Fez (computer game)

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Fez
Fez (video game) cover art.png
Cover art of the game
Studio CanadaCanadaPolytron Corporation BlitWorks ( ports )
SpainSpain
Publisher United StatesUnited States Microsoft Studios Trapdoor Polytron Corporation
CanadaCanada
CanadaCanada
Senior Developer Phil Fish (Designer)
Renaud Bédard (Programmer)
composer Richard Vreeland
Erstveröffent-
lichung		 Xbox 360:
Download April 13, 2012
Microsoft Windows:
Download May 1, 2013
macOS, Linux:
Download September 11, 2013
PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita:
Download March 25, 2014
iOS:
Download 2017
platform Xbox 360 , Windows , macOS , Linux , PlayStation 3 , PlayStation 4 , PlayStation Vita
genre Puzzle , platform game
Game mode Single player
control Keyboard , gamepad
medium Download
language English , German and others
Age rating
USK released from 0
PEGI recommended from 3 years

Fez (stylized as FEZ ) is a puzzle - and platform - video game of the Canadian independent developer Polytron Corporation. It was first released on April 13, 2012 for the Xbox 360 game console , and in 2013 the game was also released for Windows . Further implementations followed. Project leader Phil Fish and the late stages of Fez were part of the documentary Indie Game: The Movie .

The development of a successor was stopped in 2013 by Phil Fish.

action

Gomez, the protagonist of the game

The plot of Fez revolves around Gomez, a two-dimensional creature who lives in a world that is also two-dimensional. One day Gomez comes across a strange and mysterious artifact called the Hexahedron. This gives him a magical fez through which Gomez can perceive a third dimension . As he begins to discover his new ability, the hexahedron breaks and explodes. Then simulated graphic errors arise and the world around Gomez freezes. The game restarts and Gomez wakes up, now able to explore the world in three dimensions. A flying hypercube tells him that he has to collect the fragments of the hexahedron that have been scattered around the world. Otherwise the world itself will be destroyed.

Gameplay

The object of the game is to collect the 32 cubes scattered around the world, rebuild the hexahedron and use it to restore Gomez's world before it is finally destroyed. Cubes and cube fragments are visible and can be collected by moving over them. The player can also collect 32 so-called "anti-dice" by solving various puzzles. Many of these puzzles require cryptanalysis . As the player collects dice and anti-dice, doors open through which one can enter new areas.

Demonstration of the screen rotation and the game objects in FEZ

Fez is a 2D platform video game in which Gomez can run, jump, climb and manipulate objects. However, the player can change perspective at any time by rotating the world 90 degrees relative to the screen. This makes doors and passageways visible and causes platforms to realign themselves on the screen. Since the two-dimensional world in which the player can move has no depth, one has to make use of this game mechanic in order to carry out actions that would be impossible in a truly three-dimensional world. For example, a 90-degree rotation allows Gomez, when standing on a floating platform, to jump to another platform that was previously on the opposite side of the screen. If you rotate back after the jump, it shows that Gomez has covered a great distance.

development

FEZ development team at GDC 2012: (from left): Composer Richard “Disasterpeace” Vreeland, designer Phil Fish, sound effect designer Brandon McCartin, programmer Renaud Bédard

Fez stands out for his lengthy development, which was covered in the documentary Indie Game: The Movie . Fez was first announced online in July 2007 and an early stage of development was presented in 2008 at the Independent Games Festival. The game received great praise and its creator, Phil Fish, became a prominent developer of independent games . The game was originally due to be released on Xbox Live Arcade in early 2010 . However, little was heard from Fez in the years that followed, as Fish's company Polytron lost its financial resources and ran into legal trouble. This had mainly to do with the departure of Fish's business partner, who subsequently threatened legal action. Fish also had to grapple with personal and family problems; he admitted that his perfectionism delayed the game's release because he lost sight of the game's merits and consumer desires.

Despite looming legal hurdles and technical difficulties, Polytron was able to present an almost completed version at the Penny Arcade Expo in 2011 . This, too, was almost widely praised. Fish gave several interviews (including with Jerry Holkins, the author of Penny Arcade ), while his new business partner Ken Schachter reached an agreement with the original business partner that ended the legal battle between the two.

A demo of the game was presented on January 31, 2012 at the International Game Developers Association Montreal DemoNight. Polytron stated that Fez would be released for Xbox Live Arcade in spring 2012. On April 13, 2012, the game was finally released for Xbox Live Arcade . A Windows version was made available through the online distributors Steam and GOG.com on May 1, 2013.

Further versions for macOS and Linux were first published in the Humble Indie Bundle 9 and have also been available on Steam since then. Polytron is working with Sony to determine publication opportunities for the PlayStation consoles or handhelds . Linux, with the developers of the game console Ouya is also cooperating with regard to a publication.

Xbox 360 patch

Two months after it was released for the Xbox 360 in April 2012, Polytron made an extensive patch available that fixed some bugs in the game. Although the patch was certified through testing by Microsoft, some players found that their game saves became corrupted, forcing them to start Fez over. For this reason, Polytron warned players against installing the patch if they had not already done so. Microsoft later removed the patch from their offer.

In July of the same year, the patch was released again on Xbox Live without any further modifications. In the accompanying declaration, Polytron explained that Microsoft had given them the choice of either fixing the bug with regard to the scores and having the patch recertified, or offering the patch again unchanged. Polytron argued that this recertification process was prohibitively expensive, costing up to $ 40,000, and could have created issues that, if discovered later, would have required another patch. The developers estimated that less than one percent of players were affected by the bug, and Microsoft agreed that that percentage was too small to affect the original certification. Polytron and Phil Fish were criticized for this decision. Microsoft's pricing policy with regard to certification also provoked negative reactions.

Publication for other platforms

Fish explained that Fez would appear for other platforms in 2013, but initially did not specify which ones. A release for Microsoft Windows via Steam and GOG.com has been confirmed and made available on May 1, 2013. Ports of this version for Linux and Mac OS X were announced for an unspecific date and appeared for the first time on September 11, 2013 in the Humble Indie Bundle 9, whereby they have also been available on Steam since then. On March 26, 2014, Fez was released for the PlayStation 4 , PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita through the PlayStation Network . Fish has reiterated that in all likelihood there will be no release for the Nintendo 3DS .

A version for iOS was already described as “very likely” by the developer in March 2013, but was only released in December 2017. In July 2013, Polytron announced that “further porting work” was still to be done. It is unclear which platforms this statement refers to.

Game music

"Trail", a melody from the Fez Soundtrack Remix Album FZ: Side Z

The soundtrack for Fez was written and produced by Disasterpeace aka Rich Vreeland. It was released on April 20, 2012. Three titles, Adventure , Forgotten and Home were made available free of charge on Bandcamp when the game was released .

Fez soundtrack track list 
No. title length
1. Adventure 3:18
2. puzzle 2:14
3. Beyond 3:05
4th progress 4:16
5. Beacon 2:33
6th Flow 3:47
7th Formations 2:20
8th. Legend 1:18
9. Compass 2:43
10. Forgotten 2:34
11. Sync 2:19
12. Glitch 3:25
13. Fear 3:32
14th Spirit 2:52
15th Nature 4:12
16. Knowledge 1:49
17th Death 3:32
18th Memory 1:16
19th Pressure 4:00
20th nocturne 2:13
21st Age 2:58
22nd Majesty 3:22
23. Continuum (An arrangement of Prélude op.28 No. 4 by Chopin ) 2:35
24. Home 1:35
25th Reflection 9:02
26th Love 1:10
Overall length: 78:26

reception

Meta-ratings
Database Rating
Metacritic 89%
reviews
publication Rating
4players 90%
Edge 9/10
Eurogamer 10/10
G4 4/5
Game Informer 9.5 / 10
Gamereactor 9/10
GameSpot 8/10
GameTrailers 9.0 / 10
Giant bomb 4/5
IGN 9.5 / 10

After its publication, Fez received broad praise. IGN , among others , awarded Fez the rating "Amazing" with 9.5 out of 10 possible points. In June 2012, the average of the game on the Metacritic review aggregator website was 89%, partly due to some "perfect" scores from reviewers. Carsten Görig was also positive in the Kulturspiegel and wrote that Fez had a "concept that works great in its change between the dimensions". The German edition of the game magazine Gamereactor praises Fez as "a visual marvel that the gameplay is in no way inferior to"; the game continues to have a “unique atmosphere” and a “fantastic level design”. The puzzles and puzzles integrated in the game are "incredibly challenging", but this is an intended part of the "unique gaming experience". Website reviewer Kotaku made a similar statement, saying that Fez was “one of the few games where frustration actually enhances the enjoyment of it” and said, “Everything about this game is beautiful […] [its] features are awe-inspiring to me instilled, made me laugh and surprised me in the best possible way. "

Fez has sold more than 200,000 copies on Xbox Live.

Awards

Fez received the award for innovative graphics at the Independent Games Festival 2008, where the game was also nominated for the innovative design award. At the Penny Arcade Expo 2011, Fez was listed as one of ten selected games (the so-called PAX 10 ). Fez was also successful at IndieCade 2011, namely with a prize in the categories Story / World Design and Grand Jury . Fez also won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize at the Independent Games Festival 2012.

In December 2012, Fez was named Game of the Year by Eurogamer .

gallery

  • Fez (video game) screenshot 05.png
  • Fez (video game) screenshot 09.png
  • Fez (video game) screenshot 11.png
  • Fez (video game) screenshot 07.png
  • Fez (video game) screenshot 08.png

Web links

Commons : Fez (video game)  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Fez on Steam. Retrieved April 27, 2013 .
  2. ^ Website of the game . English. Retrieved April 27, 2013.
  3. ^ Description of the film on the film website
  4. ↑ Michael Sosinka: Fez 2: After a dispute, Phil Fish discontinues the game on pcgames.de, accessed on July 3, 2017
  5. ↑ a b Eric Woods: Fez Review. gameshampoo.com, January 5, 2012, accessed April 27, 2013 .
  6. ↑ In the English original referred to as "anti-cubes"
  7. ↑ The source of these statements by Fish is the above documentary
  8. ↑ January 31 - DemoNight! International Game Developers Association, January 31, 2012; archived from the original on February 7, 2012 ; accessed on April 27, 2013 (English, original website no longer available).
  9. ^ Adam Rosenberg: Fez Release Date Announced. g4tv.com, March 29, 2012, accessed April 27, 2013 .
  10. ↑ Fez at GOG.com
  11. ↑ FEZ MAC AND LINUX LAUNCHING IN HUMBLE INDIE BUNDLE 9! (No longer available online.) POLYTRON CORP. Sept. 11, 2013, archived from the original on September 28, 2013 ; accessed on September 22, 2013 (English). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / polytroncorporation.com
  12. ↑ a b c d e I am Phil Fish, co-creator of FEZ. Reddit , March 2013, accessed on April 27, 2013 (see bottom paragraph in the box above).
  13. ↑ Samit Sarkar: 'Fez' patch out but 'kinda broken'; Polytron warns against installing it (update) ( English ) The Verge . June 22, 2012. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
  14. ↑ a b FEZ: cult game remains unrepaired on Xbox 360. In: chip.de. Chip Online , July 19, 2012, archived from the original on July 26, 2012 ; accessed on April 27, 2013 (original website no longer available).
  15. ↑ Daniels Nye Griffiths: Console Confusion: Fez Patch Removed, Restored, But Not Updated ( English ) In: Forbes . July 19, 2012. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
  16. ↑ Fez, Fish and The Problem with patching ( English ) Retrieved on 24 July 2012 found.
  17. ↑ Kyle Orland: Microsoft attacked for five-figure Xbox 360 “patch fee”. Fez developer refuses to pay reported $ 40,000 to fix game-breaking bug. arstechnica.com, July 20, 2012, accessed April 27, 2013 .
  18. ↑ Jordan Revore: Fez will be ported to other platforms, says Polytron ( English ) Destructoid. December 31, 2012. Accessed December 31, 2012.
  19. ↑ a b New on PlayStation Store: FEZ! Destiny of Spirits! Deception! . PlayStation . March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 28, 2013.
  20. ^ Post by the game developer on Reddit , accessed April 27, 2013, English
  21. ↑ Brad Nicholson: Looks like ports of FEZ are still coming. In: toucarcade.com. July 30, 2013, accessed March 2, 2014 .
  22. ↑ Soundtrack website, accessed April 27, 2013, English
  23. ↑ Post on the Polytron website ( Memento of the original dated May 29, 2013 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed April 27, 2013, English @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / polytroncorporation.com
  24. ↑ a b Collection and analysis of reviews of the game. In: metacritic.com. Metacritic , accessed April 27, 2013 .
  25. ↑ EDGE Review ( English ) Archived from the original on July 9, 2012. Accessed April 28, 2013.
  26. ↑ Eurogamer Review . Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  27. ↑ Jason Wishnov: Fez Review for Xbox 360 ( English ) G4 . April 12, 2012. Retrieved April 12, 2012.
  28. ^ GI Review ( English ) Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  29. ↑ GameSpot Review ( English ) Retrieved April 28, 2013.
  30. ↑ Fez - Review HD ( English ) In: GameTrailers.com . April 13, 2012. Retrieved May 3, 2012.
  31. ↑ a b Entry and evaluation of the game. In: ign.com. IGN , accessed April 27, 2013 .
  32. ↑ Jeff Gerstmann: Fez Review ( English ) Giant Bomb . April 16, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2012.
  33. ↑ a b Ingo Delinger: Critique of Fez. In: gamereactor.de. Gamereactor , April 12, 2012, accessed April 27, 2013 .
  34. ↑ Jens Bischoff: Test: Fez. In: 4players.de. 4Players , April 17, 2012, accessed April 28, 2013 .
  35. ^ Carsten Görig: New software . In: Kulturspiegel . No. 5 , 2012 ( spiegel.de [accessed April 27, 2013]).
  36. ↑ Tina Amini: Fez: The Kotaku Review. In: kotaku.com. Kotaku , November 4, 2012, accessed April 28, 2013 .
  37. ↑ Ricarda: FEZ has sold 200,000 times within the last 12 months - Steam launch is imminent. elvun.de, April 15, 2013, archived from the original on April 19, 2013 ; accessed on April 27, 2013 (original website no longer available).
  38. ↑ List of winners and nominees 2008 on the festival website ( Memento of March 3, 2009 in the Internet Archive ), accessed April 27, 2013, English
  39. ↑ The PAX 10 ( English ) PAX. Archived from the original on August 18, 2011. Retrieved August 7, 2011.
  40. ↑ The Official IndieCade 2011 Award Winners in All Categories ( English ) In: indiegamereviewer.com . October 9, 2011. Archived from the original on April 10, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2013.
  41. ↑ List of winners and nominees 2012 on the festival website ( Memento of December 8, 2012 in the Internet Archive ), accessed April 27, 2013, English
  42. ↑ Eurogamer's Game of the Year 2012 . Eurogamer. Retrieved December 30, 2012.