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Pardon the dust! This page includes some jargon that hasn't been added to the site's glossary yet. I'll be around to fix this later, but sorry for the inconvenience in the meantime. |
Review: Chime Sharp
At a Glance
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How to Save and Pause:Any progress you make, such as your high score and what tracks you've unlocked, is recorded at the end of a game. To pause the game, press ESC to bring up the pause menu. Time needed per session:Players should generally expect to play for at least ten minutes at a time, though individual levels won't last that long.
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Does this game pose issues for Christian players?
 | No - this is a great game for Christians This puzzle game doesn't have any objectionable content to worry about. |
Screenshots
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/chime_sharp_0.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/chime_sharp_1.jpg)
![[view screenshot]](../images/screenshots/chime_sharp_2.jpg)
Game Overview
Chime was a fun and relaxing little diversion. In fact, people enjoyed it enough that you could frequently find requests for more levels in the game's forums. When a sequel arrived in 2016, fans were excited at first, but soon players were expressing mixed feelings about it. To put it very simply, Chime had a sort of magic to it that Chime Sharp noticeably lacks. What happened?
Perhaps the biggest issue with Chime Sharp is that very little is communicated to the player. Some of the original game's mechanics have been changed or tweaked, and none of these new rules are explained well, if they are explained at all. A help screen is available, but it only covers the controls. As it turns out, instructions for how to play are actually included with this game - just not where anybody would know to look.
For the longest time now, players have learned how to play their games via short tutorial stages, hint messages, or other forms of introductory level design. This is so commonplace that players are conditioned to expect it. For some reason, Chime Sharp's developers decided to take a different approach and place all of this crucial information in a PDF document that comes with the game. In other words, they included a manual. For a game that came out in 2016.
Very few players would even know to look for a manual these days, and those who did find it are likely expecting it to contain little more than the game's system requirements and troubleshooting information, as that's all you can find in modern manuals. Thus, many of the players who are frustrated with Chime Sharp have simply been playing it without an understanding of how the game works, and that's not really their fault.
Here's a short overview of how the new mechanics work. As in the first game, you're tasked with placing blocks of different shapes somewhere on a grid. When the pieces from these blocks form a rectangle, you've created a "quad" which will begin filling up. You can expand a quad while it's filling by placing more blocks around it. As you're doing this, the "meter line" moves from left to right across the level in time to the music. When it reaches a filled quad, the quad is placed into the grid, marking the spaces it occupied as "covered" and earning you more points. The catch to this is that when the meter line moves over pieces that aren't part of a quad, they'll degrade by one step. Once they are degraded enough, they'll begin to flash. If the meter line passes a flashing piece, you'll lose your point multiplier and all of the loose pieces will be removed from the grid.
But now, you don't need to cover the entire grid ( called 100% coverage ) for a level to be considered completed. Instead, the level is considered over when you reach 90% coverage. At this point, the meter line will cross the level exactly two more times, allowing you to earn some bonus points before the grid resets and the next round begins. While this makes it easier to clear levels, if you're not aware of the 90% threshold rule, it looks like the game can't tell when the player is done.
Another thing to be aware of is the need to create "perfect quads". Again, the game doesn't explain what these are, but the manual does - a "perfect quad" is any quad that doesn't leave anything behind when it's created. Remember that while each block is treated like multiple pieces for the purpose of creating quads, this mechanic still treats them as a single connected unit. Having to treat your pieces both ways is a bit awkward at first, but with some practice, you'll get the hang of it easily enough and stand a better chance at surviving the tougher modes and challenges.
Having said all of this, there's still one issue that hurts this game's playability: namely, its music selection. Chime's music was defined by its ethereal and relaxing nature. This is in stark contrast to the energetic and urgent feeling selection available in Chime Sharp, and a lot of people don't like this change in tone. Personally, I could take it or leave it, much like this game as a whole.
Perhaps the biggest issue with Chime Sharp is that very little is communicated to the player. Some of the original game's mechanics have been changed or tweaked, and none of these new rules are explained well, if they are explained at all. A help screen is available, but it only covers the controls. As it turns out, instructions for how to play are actually included with this game - just not where anybody would know to look.
For the longest time now, players have learned how to play their games via short tutorial stages, hint messages, or other forms of introductory level design. This is so commonplace that players are conditioned to expect it. For some reason, Chime Sharp's developers decided to take a different approach and place all of this crucial information in a PDF document that comes with the game. In other words, they included a manual. For a game that came out in 2016.
Very few players would even know to look for a manual these days, and those who did find it are likely expecting it to contain little more than the game's system requirements and troubleshooting information, as that's all you can find in modern manuals. Thus, many of the players who are frustrated with Chime Sharp have simply been playing it without an understanding of how the game works, and that's not really their fault.
Here's a short overview of how the new mechanics work. As in the first game, you're tasked with placing blocks of different shapes somewhere on a grid. When the pieces from these blocks form a rectangle, you've created a "quad" which will begin filling up. You can expand a quad while it's filling by placing more blocks around it. As you're doing this, the "meter line" moves from left to right across the level in time to the music. When it reaches a filled quad, the quad is placed into the grid, marking the spaces it occupied as "covered" and earning you more points. The catch to this is that when the meter line moves over pieces that aren't part of a quad, they'll degrade by one step. Once they are degraded enough, they'll begin to flash. If the meter line passes a flashing piece, you'll lose your point multiplier and all of the loose pieces will be removed from the grid.
But now, you don't need to cover the entire grid ( called 100% coverage ) for a level to be considered completed. Instead, the level is considered over when you reach 90% coverage. At this point, the meter line will cross the level exactly two more times, allowing you to earn some bonus points before the grid resets and the next round begins. While this makes it easier to clear levels, if you're not aware of the 90% threshold rule, it looks like the game can't tell when the player is done.
Another thing to be aware of is the need to create "perfect quads". Again, the game doesn't explain what these are, but the manual does - a "perfect quad" is any quad that doesn't leave anything behind when it's created. Remember that while each block is treated like multiple pieces for the purpose of creating quads, this mechanic still treats them as a single connected unit. Having to treat your pieces both ways is a bit awkward at first, but with some practice, you'll get the hang of it easily enough and stand a better chance at surviving the tougher modes and challenges.
Having said all of this, there's still one issue that hurts this game's playability: namely, its music selection. Chime's music was defined by its ethereal and relaxing nature. This is in stark contrast to the energetic and urgent feeling selection available in Chime Sharp, and a lot of people don't like this change in tone. Personally, I could take it or leave it, much like this game as a whole.
Points of Interest
Five modes per song
When you first unlock a new song, you have access to that song's Practice and Standard modes. These two modes use the traditional rules similar to those from the first game. Practice mode features a simpler grid, allowing you to get familiar with a song's piece selection.
If you manage to reach 60% coverage in Standard mode, then you'll unlock Sharp mode, which differs from the Standard rules in two ways. Firstly, quads don't fill up over time; they're automatically filled as soon as they are placed. Secondly, the timer has been replaced with a lives system. You'll lose a life every time a piece falls off the grid, which can end your game very quickly if more than one piece is flashing. To last long in this mode, you'll need to be skilled at creating perfect quads. Every perfect quad you create adds four more lives to your pool, for a maxium of ten.
Strike Mode unlocks once you reach at least 60% coverage in Sharp mode. Strike mode is simply a time trial, as you have 90 seconds to score as many points as possible.
Lastly, if you can earn 100% or more coverage in the Standard mode for a song, you'll unlock the song's Challenge mode. This plays similarly to the Standard mode, except the grid is more difficult to work with and the selection of pieces has been altered slightly.
If you manage to reach 60% coverage in Standard mode, then you'll unlock Sharp mode, which differs from the Standard rules in two ways. Firstly, quads don't fill up over time; they're automatically filled as soon as they are placed. Secondly, the timer has been replaced with a lives system. You'll lose a life every time a piece falls off the grid, which can end your game very quickly if more than one piece is flashing. To last long in this mode, you'll need to be skilled at creating perfect quads. Every perfect quad you create adds four more lives to your pool, for a maxium of ten.
Strike Mode unlocks once you reach at least 60% coverage in Sharp mode. Strike mode is simply a time trial, as you have 90 seconds to score as many points as possible.
Lastly, if you can earn 100% or more coverage in the Standard mode for a song, you'll unlock the song's Challenge mode. This plays similarly to the Standard mode, except the grid is more difficult to work with and the selection of pieces has been altered slightly.
Accessibility options
If you're having trouble with the game's appearance, there are some options that can help. One setting allows you to switch between the original (straight on) and new (angled) cameras, which might be useful if you're having trouble judging where things are on screen. Another option toggles between the normal neon colors, a special colorblind mode, and another mode with higher contrast.
Steam community features
There's a nice set of Steam trading cards for you to earn while playing through the various songs, but chance are, you'll be more interested in earning the 17 achievements that are on offer. Most of these revolve around completing a certain number of perfect quads or covering the grid in different ways, but a few of them will truly put your skills to the test.
New track message glitch
Normally, you need to unlock new songs (ie, "tracks") by reaching 60% coverage in an earlier level. Oddly, even if you've already unlocked all fifteen songs, you'll still get the "New Track Unlocked!" message when completing a new level. This is a bit confusing, because it makes it sound like there is more content than there really is.
Concerns and Issues
Clean as a whistle
Much like the first game, there isn't anything objectionable or potentially harmful to be found here.