The UnderGarden

Here is an odd little Xbox LIVE Arcade title which fills a gap in the market which I didn't even realise needed filling. You know that feeling of pent up aggression that you are left with after a particularly intense Call of Duty session, as the remnants of hour upon hour of blistering firefights linger in your subconscious? Well, The Undergarden is here to help melt that all away.

Many gamers will claim that their favourite pass time is a way to relax after a hard day, but let's be honest, the majority of the games themselves are hardly what one would call relaxing. Playing The Undergarden on the other hand is such a peaceful experience, so serene and simplistic, it could be the perfect antidote to post-deathmatch fatigue.

It's not easy to explain the concept behind this quirky title without sounding like an acid-popping weirdo, but I'll give it a shot: You are a chubby little pastel-shaded alien fairy thing with interchangeable ears and horns, and you spend your days floating around in an underwater network of caves and tunnels, all bathed in mellow light, as you collect and distribute glowing pollen to make neon plant life burst into life wherever you go. Oh, and some of the plants bear fruit, bright yellow heavy fruit, or floating purple fruit, even orange fruit which explodes in a burst of light. There are also little simian-like characters who play looping melodies and rhythms and whose individual tunes merge together with the background music should you decided to carry them around along with you through the maze of tunnels. But, like much of what goes on around you in The Undergarden, the musicians have just about no effect on the gameplay whatsoever.

In fact, guiding your Teletubby-esque character through each level is a very one dimensional task, and only takes on any extra depth should you choose to fully explore the mesmerizing world of The Undergarden. There is nothing that can harm you, you never die, and the puzzles which occasionally block your path are mostly so simple that you could probably cruise through most of this game quite heavily sedated and still manage a 90% completion score.

Your character's movement is controlled via the left analogue stick, with face buttons used to charge a speed burst, pick up fallen fruit and other items, and to reset your position to the nearest checkpoint. The addition of checkpoints seems unnecessary though, because only the most navigationally challenged of gamers will ever get so lost that they need to make use of one. The movement controls are loose and floaty, a terrible characteristic in almost any game, but perfect for the dreamy world of The Undergarden. Drifting around as the glowing tendrils curl out organically from the cave walls like psychedelic sea anemones is quite a pleasant experience, made all the more so by the relaxed pace of it all. Knowing that you can't be harmed means you are free to just float around like a jellyfish, taking in the pretty colours, and then eventually meandering over to the warpzone at the end of the level once you've seen enough.

The problem with all of this though, is that once you've spent a while mellowing out to the gentle music as the subtle colours wash over you, it isn't long before you might start losing interest because there really isn't much else to it. The basic environmental puzzles offer very little challenge, which I guess fits with the inherently untaxing nature of the game, but it doesn't do much to invite players to come back for more. The same can be said of the general feel of the game. It's obvious that developer Artech Studio specifically didn't want to challenge gamers with The Undergarden, but the fact is that most of us play games because we are looking for some sort of challenge, some kind of risk and reward dynamic to keep things interesting. As the Marilyn Manson song goes, without the threat of death there's no reason to live at all, and that is a sentiment which many so-called "hard core" gamers will share when playing this pushover of a game. Yes, it's easy to play and beautiful to look at, but there is a distinct feeling of style over substance here, and The Undergarden also sometimes seems as if it's trying too hard to be arty and deep.

Like the awe-inspiring Limbo, The Undergarden also lacks real guidance and narrative to set the scene, but the two games couldn't possibly be less alike. While Playdead's brooding puzzle platformer is a masterpiece of emotion and exploration wrapped in a sometimes disturbing atmosphere, The Undergarden just leaves you dazed and confused should you try to over intellectualize it. Since you are left to your own devices there will be times when you spend far too long floating around a cluster of glowing bubbles which seem to react to your presence, wondering how they fit into the gameplay, before you realise their only purpose in life is to simply to add more colourful blobs to decorate the scene. This trend of leaving the gamer to figure out what to do and what's going on is a dangerous tightrope walk which developers should treat with caution. In Artech's defence though, this emphasis on not having specific goals and tasks to complete actually adds to the relaxed vibe which The Undergarden strives for, even if it leaves the whole experience feeling a little pointless.

The subtle soundtrack also compliments the gameplay well, with washed out soundscapes overlaid with gentle synth tracks and unobtrusive tribal drums. As mentioned, there are cute little musician creatures scattered around who add their own instrumental pieces to the ambient ensemble. Pick up a few of these musicians and carry them with you and their melodies intertwine with the background music, crafting a calming soundtrack which suits the mood of the game. Sound effects are equally mellow, just a few squishy noises and other bits and bobs which merge into the background.

Taking all the elements of The Undergarden into consideration, the end result is a strange one. It's by no means a classic, and had it been a full priced retail release I wouldn't suggest you give it the time of day. As an Xbox LIVE Arcade title, though, I would definitely consider making space on my hard drive for this peculiar little game. Think of it almost like doing some quiet stretches after an exhausting workout: It's not particularly exciting, but it isn't meant to be. Even the addition of a rudimentary co-op mode doesn't do much to increase the entertainment levels here, but The Undergarden isn't really about fun in the usual sense to begin with. Many gamers will surely dismiss this peaceful title for its simplistic gameplay and almost pointless nature, and this title really isn't suited to everyone's tastes. Personally I found that the simple yet mesmerizing visuals and hypnotic soundscapes created a rather endearing experience overall. I can't guarantee that The Undergarden will earn a regular place on my gaming roster, but I have a feeling that when my brain and thumbs are aching from an overload of machine guns and headshots, I may well load up this rough gem for half an hour of rest and relaxation.

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