De Blob is one of the more unique and creative games that I’ve played in recent years. The evil INKT Corporation has invaded the city of Chroma and outlawed color and fun. Playing as de Blob, you will lead the color revolution in an effort to bring back color to the city and help the oppressed citizens of Chroma enjoy daily life again.
Playing as de Blob, you start off as a clear ball of water and smash paint cans to absorb the paint. Paint cans come in the three primary colors and can be mixed to form four additional colors. Each paint can awards you a fixed number of paint points when you absorb it. Every time you touch a building or an object it turns the color of de Blob and deducts 1 paint point. Use all your paint points and you can no longer paint objects in the city.
Chroma city is divided into several parts that you unlock as you progress through the game. Each area has various challenges and sections you can. Sections are timed, but completing challenges and progressing through levels awards you additional time to continue playing as well as points. Collect a certain number of points to open up the additional sections of your current level. As you paint the town, additional citizens of Chroma city, called Raydians, arrive with additional challenges or missions for de Blob. Challenges can be anything from painting certain buildings various colors to defeating armies of INKT soldiers.
Each level also has certain goals that you can strive to meet such as painting all the trees or rescuing all the Raydians. Meeting all of these goals results in scoring 100% on that section or level. This must be done on a single play through as de Blob doesn’t store your progress on any given level. Start the level again and you are back at the very beginning. I didn’t like this feature at all.
de Blob is a simple concept with a virtually flawless execution and the controls only serve to complement this. Developer, Blue Tongue, opted to make full use of the motion sensing features of the Wii. Movement is handled with the analog stick but jumping and any additional movement like smashing paint cans or INKY soldiers is done by flicking the Wii remote up or down. The controls can be a little difficult to get the hang of and will be difficult for younger gamers.
De Blob is an amazing game by any standard. It delivers a solid and enjoyable gaming experience. It’s a little too challenging for kids under 6 to truly enjoy, but everyone else will be fine.
ESRB: de Blob is rated E for mild cartoon violence
Plays Like: Nothing I’ve played before
Pros: Excellent story and characters; fun and original
Cons: Doesn’t preserve level progress upon completion
