Black and White

I have a backlog of games I’m waiting to play and if you’ve read any of my previous blogs, this won’t come as a surprise. Last week I had my first full week off so far this year and it is best described as that detestable portmanteau: a staycation. I did many things that I’ve been waiting to do but foremost in my mind was to complete the campaign on some of the many games that remain unfinished in my collection.

I did relatively well, not only did Tony and I finally complete the cooperative campaign in Gears of War 3 but I also completed the Bulletstorm story and you can see how long that’s taken me from the dates of my achievements.

Now these games were good, Bulletstorm very much tongue in cheek and Gears poignant in a way the end of a trilogy would be. Whilst the credits rolled for Bulletstorm, I was deciding what to continue next. I still have Mass Effect to finish, Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood to open along with Bayonetta, Crysis 2, Tomb Raider Underworld… my list is enormous.

My mind wandered to the Monday night gaming session (10pm for the uninitiated) and I recalled seeing Xbox Live Arcade’s Limbo at half price. Driven by the hunger for a quick win, points burning a hole in my Live account’s pocket and the vague memory of how appreciative the community was some eighteen odd months ago, I downloaded the game.

I finished it in two sittings: last night when I started it and this morning when I woke up. Limbo is a disquieting, beautifully unique piece of artwork that transcended my beliefs about gaming and it is absolutely timeless because it has no exposition.

To delve into the individual parts of the game would turn this short blog into a review and I’m certain there are already plenty of those. This is quite simply a commandment. We have new readers every day and this game deserves to be in the memory of every single gamer, new and old. If you haven’t yet experienced Limbo, go and download the full game immediately – skip the demo and buy it. I know you’re all saving for Battlefield 3, Modern Warfare 3, Arkham City, Uncharted 3, et al but for its current price you’ll spend a single Microsoft point for each minute you spend within its grasp. Considering the reward, I’m surprised you’re still reading.