Some folks may remember in my review of Wizorb that I felt the Xbox 360 controller was an imprecise tool to play the game with and that I very much wanted to see how it would play on PC with mouse support. Well, Justin Cyr of Tribute games has provided us with a copy of Wizorb for PC to give us a chance to evaluate how much changes with the ability to control Cyrus with a mouse. I was excited to see if my hypothesis regarding mouse control being much more snappy and precise was correct.
Upon loading it up, it’s immediately apparent that the menus have been changed to keyboard and mouse maps for all prompts throughout the title. There are keyboard controls for those wishing more precise movements, similar to using the D-pad on the Xbox 360 version. The mouse controls are very minimal yet concise. After acquainting myself with the PC controls, I loaded up a game to give it a test run and see if the mouse would promote tighter gameplay experiences. I was looking forward to seeing if I could run through the first town in hopes of not needing to use continues, and, if I could manage that, then it would be clear that the mouse definitely improves gameplay.
On my first PC playthrough, I noticed something: the mouse was indeed much more snappy for movement compared to a controller and that allowed for two things. First, it was now possible to make diving saves for my Wizorb to prevent losing lives. Second, the improved movement speed allows players the ability to catch more gold and gems while being able to bounce the Wizorb. The overall result was far fewer deaths, a larger amount of gold coins caught, and the ability to bankroll more extra lives.
For about 20 minutes, I managed to be able to get through the first town and beat the boss without using continues at all thanks to the extra gold and higher movement speeds provided by being able to use the mouse. I repeated the first town for a few more rounds and each time I would get progressively better and better at narrowing down my deaths from sloppy gameplay much easier than when I was playing on controller. The ability to play with a mouse for Wizorb has definitely increased my enjoyment of the game immensely.
The PC version is an easy recommendation for anyone who loves the idea of a break-out game mixed with the feel of Legend of Zelda. Wizorb is now available on Gamersgate and Desura for the price of $2.99 as a digital download for Windows with no DRM on it. On Desura, there is a closed beta going on for Linux and the full game will eventually be available for on that OS as well.
