The idea behind the TouchArcade Game of the Week is that every Friday afternoon we post the one game that came out this week that we think is worth giving a special nod to. Now, before anyone goes over-thinking this, it doesn’t necessarily mean our Game of the Week pick is the highest scoring game in a review, the game with the best graphics, or really any other quantifiable “best" thing. Instead, it’s more just us picking out the single game out of the week’s releases that we think is the most noteworthy, surprising, interesting, or really any other hard to describe quality that makes it worth having if you were just going to pick up one.
These picks might be controversial, and that’s OK. If you disagree with what we’ve chosen, let’s try to use the comments of these articles to have conversations about what game is your game of the week and why.
Without further ado…
Repulsive
When I first heard about Repulsive (Free) last month, the new game from developer Punk Labs, I was super interested in it. Why? Because it was inspired by the classic skateboarding game 720º which is one of my favorites. Except this game is a modernized take, so it features much fancier graphics and takes place in a weird, cyberpunk-ish dystopian future. So naturally you’ll be hoverboarding rather thank skateboarding, because future. So obviously I loved the look of the trailer, but having now played Repulsive for myself, I can say that this is definitely one of the more unique games in the skating genre, if you could even call it that.
First off there is like NO direction in Repulsive. There’s an attract mode of sorts that simulates the dual-finger control scheme somewhat, but other than that you’re left to figure things out on your own. And that’s part of what I like so much about it. It lets you loose into a fairly large and interesting world, and your job is to just cruise around and explore, skating on things as you come across them and eventually discovering little hidden details that lead to the game’s various goals. For example, there are little drones hovering all over and if you can find a way to get up to them and destroy them you’ll contribute towards one of the goals you see in the game’s pause screen.
What happens when you complete these goals? I’m not sure yet, but the huge roster of unlockable characters shown in that same pause screen leads me to believe the two things are related. What Repulsive really seems to be about though is just skating around at your own pace and seeing what is possible. The physics are super floaty, on purpose I think, and there really isn’t your standard set of skateboarding tricks to pull off. You control your direction and speed with the left invisible analog stick, and hold down on the right side of the screen to perform ollies. It’s incredibly simple but there are also environmental elements that allow you to gain access to new areas and one of the best parts about the game is testing the boundaries of where you’re able to get yourself.
Repulsive is really not your typical game, and in some ways it’s almost like a digital toy that you can play with as you see fit. It’s really satisfying to zip around and just space out as you catch air on the many ramps and objects spread around, only to find your attention grabbed by an open door that will lead you to some new area and new challenge to complete. I’m not sure it will be for everybody, but the more I play it and the more challenges I come across, the better I find my skating skills getting, making it even more enjoyable to keep playing. Also it’s a fully paid title with no IAP, meaning all the unlockables are tied to your skills rather than your wallet. If you like open world games with a great sense of exploration and tremendous style, not to mention a killer soundtrack to zone out to, Repulsive is one worth checking out.
