The Indiepinion

Remember this tragic event?

Ok, i don’t want to talk about this bridge’s collapse. I’d rather talk about the game where it’s actually fun to build bridges, especially those that are at the brink of collapsing but still somehow manage to hold together until the train has passed. And you learn a lot about structural integrity as you play. You know, the stuff that they talk about on Star Trek when the Enterprise is getting shot at.

The game is called Bridge Construction Set (aka Pontifex 2 and in Germany it was also sold as Bridge Builder). There’s a version that only runs on Nvidia cards called Bridge It! And there’s the predecessor with simple 2D graphics called Pontifex. All are made by the same person (or group?): Chronic Logic. Oh, and they’re the guys who made Gish!

I wholeheartedly recommend Bridge Construction Set. Grab the demo here.

The Nvidia version called Bridge It! looks a lot better but i’m not sure if the graphics isn’t actually detrimental to the experience. It definitely doesn’t add to it. Also, it only runs on Nvidia cards, so ATI owners are out of luck.

Oh, and you know what – if you played World of Goo and enjoyed that chances are you’ll love Bridge Builder. Especially if you’re more into technical stuff rather than cuddly blobs of tar. And, you know what … i’ve kinda “noticed” World of Goo as being a great game a couple times before already but i never took interest in it. The one time i did, i checked their homepage to finally figure out what the game is about. I’ve watched their trailer and read the features. I still didn’t know what the hell this game is about. It wasn’t until i actually saw it that it’s just some kind of Bridge Builder thing, only less technical and more organic. Hey, World of Goo guys: why don’t you put that up on your webpage? “Our game is like Bridge Builder, only less technical and more organic.” (At least take this hint that the last time i’ve checked the game trailer it showed off some cute gfx but none was about the actual gameplay)

UPDATE: the guys from Wolfire Games created a World of Goo Design Tour which is exactly the kind of video (in terms of gameplay depicted) i want to see of a game before i download, install and try it out. I don’t have much time so i want to know beforehand if the game is something i would enjoy. Now i know.

Maybe i would have bought World of Goo by now, if i only knew what the game’s mechanics were. As it stands, i was more willing to spend 20 bucks on a ~7 year old game rather than World of Goo. Sorry for that, maybe i’ll catch up later. Gotta go, I’ve got some bridges to build!