This Week's Waste of Time

There's no doubt that I'm a fan of the platforming genre. They've been the weekly waste of time quite a few times in the past. Usually, to set itself apart from other running and jumping games developers offer players a unique game mechanic to spice things up. This week's platform game, Soul Brother, gives you reincarnation.

That may not sound like a really groundbreaking mechanic. Players have been dying and coming back to life since the earliest days of video games. It's a common denominator among games (although there are a few exceptions). But, in the case of Soul Brother, dying is a necessary tool to get you to the finish line. Find yourself at a dead end? Why not throw yourself on that spike so your soul (get it?) will move to the nearest creature on the screen, hopefully opening up another way to your destination.

Don't let the supercute characters (each with their own strengths and weaknesses) fool you. After more than 200 deaths, I can attest to the fact that the game is unforgiving. The baddies might not look menacing, but get anywhere near one and prepare to face the consequences. The frustration factor is relatively high here. Die in the wrong spot and you might end up reincarnated someplace that forces you to repeat a lengthy section of the game just to get back where you were. The game is difficult enough that it makes the controls feel a bit sloppy. If we learned anything from Super Meat Boy, it's that the harder the platformer, the more precise the controls better be. Then again, if you're not looking for a keyboard-pounding difficulty, this game probably isn't for you.

If you need a break to regain your sanity, pause the game and enjoy the zen of watching the screen very slowly and deliberately glitch into oblivion. When you've found your center again, dive back in and prepare to die a few dozen more times.

Click here to start playing (and dying).