Mag Gunner

Original ideas are hard to come by in video games nowadays, mainly because almost everyone has access to professional development tools. As such, innovation is a bit slower after so many games have been released, but that doesn’t mean it’s all over. In fact, new technology should allow for an even greater surge in this regard, such as virtual reality and 3D.

Mag Gunner is a small, but quite interesting puzzle game. Although the genre is usually reserved for point-and-click, this one has a more arcade feel to it, like something designed back in the 8-bit era. In essence, you drive a car capable of firing magnets, and you have to attract and repel metal pieces around various levels in order to destroy enemies that stand in your way.

The car is able to switch between two types of magnets, depending on what you need. In case you want to attract the metal pieces to a corner of the map, the positive magnets come in handy. On the other hand, you can also repel them with a negative one, which is just as useful in certain situations. Sometimes, you’ll have to use both in order to transport the metal in a different part of the level.

To make the gameplay more challenging, you are not allowed to touch the enemies, or get in contact with the metal pieces while they are flying around. This is easier said than done, because sometimes you need to position yourself very well not to be in the way of the projectiles. Thankfully, you can safely touch the metal whenever it’s just sitting there, so navigation shouldn’t be too much of a problem.

On the other hand, the controls are rather unpleasant and difficult to get accustomed to. Probably the most annoying thing about them is the fact that the car cannot go in reverse for some reason, which means that you have to rotate in place whenever you want to change direction. There are many bugs to ruin the fun as well, such as when the metal pieces clip through the walls and cannot be retrieved.

In the end, Mag Gunner has its fair share of problems, but the concept is definitely fun and engaging. As long as more levels are added and the control issues are fixed, the game could turn into something a lot more popular.