''PixelJunk Eden'' is a
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...
developed by
Q-Games
Q-Games, Limited is a video game developer based in Nakagyō-ku, Kyoto, Japan which works closely with both Nintendo and Sony.
Foundation
Q-Games was founded by Dylan Cuthbert, who previously worked at Argonaut Software and helped create ''Sta ...
for the
PlayStation 3
The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...
and
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
. The third game in the ''
PixelJunk
''PixelJunk'' is a series of downloadable games developed by Q-Games. The series made its debut on PlayStation 3 with ''PixelJunk Racers'', released July 11, 2007.
The series was published internationally by Sony Computer Entertainment for PlayS ...
'' series, it was released on the
PlayStation Store
The PlayStation Store (PS Store) is a digital media store available to users of Sony's PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 game consoles via the PlayStation Network.
The store offers a range of downloadable content ...
on July 31, 2008 worldwide.
A demo of the game was released on July 25, 2008. The game features the work of
Baiyon
Tomohisa Kuramitsu, better known by his stage name Baiyon, is a Japanese multimedia artist from Kyoto.
.''Baiyon.com''. , an independent artist from Kyoto who was invited by the studio founder Dylan Cuthbert to design the graphics and soundtrack.
Gameplay
The player controls a "Grimp" (derived from the actions "grip" and "jump"), a small creature that maneuvers itself by jumping from and attaching itself to plant-like structures. The Grimp also has the abilities to swing itself from a silk-like tether for a short amount of time and spin while jumping. Using these abilities, the objective of the Grimp is to collect several objects called "Spectra" that are found in the game's stages (or "gardens"). Usually located high above the player's starting point, spectra must be reached by activating seeds, which will grow out into structures the Grimp can attach itself to. At first dormant, seeds can be activated by collecting pollen and jumping into them. Pollen is obtained by having the Grimp hit enemies with its body or the silk it is swinging from, and then jumping or swinging through the particles as they float to the ground. The player can attempt to jump and swing through multiple enemies without landing on the ground or a plant, each one creating a chain and increasing the amount of pollen generated. Later stages feature enemies that are more aggressive to the Grimp and attempt to knock it off the plant it is on or cut its silk, slowing down the player's progress to higher levels.
Once the player enters a garden, a "synchronization meter" begins to decrement at a fixed pace. If the meter should fall empty, the mission is considered failed and the player will have to restart the game. Objects referred to as "crystals" can be collected across each garden to refill the meter, including those generated after completing certain chain maneuvers. The meter is also completely refilled when a Spectra is collected. On January 15, 2009, the game was patched to include a "continue" option should the synchronization meter deplete.
While choosing to continue will avoid the need to restart one's progress from the beginning, doing so will disable the ability to earn "Garden complete" trophies.
Each garden is visually and audibly centered around a number of colors and minimalist house and techno music. Each garden stage has a total of five Spectra to be collected. When the player first attempts a garden, they are required to collect only one Spectra. Upon revisiting the garden after successfully completing the previous mission, the number of Spectra that are required to complete the mission increase by one. The player is scored for their performance, and once all five Spectra in a garden are obtained, the player can return to try to improve their completion time or score, comparing it against a global high score chart. Not all garden levels are initially available from the start; as the player collects Spectra, new plants on the main screen for the game will grow and will ultimately allow the player to reach the other gardens.
Cooperative Play
''PixelJunk Eden'' can be played alone or with up to three local players performing cooperatively, each controlling their own Grimp. Players must stay within a certain distance of one another; if any player moves outside of the screen boundaries, a brief timer will appear. Once the timer expires, the offscreen player will respawn next to an onscreen player (as long as the onscreen player is not in midair). While playing cooperatively, Grimps will stick to one another if they collide. Using this mechanic, players may "catch" a falling Grimp or "throw" each other to new heights.
''Encore''
In a similar structure to ''
PixelJunk Monsters
''PixelJunk Monsters'' is the second game in the ''PixelJunk'' series developed by Q-Games for the PlayStation 3. It was released worldwide on the PlayStation Store on January 24, 2008. The game was released for the PlayStation Portable under the ...
'', Q-Games released an expansion for ''PixelJunk Eden'' titled ''PixelJunk Eden Encore''.
Released in April 2009, the add-on includes five additional gardens. Some new play elements were also introduced; for instance, the game now implements a "smart bomb" technique whereby opening three seeds in a row, all on-screen enemies will erupt into pollen simultaneously. At the release of ''Encore'', these changes were patched into the original levels as well. The game also introduced new Spider Controls for players who collected all twenty-five spectra in the new version.
Features
''PixelJunk Eden'' is the first game to launch with
PlayStation 3 trophy system support at its original release,
although other titles had received support via patches prior to this.
Players are able to record video footage of their game performance onto the PlayStation 3's hard drive and then upload these videos to
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
directly from the console. A maximum of ten minutes can be recorded at a time.
''PixelJunk Eden'' also supports "custom soundtracks", the ability to play music from the PlayStation 3 hard drive as in-game music, as part of the 2.40
system update. This feature can only be accessed after collecting all 50 spectra in the game. Video capture is disabled when custom soundtracks are in use, presumably to avoid copyright issues.
Reception
''PixelJunk Eden'' and ''PixelJunk Eden Encore'' received favorable reviews on both platforms according to the
review aggregation
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
website
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
.
Many praised the PlayStation 3 version's colorful visuals and general gameplay.
The controls are considered simple, allowing for the player to learn and explore the game's physics easily in order to become more adept at traversing the gardens.
Reviews commented that the experience of the game is difficult to state in words; as stated in ''
1UP.com
''1Up.com'' was an American entertainment website that focused on video games. Launched in 2003, ''1Up.com'' provided its own original features, news stories, game reviews, and video interviews, and also featured comprehensive PC-focused conten ...
''s review, "you have to play it in order to fully appreciate it".
Reviews of ''PixelJunk Eden'' also share common criticisms. Some critics consider the synchronization meter an unnecessary countdown timer for an experience that is otherwise relaxing.
''
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
'' called the timer "suffocating", "nightmarish", and "all too demanding"
while ''1UP.com'' referred to it as a "nagging tension".
Another frequent criticism is aimed at the game's progression structure, which requires the player to visit each garden five times to fully complete it, each subsequent visit becoming more redundant than the previous one.
''
Eurogamer
''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson.
Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...
'' noted that at times the
physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...
of the game seemed to fluctuate, making it difficult to judge jumps correctly and making for a frustrating experience, but despite the game's flaws, "there is something quite beautiful about ''PixelJunk Eden''", and that "It's just about worth all the confusion, frustration, pretentiousness and frequent tedium."
During 2013's holiday Steam sale Q-Games doubled the income of the PC version of the game.
''Eden Obscura''
A "reimagining", entitled ''Eden Obscura'', was initially reported in May 2017 to be in production for smartphones. It was released for iOS devices on May 18, 2018, followed by an Android release on June 1, 2018.
''PixelJunk Eden 2''
A sequel, PixelJunk Eden 2, was released on December 10, 2020 for
Nintendo Switch
The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a Tablet computer#Gaming tablet, tablet that can either be docking station, docked for use as a home video ...
.
See also
*''
PixelJunk Racers
''PixelJunk Racers'' is a puzzle racing video game developed by Q-Games for PlayStation 3. It was released on the PlayStation Store in 2007 as the first title in the ''PixelJunk'' series. An updated version, ''PixelJunk Racers: 2nd Lap'', was rele ...
''
Notes
References
External links
Official page on Sony websitePixelJunk Eden's Official website*
*
*
{{PixelJunk
2008 video games
Cooperative video games
Platform games
PlayStation 3 games
PlayStation Network games
Windows games
Puzzle video games
Sony Interactive Entertainment games
Video games about plants
Video games developed in Japan
Video games with expansion packs
Q-Games games