TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds

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TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds

by Mikhail Jun 16, 2022 | 1 Votes | 57 Played | 0 Reviews Your vote

10 rate

Platforms:

Genres:

Action , Platformer

Publishers:

Ratalaika Games

Graphics:

2D

Labels:

Pixel Art , Platformer , Retro TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds is a challenging platformer where you’ll go through different floors filled with ten rooms of traps, bombs, and other contraptions. Make precise movements to avoid buzzsaws and bullets, and move as fast as possible to collect bombs and tokens. Play Now Similar Games Played Post a Review

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Summary Plotline Gameplay Graphics/Sound Conclusion

Summary

There are video games you play for fun, while there are those you play to give yourself a challenge. However, there are games you play if you’re a masochist, and TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds is one of them.

Don’t get us wrong: TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds is a brutal and fantastic precision platformer that requires a ton of skill, timing, and on-the-fly decision-making. Though it’s a relatively straightforward game with uncomplicated goals, it’s incredibly challenging and should be one of the first games on your list if you’re looking for something that can squeeze out every ounce of your skill and reaction time.

However, before you start your great escape, let’s take a look at what it has to offer:

Plotline

TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds’ keeps you on your toes. Though story matters little in retro-style action-platformer games, it provides an air of mystery that keeps you wanting to find out more. The story is told mainly by scattered notes before you head to the challenge rooms. Of course, you’ll have to do a fair bit of reading, but don’t be put off: the tale is pretty interesting.

Gameplay

We’re not sure if this is a valid comparison, but in terms of difficulty level, TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds’ difficulty is comparable to the Souls games. Yes, we know it’s overused but hear us out. It’s not a game if you’re a gamer looking for a chill platformer or someone who wants a rather gameplay experience. However, if the challenge of a high difficulty curve excites you, then this will make a fine addition to your gaming library. It took a relatively short time to beat the game - two to three hours - but it could be longer.

As its name suggests, TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds involves having you spend time in rooms for 10 seconds. This doesn’t sound difficult, right? Well, it doesn’t if you don’t mention the countless buzzsaws, turrets, and other traps aiming to take you. You see, every room is full of things that can take your character out; these range from thorn traps that protrude and retract, turrets that fire lethal bullets, and buzzsaws that move in specific directions. You’ll need to survive this onslaught if you hope to finish all floors.

Your character is a nimble humanoid who runs like a ninja in a popular anime who can jump, duck, and slide. Thankfully, this is not all he can do since you can collect tokens you can then purchase for upgrades that will make it easier for you to deal with the traps. These include triggering a barrier that can destroy most bullets and being a coin magnet. The abilities are laid out in three skill branches: Explorer, Survivor, and Challenger - and each adheres to a particular playstyle. Meanwhile, the game’s movement reminds me of Downwell without the shooting and top-down elements, and the difficulty curve is akin to Celeste.

Apart from traps and buzzsaws, there are also rooms wherein you have a 10-second window to grab all bombs scattered across the room. If you fail to do so, you’ll lose all your existing lives. And oh, did we mention that you’ll only have three lives for ten rooms on every floor? This amplifies the difficulty massively. To make it even harder, there is barely a one-second window of invulnerability if you get hit. So yes, if you get hit by a bullet on top and land on a buzzsaw, you’ll lose two lives in one jump.

In the 10th room of every floor, there is always a boss-like sequence. And yes, the difficulty is further amplified because the developers extended the required time to 30 seconds. Imagine having only one life left when you reach the last room.

Graphics/Sound

In terms of presentation, TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds is fantastic. The retro-style pixel graphics look great, and even if there are at most five to eight colors in the entire game, the overall art style and direction deserve props. The color contrast of traps and lethal projectiles (red), delayed traps in a harmless state (orange), and breakable platforms (blue-green) make it easier to discern whether you should dodge or avoid.

Meanwhile, the soundtrack is absolutely a joy to anyone’s ears. Anyone who enjoys electronic rock and boss music will find an eargasmic audio experience in TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds. Every soundtrack fits the levels, and the hype you’ll feel in every room will push you forward to the end.

Conclusion

Overall, TEN - Ten Rooms, Ten Seconds is a must-play for anyone who loves precision platformers and challenging games in general. Every room provides different obstacles and traps, giving you a varied experience each time. With its low price point, exciting gameplay, and fantastic soundtrack, it is nothing short of a steal.

Give it a shot - the game is available on Steam today.