Axel and Pixel is a point and click adventure and follows the story of Axel, who is a painter, and Pixel his dog. An evil rat traps them in a weird dream and they have to chase down the rat to get back home. The story is split in to twenty four chapters and it took me about four hours to play through it. While this game is pretty easy to get through, I found the whimsical journey a pleasure. Each of the chapters take place on a single screen (ie no scrolling) and the challenge mostly revolves around getting from the left of the screen to the right.
Unlike most of the other titles in this genre, like Sam & Max or Monkey Island, it is aimed at younger members of the family and is therefore relatively easy. If you do get stuck, each chapter allows you three clues. The clues basically tell you the exact step you need to take next. Most of the tasks involve clicking on an item or location of interest, which either Axel or Pixel will then go and put into action. You do this by moving the pointer around the screen using the left stick, and pressing A when the cursor lights up.
There are some other mechanics that break up the point and click gameplay. The chapters are spread across the four seasons, and between each of the seasons is a vehicle based level involving a hot air balloon, buggy and boat. The vehicle based levels can be played through again after you finish the game as minigames. There are also a few quicktime events thrown in as well as some logic puzzles.
The game looks pretty gorgeous with a photo mashup/hand painted look. The characters each have an interesting art style to them and contrasts with the environment. They tend move in a jerky cartoonish manner. The other inhabitants of the world mostly consist of giants, bugs, and rodents. This crazy and whimsical dream world feels coherent, even though its parts don’t seem like they should coexist.
Closing Comments
I had a blast playing this game, and it truly took me surprise. When I booted it up I intended to play half an hour or so to see what it was all about, but instead I played through the whole game. I recommend you check out the demo at the very least.
Released on 14/10/2009 for 800 MS points
