick this up as well, looks great and appreciate the reviews and feedback. :cool:
 
I picked this up during the winter sale and played through it.

Tips (not so much spoilers but avoid if you want to stay in the dark):
- You get the Swapper device and its upgrade/components early on in the game, that's it
- You will be limited to 4 clones the entire game
- The secret areas aren't completely obvious but be suspicious of places that seem out of reach. Use the swapper to see if you can place clones in walls, etc.

It's definitely like a 2D Portal. Also, it looked like it was running 60FPS to me so maybe they changed that movie setting, I'll have to look at that when I get home. The graphics style is very good and the audio was done very well although sometimes I had difficulty understanding Chalmers so I enabled subtitles.

It has a good story and I'd like to know more about how the Watchers killed the humans and how your mind occupied Chalmers' clone (the player you're controlling).
 
the 24fps deal is some quirk with ati/amd in how their drivers report resolution and refrsh rate. I didn't know this until I had finished the game. it is fixable via the .ini configuration.
 
Started this today. Really enjoying it. Seems to run @ 100fps on my end (looks great at 1440p 100hz)

Thanks for the recommendation.
 
I bought this over winter sale and except for good ambient sound and music I hate this garbage. Yes I know puzzle side scrollers are linear and repetitive but I keep expecting one of the ones with great metacritic reviews to do SOMETHING different and new.
 
requiem99 said:
I bought this over winter sale and except for good ambient sound and music I hate this garbage. Yes I know puzzle side scrollers are linear and repetitive but I keep expecting one of the ones with great metacritic reviews to do SOMETHING different and new.
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well The Swapper isn't straight up linear, you can complete the rooms in pretty much any order. The puzzles never repeat. all the graphics were made with found items or created by hand. the story is complex mind bender on philosophy, ethics, existentialism, etc. It's pretty unique. and it's only somewhat close comparison is Portal, which IS unique.

It's ok if you just don't like it. But I don't think your extra comments hold true.
 
Picked this up on the last sale, based on positive reviews here...good game so far, better than I expected.

Only complaint really is that the graphics seem a little..."low-res"? I don't know how to explain it. I know it's all sort of clay-based and there are a lot of visual filters going on, but it still seems low-fidelity overall. Seems like they could have tightened up the textures a little, but no big deal.
 
Very good game, finished it a few weeks ago. I don't think I got all the "secret" orbs but that seemed to be mostly just jumping around in-between puzzles trying to find hidden areas, which didn't really interest me.
 
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