Cloudbuilt Preview

There is a terrible epidemic spreading to games these days: they are no longer games. Freedom and skill have been replaced with lengthy cutscenes, quick-time events, and hand-holding galore — it’s a downright crime! Enter Cloudbuilt: A game willing to give players the control they so rightly deserve.

An indie game developed by the folks at Coilworks and published by Rising Star Games, Cloudbuilt forgoes lengthy exposition for a more old-school approach. You see it, you run to it, you make it happen. Utilizing a parkour system that combines the flow of Mirror’s Edge with the sheer speed of Sonic, Cloudbuilt puts you in the shoes of a futuristic lass who needs somebody to guide her to the end of the level. Stages are sprawled across great expanses of sky, branching in multiple directions with hazards galore. Wall-runs, triangle jumps, and other forms of freestyle acrobatics are the name of the game here, with a jetpack cranking up the speed to almost uncontrollable levels. A gun with a charge shot comes standard issue, but there is more of an emphasis on dodging catastrophe rather than tackling it head-on.

And therein lies the biggest hook in Cloudbuilt: its speed. Driving the old-school representation home, the game truly shines when speedrunning comes into play. Can you make it to the end without making any mistakes? Those weaned on games like F-Zero (or even Dark Souls) know the thrill that comes from mastering a challenge, coming out on top and feeling like an absolute badass. By breaking records and not making mistakes, Cloudbuilt looks to bring a thrill each and every last gamer craves.

Will Cloudbuilt truly capture this old-school spirit? Find out when the game comes out on Steam March 20, 2014.