Critical Play: Race Games
Two games I played: Tiny wings and Alto
In Tiny Wings, you are a small bird trying to speed up and fly as long as possible by controlling the wing flapping and using the hills. You can tap or hold the screen to make the bird drop, and the timing of tapping decides how far the bird can fly. The game is super cute even though you can feel the struggle as bird with tiny wings, trying to reach the sky. When the little bird gets to touch the sky and to fly over hills, it feels quite amazing.
In the game Altos, you are a skier sliding down various landscapes. By tapping, you can jump, onto a different structure, or skip barriers such as rocks. By holding, you can flip, and do crazy cool tricks. The game is extraordinarily beautiful. Skiing feels very soothing, and the every changing background makes the game full of surprises and challenges.
Both Tiny Wings and Altos use similar tapping mechanisms. However, the difference in themes gives completely different vibes and experiences. For Tiny Wings, speed is important because you are chasing the sun, so the tapping needs to be quite precise, which gives a time-sensitive pressing vibe. In Altos, there’s no time limit. You can slide as long as you want, but the obstacles make sure the player is always alerted and concentrated. There’s some satisfying sensation when sliding down the sand as we can relate that to our own skiing experience. It feels like we are true masters of skiing exploring the wild nature.
