REVIEW: From Dust

5 Aug, 2011

Title: From Dust
Platform: Xbox Live Arcade
Developer: Ubisoft Montpellier
Publisher: Ubisoft
TL;DR: Manipulate the terrain? Sure, okay.
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It’s a different kind of game, but that doesn’t mean it’s going to be a bad game. Ubisoft’s God-game offering of From Dust wandered its way to the Summer of Arcade, and it’s a beautiful game. You could try and classify this title as a strategy game, a puzzle game, an adventure game. It wouldn’t really fit into any classification, really.

Don’t let that be a huge turn off. If anything, everyone should give this game a whirl. While I can’t claim to be the best player at it, I still find this game to be refreshingly different and also just fun to look around in. For one, the environments and levels are gorgeously realized.

In From Dust, you’re the reigning deity of a tribe of folk from a faraway land. They’ve lost their memories, and they’re trying to rebuild the world after losing a lot of what they used to have. The Memories of the Ancients is what’s incredibly important to them. Your goal is to guide your people through each level to populate cities, and then to eventually reach the exit point, which will unlock additional memories.

One thing that From Dust highlights is how dynamic the environment is, and it is absolutely beautiful. Since you are a god in this game, you have to take care of your people. Given how environmentally-centric this game is, that means you have to manipulate the world to best help them. Is there too much water in the way? Then pick it up and deposit it elsewhere. Need to build some rocks so your guy can spread knowledge among the cities? Just pick up some lava and create a new rock formation. Of course, another thing you’ll quickly learn is that every action has a consequence. The lava may overflow and end up burning the carefully built villages, or the water you deposited elsewhere might come roaring back as a tidal wave.

The mechanics, while different from anything else out there, suits the gameplay just fine. Your cursor appears as a golden line, and pressing certain buttons will allow you to pick up pieces of the terrain and deposit them. The HUD is pretty non-existent too, occasionally having instructions pop up on what you need to do or a hint on where you should go next. It gives us a great view of the lushness of this vibrant world.

It might seem a little boring to just simply be picking up parts of the terrain and setting it down elsewhere, but you are rewarded for thinking about the vegetation. In each level, a meter will tell you how much of the current landscape is covered by palms, which measures how healthy your landscape is. The more palms is better, as it means you have healthy land, and it will also attract the attention of wild animals to come and populate. Another perk of achieving complete vegetable coverage in each level is the unlocking of more memories. You’re also rewarded by unlocking challenge mode maps and other game perks.

You might feel a little overwhelmed upon starting the game. It is a very different experience and it’s a bit of a learning curve, but the in-game tutorial does a fantastic job of telling you the basics. Throughout the game, other helpful hints will also pop up to tell you what you should do next.

Of course, because of the rather steep learning curve, this game is probably not going to be for everyone. There are times when the puzzles are not so apparent, or it’s simply too frustrating to try and think of what to do next when you’ve got a tidal wave coming in, one of your villages is on fire because of some errant lava, and you have no idea how to plug up those damn water sources. Not to mention that your tribesmen need constant babysitting when you try and tell them to go somewhere. You are a god figure, so it’s your job to wipe everyone’s a**.

The constant babysitting will become a source of frustration. That’s a given. If that river looks shallow and easy enough to cross, then you’d be wrong, because your guy is probably going to stop right at the edge in ankle-deep water and start crying out, “HELP ME!” Climbing up rocks will produce the same effect – it might look easy enough to climb, but your tribesmen will probably say otherwise, just to piss you off.

The lack of precision aiming also becomes a source of rage. Sometimes your tribes will become hindered by one tiny little flaw on their way to populating villages or entering the exit point. Without a setting to control your cursor sensitivity, trying to place terrain at precisely the correct area so your guy can cross the river or bridge becomes a real challenge, and will occasionally test your patience.

While From Dust is beautifully realized, sometimes the execution is just downright horrid. In a lively world with brightness and a lot of natural beauty, you will encounter problems of the mechanical nature along the way. You have to find ways (and find them quickly in some cases) to guide your flock around numerous obstacles, but some of these obstacles just seem so stupidly easy to overcome you wonder why you’re even bothering in the first place.

The Good

• Beautifully realized world.
• It’s a game that has unique play, and it works well.
• Makes you accountable for your actions by either destroying your villages or creating a more frustrating scenario.

The Bad

• Has a bit of a learning curve.
• Lack of precision targetting makes fixing small spots a real pain.
• Constant babysitting of NPCs over the smallest obstacles gets tiring.

From Dust is available now on Xbox Live Arcade for 1200 Microsoft Points.

Family Focus
The game has received a 10+ (ESRB) and 12 (PEGI) rating. While there is no violence at all in this game, your folk aren’t really decently dressed either. Your kids will probably have fun messing around with the environments though.