Disclaimer: In an attempt to break outside the norm, this review will attempt to avoid all corn and vegetable puns.
Finally, a game for consoles that deals with the moral implications of creating sentient corn. Maize launched on September 12th, 2017 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One from Canadian developer Finish Line Games. Players wake up in the middle of a corn field with nothing but an English muffin and their slow wits to guide them.
The beginning of the game caused some tonal confusion for me personally. The sound track was a little ominous, but the truth is that a lifetime growing up on films like Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Signs has left me with a deep distrust for farms and cornfields. Very quickly, the game establishes a sarcastic tone as it guides you along, much in the same vein as Portal. Maize’s quirky humor is expressed as an onscreen guide and as helpful tips in item descriptions.
These tips will come in handy if you find yourself stumbling over what to do next. One particular puzzle piece has a long shelf-life before it becomes critical. Sometimes the tips are blatant, informing you that you’ll need to access a new area or where to use an item. Sometimes the hints are a little vague, but always threaded with a bit of humor. And it is a funny game. Not “haha” funny, like a clown funny, but I definitely chuckled out loud more than once.
The gameplay really boils down to escape room-like puzzles. You’ll need to collect and combine various objects to progress. Anyone who played these sort of flash games back in the day, or is a fan of the Resident Evil series will enjoy the simple mechanics. There are some other gameplay variations that are a lot of fun, but players will want to experience this for themselves.
On the downside, I did experience a few technical issues. There were no major crashes or game breaking bugs, but there were some minor frame rate drops throughout a few sections.
This is a very simple title, but the story has charming moments, and the end is definitely worth playing to. Overall, players can expect to take two or three hours to complete the game. There are fourteen trophies, twelve of which will unlock organically by finishing the story. Finish Line locks two other trophies behind collectibles and a timed run respectively. There’s no platinum trophy for anyone looking for an easy plat.
Recommendation
Maize is short and sweet. The humor and the ridiculous climax are worth the few short hours the story requires. There’s no platinum so replayibility is pretty low. It’s hard to fully recommend this game at $19.99 on the PlayStation Store, but it’s a fun indie title. Most gamers may want to wait for a lower price point. Thankfully the game will be 25% off until September 25th. Maize really feels like the developers had fun making it, and I will be keeping an eye on Finish Line Game’s next project.
As always, let us know what you think. Have you checked out Maize on PC, PS4 or Xbox One? Does corn need better representation in video games? Do English muffins get a bad rap? Will I ever stop harboring a fear of cornfields? Let Handsome Phantom know your thoughts and you could get a shout out on Adventure Mode!
