If you had the opportunity to take a break from your busy life, would you take it? What if the opportunity allowed you to lose yourself in space with the simplicity of colors? And if those colors could connect and form different objects, how far would you be willing to get lost? We all get busy with many things either by design or the test of time. But does developer Sanford Tech Limited give us that opportunity to escape into a reality we could all benefit from? Let’s find out with Color Connect for the Quest/2.
Color Connect is a VR puzzle game with an immersive environment and a relaxing ambient playlist as you lose yourself in space with challenging levels as you put your gray matter to the test in this simple, but challenging game. So before you go in trying to be the master of this space, there are a few things that you should know about. First, don’t come all in with anger. I mean, you can try, but life is too short for that. So try to come in a somewhat relaxing mindset. Second, make sure you have your favorite place to sit. Might as well be as comfortable as you can. Third, there is no need to rush, so take your time and let your mind just unwind. Fourth, make sure controllers are either charged or the battery life is good to go. No need to have them die out and cause frustration when you are supposed to be relaxing. And finally, just have fun. With that said, let’s continue…
The first thing you will notice when you start Color Connect is both the space and the relaxing music that really helps set the tone for the experience. The game has simple rules, just connect all the ends of the colors while using all the nodes as you strategically chose your path with the fewest possible moves. However, there can be no overlapping of paths and every node must be used. So when you start, you do get the tutorial of how things work. The first part was connecting a pink node to the other in a straight line, then followed by how all the nodes must connect. Simple, right?
As you progress, the puzzles become more challenging as you progress and the environments change. When you add more colors to the mix, you cannot have any overlapping, all the nodes must be used, and trying to use the fewest moves so you can receive the best score possible, can make what is supposed to be a relaxing time, a more challenging time. One of the key things to remember is space. You will come to points of your puzzle solving when moving the colors that you see that will just not work. You can move the colors backward so you can rethink your strategy. You have the 3D space to use, so rotate and move the puzzles around to see what your best strategy will be. Sometimes what you think may not work the best and then what you didn’t realize at the time as an option will, in fact, make you think “why didn’t I think about that” and just give you the opportunity to look at all the different angles to find the best solution.
After each puzzle, you are given a rating system based on the number of moves it took you to solve the puzzle. The lower the moves, the higher the number of stars you will receive. When you complete all the puzzles within the stage, you will receive a recap of the stars you earned for each puzzle. You can either retry the puzzle and try to increase the outcome or move right on to the next stage. So strategy really comes into play as you are trying to gain all the stars for each level of each stage.
Let’s talk about the graphics and sound. Color Connect really does immerse you in the space within the space. Seeing the initial space that you are surrounded in, then having the environments, followed by the puzzles just shows how big the developers wanted you to feel within the game. Each puzzle is designed to be unique and easy on the eyes which is always positive. The sound is something that really helped me stay relaxed. The calming sounds and the notes of the music really form a beautiful bond that compliments the visuals for a well-rounded experience.
There are some things that I would love to see. For one, more puzzles. Yes, there are over 70+ puzzles for you to try to solve with different levels that range from Easy to Expert. In fact, the last update made to the game did add new levels, environments, and a new soundtrack. I would just love to see newer puzzles and environments for each holiday along with a corresponding soundtrack. Second, I think it would be fun to have players design their own puzzles and be able to submit them from within the game, and that way you could possibly have an unlimited amount of puzzles for people to try and solve. And finally, other platforms. Currently, the game is out for the Quest/2 and PCVR. With PlayStation VR or even the upcoming PlayStation VR2, Color Connect could really benefit from being on other platforms.
Color Connect allows us to escape from our routine lives and gives us the opportunity to relax, unwind, and lose ourselves within the space. It shows us that we don’t always have to be set to a timer, but gives us the chance to let our minds take a break. In life, time flies beyond one’s control. And if we don’t stop and take a break for everyone once and a while, we may just miss the most precious moments in our lives and miss out on the memories that could be made.
Color Connect is out now for the Quest/2 via Oculus App Lab on the Oculus Store, Steam VR, and Viveport. A review code was provided.
To learn more about Sanford Tech, please visit their site, follow them on Twitter, follow them on Instagram, and subscribe to their YouTube channel.
In case you missed the trailer, please enjoy. Until next time, I have to try to complete the Expert mode.
