So I re-read my initial review of the game, and looking from a third person perspective, I admit I wasn’t satisfied with how the review turned out. No worries, I decided to do it again.
Title: Max: The Curse of Brotherhood
Platform(s): Xbox One, Xbox 360 (reviewed)
Developer: Press Play
Publisher: Microsoft
Price: $15
In 2010 Microsoft took over a Danish based developer Press Play. At that time this acquisition was questionable because the developer was only 1 game old that also not being a AAA title but looks like we finally have our answers. Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is not a sequel to the original title Max The Magic Marker but a reboot to the franchise as described by the developer.
Story
The game begins with a beautiful cg(computer imagery) cut scene introducing you to Max and his brother Fenix. The story in the game is very similar to your real life story, your brother is a pain in the arse. In the story it is not any enemy that gets you in trouble but your brother and Max himself gets him in trouble.The story in Max The Curse Of Brotherhood is enjoyable, fun and keeps you engaged in the game but nothing that will make you remember it for a long time. The setting of the game is great with each level offering something new, exciting and varied.
Gameplay
Max The Curse Of Brotherhood is very different from the original title. In Max: The Magic Marker you were able to draw from your marker and create different objects or shapes but in Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood the gameplay is a little bit different rather than drawing objects you will find yourself manipulating the environment. As you progress in the game you unlock different variety of inks which helps you to further change the game world. When all the elements are used in the right way Max shines and is a perfect example of innovation in gameplay. In short I would love to call Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood a colorful brother of Limbo but the only difference and game changer being The Magic Marker. The game offers variety of puzzles which allow you to manipulate the environment but the sad part is most of the puzzles in the game are easy but don’t get me wrong, the game does offer some puzzles which are challenging and tough. The unpredictability of Max makes it better than most of the platformers out there. At one moment you were jumping and now you had to suddenly grow a vine or change the size of the rock to reach the next level.
Controls/Sound/Perfomance
The control scheme in the game is near to perfect. I found the controls to be fine throughout the game but they can be frustrating sometimes. When you were about to reach the next level suddenly you failed just because the aim of your marker was not perfect. This problem is majorly rectified by the presence of an excellent checkpoint system though.
The voice acting in the game is great and voices of the character just feel perfect. The background music and enemy voices are also great which makes this game a perfect package. Game looks beautiful and is simply one of the most gorgeous platformers I have seen, the game runs at 1080p/60fps and is as smooth as butter but I could notice some screen stuttering during the cutscenes, it is not going to spoil your experience but will be easily recognisable at first glance. The game did had few minor glitches but those are not going to effect your experience.
What’s iLL
if you are tired of regular shooters or sports games, Max feels like a fresh breathe of air. While playing Max I was always reminded about Pixar and Rare characters. I would recommend this game to all the Xbox One and Xbox 360 (the game is yet to release) owners because for $15 it completely deserves your attention. I would love to see Press Play working on future Max titles with bigger budgets and higher production levels. After playing Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood I could easily say XBOX owners have a new platforming star Max.
Note:The prices are in dollars because Max has yet to release in India. You can pick up the game from the Xbox Marketplace though
[…] experience with Max: The Curse Of Brotherhood instanly made me fall in love with it and also left a desire to see a Triple A Max with a bigger budget and higher production values. […]