Fotonica can be described as the result of a kinky party night starring Canabalt, Mirror's Edge and Rez.
Made by Santa Ragione's Italian rebel youths,
in this one-button game the purpose is to run through abstract landscapes
while paying attention to not fall down into the void.
Compared to the Kongregate demo that was published online sometimes ago,
this final version has five levels,
including a procedurally-generated, infinite level,
plus a super-secret bonus level for the most furious players.
Five levels may sound not so many, and indeed they aren't,
but the game has a high replay value,
since every level has many different paths to choose from,
and thanks to the online highscores,
which of course will challenge the alpha geek istincts of the player.
By keeping the single button used to control the game pressed, the character runs,
by releasing it, he (or she?) jumps.
Pressing the button during a jump will result in a shorter trajectory.
After reaching a certain speed, the protagonist will enter super saiyan mode,
everything will look as if made of gold, and bonus points will start showering in.
Another way to rack up the score is to get the enigmatic spheres scattered through the levels.
Obviously one can't help but notice Fotonica's aesthetics,
with their abstract and evocative graphics and sounds.
The authors wanted to make a game about the sense of speed and vertigo,
and they obviously achieved their goal,
also because Fotonica's requirements are very scalable, and even on the lowest settings the graphics are gorgeous.
There's also a split-screen two-players mode,
but sadly there's no online multiplayer - but if sales will be good, the authors may think again about it...
Fotonica is distributed with a paywhatyouwant formula:
it's downloadable for free and you can pay it as much as you want.
The authors ask just a minimum of $1.75/€1.5 to cover their fees.
Nowadays the Italian video games development scene is in very poor conditions,
so a game like Fotonica, which got international praise and recognition thanks just to its own merits,
is a real source of hope.
So boys, don't be stingy and get the money out.
The official link for everything is in the video description.
Patriotism aside, Fotonica is a really good first step for Santa Ragione's duo,
and a very good game per se.
If Geometry Wars' colourful chaos isn't enough anymore for your psychologically altered evenings,
put an Italian flag nearby, and get ready to be sensorially blasted by FOTONICA.
Which, by the way, will be shown at Venice Biennale as a piece of interactive art,
so if you're trying to get intimate with some alternative new age ecologist chick, this is the game for you.
