Denmark-based developer Press Play recently gave us a look at a preview build of Max and the Magic Marker, an upcoming WiiWare platformer. The concept is simple: Max traverses areas, collecting items and avoiding enemies with the help of a Magic Marker drawing shapes that Max can jump on or kill baddies with.
It comes off as a cross between Crayon Physics and LittleBigPlanet, and it’s quite charming.
Here’s the story: Max is a kid who loves to draw. One day, he gets an orange marker in the mail, so he draws a monster with it. The monster comes to life and starts wreaking havoc, so Max decides he has to stop it.
The whole thing takes place in Max’s imagination as he doodles, so you can move and draw at the same time or, if you choose, pause the action and draw in the real world. Even if you don’t want to use it for gameplay, the real world view shows everything in childish drawings, and it’s just a cool effect. The world of imagination is lush, and the worlds of Max’s mind are a lot like what you’d expect a kid to think about.
The final release will have 15 levels in 3 worlds, as well as unlockable secrets and rewards. Downloadable releases are hard to predict, but Press Play expects a release in the next few weeks.
