Ode to Pixel Days is a new retro platformer designed with a smart and thought-provoking storyline that’ll certainly keep you wondering about it for a while. In Ode to Pixel Days you follow Hans, a young boy who has a crush on a cheerleader, but Hans is far to shy to say much to her and feels that he is too ugly to be with someone so stunning. Hans decides that he must contort the world to be able to be with the cheerleader by making everyone appear to be the same. What he learns along the way of his elaborate imagined world is far more important than being with the cheerleader though and there is a great morale to be learned from this story. While the storyline is by far the most intriguing aspect of the game, the platformer factors keep the game fresh and provide some difficulty. If you like art-games with intriguing storylines and themes, and don’t mind platformers, then this is a great game to check out and only takes fifteen minutes or so to complete.

Ode to Pixel Days

The storyline is very deep and keeps you thinking for a while. The developer, Talha Kaya portrays part of his life like so: “I always had this low self-esteem thing going, and through teen years, social interactions got very uncomfortable for me. I wasn’t a very social person. I lived through things in my mind, and not by actually living; like I never told a girl I liked her, I never felt confident enough to try my chances on things and people, I just lived through my life since now, expecting something to happen by itself.” I think that this perfectly exemplifies the storyline of Ode to Pixel Days. Hans creates a world in which he interacts with the world (mainly with the cheerleader) because he isn’t confident enough to speak to the very person he had a crush on in his own world. This split of reality and fabrication shows a world in which Han would like to mimic, but simply can’t achieve because of his own shyness. The game shows a good amount of depth and the storyline is well-crafted and places you in the shoes and mind of Hans.

In terms of gameplay, Old to Pixel Days also excelled. While the game’s primary focus is obviously on the storyline, the game manages to provide fun and interesting levels that won’t stop the story from continuing for too long. Most of the levels are simple to complete, but the real goal is not necessarily to complete the level and fell satisfaction in that alone, but to continue the story and see where the odd storyline proceeds. Some of the levels have a small element of puzzle which I enjoyed and spice up the levels a bit. In addition, the continuously changing size of your character as he attempts to change his world allows the game to be played differently. For example, as Hans tries to change himself, he only finds his world to be more and more complex and difficult, but as he grows back to be his original form once again the world becomes easier. This could be a reaction to how the character has placed himself out of his comfort-zone, or has imagined himself to be someone he is not and finds this new persona difficult to maintain.

Ode to Pixel Days

In Han’s mind he creates a wondrous world of which he controls and can change the world. The philosophical storyline creates an experience that will keep your mind busy for a while and keeps you hooked throughout the game. Ode to Pixel Days perfectly achieved what it set out to do. This game combines a beautiful storyline and great platformer elements to form a superb game. The artwork is simple, but is perfectly capable of portraying Hans idea of simplifying people, and achieves a nice, calm, look. If you like games that’ll make you think then you’ll want to check out Ode to Pixel Days as it has a compelling storyline, but doesn’t abandon great platformer elements. Check out Ode to Pixel Days today!

Play Ode to Pixel Days on Kongregate!

Also, once you beat the game, be sure to check out the meaning of the story.