The Perfect Pencil, for me, is an old school HB. Slightly blunt, and it needs to have a few nibble marks (not mine) on the end. If it has those attributes, it’s pretty perfect.
That’s not what this demo is literally about, of course, but it’s a quick entry into this Studio Cima title. Sometimes these demos pop up without knowing much about them, and while I don’t know too much about this, I’ve been looking forward to it.
You play John, who ‘finds himself trapped in a mysterious world’. This mysterious world is a little Terry Gilliam-like, and has a hint of The Company Man, yet in a pretty abstract way. I’ll have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by how weird it all looked and that it exceeded my expectations.
At first, you have to learn the ropes and have little to do. However, you come equipped with a personal radar that beeps anytime you get close to something. As you get closer, you can scan the item and are presented with a choice: do this, or do that. I’d like to have a vibration option, though, as in gameplay, I kept missing the clues.
Shortly after The Perfect Pencil starts, you ‘earn’ a pencil that you can use as a sword that also heals. Getting enough hits charges the sword. Once charged, if you connect a hit with the enemy, it will recover some health. Very useful.
The platform element is rather good. It’s between precision and floaty if that makes sense, and moving around the rather lovely levels is quite fun. But what I like most about the demo is the potential. Ok, perhaps the game is close to completion, and they already know where it’s going, but as per the pitch, this is a deep game.
One of the highlights in The Perfect Pencil is the multiple paths you can take. If you pay attention to the radar, unlike me, you’ll unlock new items, which will reveal some truths and secret passages. Additionally, there are items along the way that allude to “John”, and I have to say, I’m excited.
Quite possibly one of my shortest write-ups, but that’s because my motor skills are deteriorating as I’m enjoying a Sunday gin and have just about enough of this coordination malarky. Let’s just cut to the chase and say that The Perfect Pencil is a profound platformer (how many more do you know?) and is well worth your time.
Since writing this, the full game has launched!
