2DArray's Fixation is the prequel to 2009's acclaimed The Company of Myself, but as you might suspect knowing Eli Piilonen, it's got more than a few tricks up its sleeves. This moody and surreal puzzle platformer stars Kathryn, a young woman with a lot of baggage and not much desire to confront it. Instead, she's focusing on other things... her roommate's boneheaded boyfriend, for instance. Or maybe the strange people she meets who don't seem to have control of their habits. But if the root of her stress was just as simple as "he's annoying" and "she's a bimbo", then Kathryn probably wouldn't be about to embark on the journey she is. Lasers? Bottomless pits? Personal conflict? Oh, I think we've all been there.
Use the [WASD] or [arrow] keys to advance dialogue or move around and jump, or double-jump. The mouse, you'll shortly discover, is used to trigger and direct Kathryn's smoke; she's a habitual smoker, and the stuff she exhales can be used for a variety of things, aside from getting kicked out of restaurants, such as flipping switches and blocking lasers. It's not just belching like a dragon, of course; like any smoker with her salt, Kathryn can also blow rings with the right timing to flip other switches. Despite what Kathryn may think, however, she can't go it alone; you'll find yourself teaming up with other characters who will follow you around and help out. Oh, and if you're not digging the mellow tunes, right-click the game and select "mute" from the pop-up window.
Analysis: Fixation is a trip. Combining an evocative soundtrack by David Carney, expressive artwork by the talented Ben Jelter, and Eli Piilonen deft touch with crafting a narrative, it's an extremely strange but compelling little package. Strange because, well, we are talking about a world where everyone reacts to magical smoke and smoke-related switches blocking off parts of their scary floating houses, and compelling because its ability to flesh out the people and circumstances around them is really impressive. It's surprising how well everything matches, and the detailed sprites and animations look fantastic. Once you stop focusing on how weird everything is, however, you'll discover that Fixation has some serious puzzle platforming chops to go with its introspection.
The layout of the levels varies from "that was neat" to "how did I get so bad at games"? Getting the hang of Kathryn's smoke is what might be trickiest for some players, especially since the timing for smoke rings can be maddening to wrangle when you're hurrying along on several timed switches at once. If you're not a platformer by trade and just want to experience the narrative, you might find it a bit of an uphill climb in places. Fortunately, like any good puzzle game, once you figure out the trick to any given level and stop trying to do things the wrong way, you'll have a much easier go of it. This is easier said than done, of course, since Fixation is no slouch in the clever department, and there's more than one stage that will manage to make you feel both simultaneously brilliant and dumb when you get the hang of it. It's part of what makes Fixation so very satisfying. Well, that and knowing the pink overalls I wore when I was six are coming back in fashion. The difficulty level feels sort of like it swells and ebbs; certain stages midway through the game I felt were tricky but immediately solvable, while others had me running back and forth in utter bafflement, ready to quit. As the game advises you at the beginning, don't be afraid to take a break; sometimes a set of refreshed eyes is the answer.
While the puzzling is definitely worth checking out, however, you'd be missing out if you just focused solely on it and skipped all the dialogue. It's interesting to see how Kathryn's character is revealed through her interactions with the characters she meets, especially when they cause her to rethink something about herself. Like its predecessor, Fixation excels at weaving a very character driven narrative, and the cast is almost universally likable, and of course more complex than they initially appear. You'll need some steady reflexes and some patience to get through it, but Fixation a creative and clever game isn't just blowing smoke.
Walkthrough Guide
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Fixation Walkthrough
General notes
This walkthrough will skip straightforward Levels that do not require any serious puzzling or platforming. Pay attention to the Level numbering; the first number is the row number on the select screen, and the second number is the column number. For example, Level 2-4 is the second Level from the top in the fourth column from the left.
Levels
Level 1-4
Zigzag up the right side and down the left. When you get to the last jump, just drop off without jumping and hold left, and a double-jump should get you there.
Level 1-5
When ascending the staircase, use single jumps and you won't hit the laser. At the last laser, blow smoke at it (hold the mouse button in the appropriate direction) to block it.
Level 1-7
When you activate the smoke switch in the little box in the lower left, it'll only stay on for a short time. Blow smoke at it while moving and don't wait for it to trigger before starting your run to the upper
Level.
Level 2-1
Your first smoke ring exercise. Hold the mouse button for about half a second before releasing to blow a ring. Use the meter on the right side of the screen to gauge your blows; try to land it in the yellow region. Smoke rings travel far and bounce off walls. For the second switch, stand on the metal thing to the left when blowing the ring, and make a run for the exit right after you do.
Level 2-2
For the switch, toss out the ring from a distance and then immediately start blowing a cloud to block the laser as you inch towards the hole.
Level 2-3
Both the switches in this area work both ways, and you'll need to use each one more than once. Remember that Jack can't double-jump, so lead him to the gate right before the exit while it's closed, then go back to toggle the upper switch again.
Level 2-4
Keep a constant stream on the smoke switch until Thomas can trip the button.
Level 2-5
In the first area with the vertical wall, trip the left switch, then be in the air in the middle of the wall when it turns back on. Then jump to the ledge below the horizontal gate, then trip the left switch followed by the right. Up above, trip the switch closest to where you came in, then quickly stand in the blocks it opens. Then quickly toss rings at the other two switches on the right and slip through.
Level 2-6
You can't single-jump, but you CAN double-jump if you walk off a ledge! Get to the left side, bounce a ring off the ceiling to hit the ring switch, get to the lower right ledge, trip the smoke switch, vamoose to the left.
Level 2-7
Some tricky timing with successive ring switches, but otherwise not much to see here.
Level 2-8
Remember: you can't smoke in red areas, but you CAN blow your smoke into them! Bounce smoke rings off walls to hit the switches. And yes, there IS enough room between that low ceiling and that red zone in the middle for you to build up a smoke ring.
Level 3-1
To solve the EHUP, blow a ring directly at the switch and then run after it; you'll bump it and give it the extra speed necessary to reach the switch.
Level 3-2
Hit the ring switch, then cover the laser with smoke until Henry can press the button.
Level 3-3
Just hit the ring switches and quickly jump to the platforms they unlock. The second one's easier than it looks; the ring's trajectory will straighten as it passes through the narrow area.
Level 3-4
Hit the ring switch in the upper right. Hit the lower smoke switch, then quickly run to the ring switch it unlocks and trip it. You should have just enough time. Once you've done it, trip the upper-right ring switch again, then the smoke switch in the upper left. For best results, don't activate the latter while standing below it; stand on the metal blocks to the right.
Level 3-5
This is your first exercise with turning laser turrets. Remember that the laser will turn to face wherever you were when you blew the ring that hit it, but will stop if it hits a smoke switch on the way. First, spit a ring down the passage below you, then move down and send another ring from below. The last part is tricky. Stand on the table on the far right and blow a ring, then blow another ring from the left. Because it's aiming up slightly when you blow the second ring, its shortest path to you will be upwards, and it'll hit the switch.
Level 3-6
Send a ring at the laser turret, then take cover. Repeat as needed.
Level 3-8
Hit the switch, then run through the toggling blocks. They won't hurt you.
Level 4-1
Rain can toggle smoke switches, too. Hit the three ring switches in quick succession from top to bottom, then focus on the smoke switch below you until the exit is clear, then run.
Level 4-2
Hit both switches on the top level in quick succession and they should stay open. Ditto the middle, ditto the bottom.
Level 4-4
On the left, don't worry about any of the switches on your way up; you'll need to hit them in quick succession on the way down the shaft on the right. On the right, hit all three switches at roughly the same time; aim for the far ones first.
Level 4-5
Trick the two highest turrets into aiming at the smoke switch. That should give you enough clearance to make it across the bridge.
Level 4-6
The top laser should fire on the top switch, the bottom one the bottom switch. Remember that you can use smoke clouds to block lasers.
Level 4-7
Block lasers with a constant cloud of smoke as you approach them. Reorient the laser on the right before you head towards the lower left corner, and reorient the laser on the lower left to hit the smoke switch on the left before you pass the latter. (Hint for the latter: stand on the highest ledge on the left and bounce the ring off the right wall.)
Level 5-1
Keep both the laser blocked and the smoke switch on until Jack hits the switch. Hint: focus a bit more smoke on the switch.
Level 5-2
Work your way through the top while Jack takes the bottom. You can jump into the alcove where the upper-left-most switch is, and be prepared for a tricky double-jump to reach the last one.
Level 5-3
Trip the ring switch in the middle left, then trip it again while standing in the way of the appearing blocks; they'll stay gone. Use a similar trick up top, but make sure to block the blocks up high so the laser can reach the switch.
Level 5-4
Don't touch the ring switch until Jack is as far right as possible. Lead him there.
Level 5-6
Practice your smoke-ring billiards; some fancy deflections are your ticket through the first two barriers. Then get the turret aimed at the smoke-switch ON THE RIGHT (deflecting off the blocks) while you blow on the other one. Keep it up until you're both in the upper right corner.
Unlock codes
1-1: F39024
1-2: 15947E
1-3: 4AD7F4
1-4: 9837FB
1-5: 0295D0
1-6: 8ED674
1-7: 41E2A9
1-8: 20A6F1
2-1: 301388
2-2: 751C66
2-3: F4B937
2-4: B3E55A
2-5: B79FE0
2-6: 04EB89
2-7: A0CEBF
2-8: 905394
3-1: D887C1
3-2: 7E7CA3
3-3: 874737
3-4: F80018
3-5: D5C37D
3-6: 25B137
3-7: ECECAB
3-8: 309CD5
4-1: F5EC42
4-2: 42090C
4-3: 1A24DC
4-4: 8374E6
4-5: 8331E2
4-6: 1E9812
4-7: 5AE738
4-8: 3D6298
5-1: CB50F6
5-2: 09FC8F
5-3: FEB31D
5-4: AEC5CE
5-5: 1F894A
5-6: 5655A8
5-7: 588673
5-8: 2B7AA1
Epilogue: IWANTITALL
Posted by: SonicLover
|
March 20, 2012 5:17 PM
What a lovely writeup, thank you so much! I was kind of bummed out with the initial reaction from Armor's audience, so this is more reassuring for me than I can explain...
knarticho, sorry to hear you lost your progress. You can see the unlock code for the current level by pressing Tilde (~) while playing (Any level code will also unlock all of the levels before it). You can enter in the cheat codes on the Credits page of the main menu.
Code to unlock everything up to Level 4-1:
F5EC42
And because you guys are awesome, here are some more miscellaneous cheats. The first two haven't been given out anywhere else yet!
Red/Black smoke: "Something...Darker"
Purple smoke: "BigPimpin"
Return to default smoke: "BackToTheBasics"
Posted by: 2DArray
|
March 21, 2012 2:48 PM