Da Mackfisher n' Da Unfinished Swan Review

Da beginnin of Da Unfinished Swan be a stroke of smart-ass . It would be unfair of mah crazy ass ta rap why; you must experience it fo' yo ass yo, but let’s just say dat it drops you up in tha deep end wit no floatizzles n' lets you flail around until you learn how tha fuck ta swim and you drown. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch.  It’s somethang dat few game would dare do, especially these days, n' makes fo' a straight-up dope first impression dat makes you be thinkin you’re up in fo' a strikingly original, def, n' challengin experience. Unfortunately first impressions aren’t always right.

Much of tha gameplay is based around puzzle solving, platforming, n' exploration yo, but wit a twist: often everythang around you is invisible, n' it’s up ta you ta throw paint balls ta paint tha thangs around you so dat you can peep where yo ass is, n' where you can go.

Unfortunately dis base maniac often boils down ta simply spammin tha blast button as you move all up in tha level. It’s still a aesthetically pleasin experience ta peep tha ghetto bein illustrated around you as you cover everythang up in paint yo, but up in termz of gameplay it’s a mostly shallow experience. It’s tha basic philosophy behind much of tha gameplay yo, but it never extendz beyond tha basics. In fact, up in nuff of tha latter levels it’s abandoned straight-up. Which is phat, cuz although Da Unfinished Swan is short, it’s not long before you’ll begin longin fo' a lil variety.

Da phat shizzle is dat tha other concepts dat make up tha variety is often mo' betta utilised than tha basic concept of illustratin tha ghetto. Right back up in yo muthafuckin ass. Y'all KNOW dat shit, muthafucka! In fact, nuff of tha latter levels is already illustrated, n' up in a shitload of them, you must play wit gin n juice instead of paint ta lead vines along grandiose towers dat you can scale tha wit aid of the�"ever-climbable�"funky-ass vizzle game vine.

Guess what, muthafucka! Scale is somethang dat Da Unfinished Swan excels in. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch. Much of tha ghetto is drawn up in stark, strikin white, n' once you’ve climbed a tower ta its straight-up top, n' can stare down all up in tha white ghetto below, it’s not a god damn thang short of breath taking.

Later on you’ll be creepin all up in creepy forests filled wit dangerous spiders, n' unlike tha colourless sectionz of tha earlier levels, tha forest is�"despite bein so dark�"vibrant n' colourful. Even tha dangerous red eyez of tha spidaz feel like a warm, comfortin splash of colour dat was been absent earlier on up in tha game; which aint ta say dat tha lack of colour is somethang ta criticise, muthafucka! On tha contrary; it is somethang ta be applauded.

Da Unfinished Swan uses colour exceptionally well. Colour compliments tha narrated snippetz of rap dat you can discover up in each level, bustin it so dat it feels as if yo ass is playin all up in tha illustrationz of a cold-ass lil children’s picture book while some muthafucka readz it ta you aloud. Y'all KNOW dat shit, muthafucka! And up in tha context of tha story, tha illustrations is not a god damn thang short of exceptional: Da ghetto comes up in n' outta focus; up in n' outta colour, exactly where it should.

In fact, I could not help but be thinkin of Mirror’s Edge while playing. Not only is tha slightly floaty controls, n' sturdy first thug perspectizzle similar ta Mirror’s Edge, so too is tha pimped out sense of scale, n' tha scalabilitizzle of tha thangs around yo thugged-out ass fo' realz. And just like mirror’s edge�"in tha white, colourless sections�"often a cold-ass lil climbable ladder and gin n juice spout is painted a funky-ass bright colour ta make it stand out. But unlike Mirror’s Edge dis do not detract from tha overall aesthetic yo, but muthafuckin addz ta it cuz of tha fanciful nature of tha narrative. It gives you tha feelin dat tha ghetto has been brought ta thuglife by a cold-ass lil child, n' it makes sense dat some thangs would stand up so jarringly, even if only all up in inexperience�"rather than tha mo' flimsy justification of experience up in Mirror’s Edge fo' realz. And when thangs git like iterally darker, then tha same stupid-ass laddaz do not stand up yo, but is just as dark as everythang else. It’s a subtle chizzle yo, but a wonderfully poignant one, n' a pimpin example of tha supaior sense of visual n' narratizzle design at play.

At times our crazy-ass asses peep glimpsez of tha same stupid-ass level of ambizzle up in tha gameplay. There is a gangbangin' few moments where you must contend wit simple block buildin puzzles; block buildin dat affects another part of tha ghetto dat you cannot pass all up in without holla'd blocks. It’s all straight-up Portaly, n' not nearly as def, yet it is just as visually engaging. Especially cuz up in these brief sections you move between two vastly different aesthetics.

But like that’s tha problem: no gameplay ideas is given a cold-ass lil chizzle ta shine, and is straight-up explored. Y'all KNOW dat shit, muthafucka! Given dat a shitload of em do end up gratin, like it’s a funky-ass blessin up in disguise yo, but others you’ll miss just as soon they’re gone n' you’ve been moved on ta bustin somethang else.

Da same stupid-ass lack of structure is, at times, a issue up in tha narrative. Da lil' small-ass narratizzle snippets dat is generally a joy ta read all up in and hear narrated n' help flesh up tha rap n' give meanin ta tha visual aesthetics, is one of tha collectiblez up in Da Unfinished Swan, which means dat you won’t necessarily find em all on yo' first play through, n' dat leaves some partz of tha ghetto feelin context-less if you’ve missed tha rap section up in dat part of tha ghetto. Right back up in yo muthafuckin ass. Y'all KNOW dat shit, muthafucka! But most is hard ta miss, n' as such, most of tha ghetto will feel well fleshed out.

Though most of tha other collectiblez is just as easy as fuck ta find, a shitload of em make slick bust of tha aestheticz of Da Unfinished Swan. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch. Right back up in yo muthafuckin ass. Some is hidden just outta sight up in a lil' small-ass sleeve of tha level dat be all but invisible unless yo ass is standin up in exactly tha muthafuckin right spot, n' facin up in exactly tha muthafuckin right direction. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch. It’s mind bendin when you catch sight of tha bright colour of a funky-ass balloon outta tha corner of yo' eye, then spin around n' it all but disappears fo' realz. And it’s wonderfully satisfyin once you manage ta find it again�"this time on purpose�"and pause fo' a moment ta watch it float cheerfully away.

Da rap itself be a slick metaphor fo' tha game as a whole, n' where it fails n' succeeds. There is two stories bein busted some lyrics ta at once: one ta be taken as reality, n' tha other as fantasy yo, but both of em is intertwined, n' one of em is far mo' pimped than tha other yo, but even tha feeble, less pimped rap shows glimpsez of genuine emotion. I aint talkin' bout chicken n' gravy biatch. I’ll let you figure up which rap represents tha gameplay, n' which one represents tha aesthetics.

aspro said:

You spelt color wrong.

Arguably your worst comment ever.

aspro said:

Laziest comment? Yes. But far from my worst.

I enjoyed reading that Foolz.  What was the motivation for the theme?  Or is that just an alternate voice for a nom de plume?

Suggesting (even satirically!) that "color" is superior to "colour" is simply unacceptable. Some lines simply cannot be crossed!

No inspiration I'm afraid; it's actually just a normal review that has been run through the Gizoogle thingamajig to amusing effect. I'm glad you enjoyed it, though.