Time Loader review

As a gamer and a writer for this fantastic independent publication, I have spent a fair bit of my time playing games and writing about indie development and the ideas they bring to the table in the gaming industry.

Gaming is nothing without indies and the creative ideas they offer, indie developers often take risks, push boundaries to really stand out, in the hope of making it and becoming a cult classic. Triple A publishers take notes from these indy risk takers, and often implement some of there ideas, but they often fall a little flat, as they lack the passion from where these ideas are founded.

Independent developers pore their soul into the game they are working, literally shedding blood, sweat and tears, and it really shines through in the game that is produced, that’s why it’s a pleasure to support indie’s and what they represent, and that is hard work, passion, creative ideas and a gem of a game that is often original, long may it continue.

So what’s Time Loader all about you might ask? Well in a nut shell it’s a story-driven puzzle-platformer with tiny robots, alternate realities, nostalgic music, and primitive tech from the 90s!

And if that doesn’t scream indie, and very unique, then I don’t know what does!

At the helm of a small robot, you’ll travel back to the 90’s to prevent a tragic accident. Your job is to explore the house of your creator, solve brain-teasing puzzles, whilst acquiring unique and powerful upgrades, whilst viewing everyday household items from a rather different perspective.

But as in every good time traveling story, if you meddle with time, it often has some serious consequences.  You may succeed in changing something, but will you be able to deal with what comes next, or any unexpected differences that you didn’t calculate in your thought process.

Developers Flazm are extremely proud of their award-winning indie platformer Time Loader. Flazm Interactive Entertainment was founded in Magnitogorsk, Russia, and it consists of a small team of three, whose focus had been web games development, until now.

Coming off the back of a successful PC launch and winning multiple awards which include – Indie Blast: “Best Gameplay” award 2020, as well as the Unfold Games: “Best Level Design”, it’s now time to power up your console and let Time Loader warp its way into your life, so you can alter the past to save the present.

Change the future – Warp back to 1995, a time of square screens and clunky keyboards, as you fulfil your mission to change the future and help your creator avoid a life changing accident. Playing as a homemade RC car robot you must make decisions that can drastically alter the future, so please meddle with the timeline responsibly as you will experience alternating endings depending on what you change.
More than just a retro aesthetic – From wireless to wired. Experience a setting filled with nostalgic technology and furniture as you explore your owner’s childhood home, the scene of the incident. Traversing this 90’s maze, you will need to upgrade yourself to overcome the obstacles in your way, utilising homemade items to form harpoons, boosters, screwdrivers! Solve intuitive, physics-based puzzles to progress as you keep in mind the things you alter as you go.

Time Loader Gameplay Features

• Subverted perspectives 

Even the most familiar objects look different when you’re the size of a toy car. Will you watch your every move or dive head-first into this dangerous new world?

• An arsenal to choose from

Boosters, harpoons, screwdrivers… choose among dozens of upgrades to tackle each level and get the job done!

• Dynamic and branching narratives

Don’t just relive the past: change it! Every choice you make will influence the story and may lead to a different outcome. So do us a favor: change the past responsibly!

• A complimentary dose of nostalgia

Time Loader features music, references, and items straight out of the ‘90s. Relive your childhood or, if you’re too young for it, just gawk in awe at how primitive humanity used to be back then!

Xbox Players are in for a treat when it comes to exploring Time Loader’s emotive story, the idea of taking control of a quirky RC robot and manoeuvre it round a beautifully crafted world, consisting of cleverly created rooms from a 90’s style home, really adds that nostalgia vibe, add to that the sci-fi back to the future element, where you attempt to rewrite the past, save the future, in order to help your very own creator accept the present, is the stuff of dreams, and you get to play it.

Time Loader offers something for everyone, from a beautiful caring story, which really pulls on the heart strings, to some amazing little puzzles to solve, whilst venturing on a trip of pure nostalagia, alongside some excellent level design. Time Travel is not supposed to be simple and your choices throughout the levels of the game, affect the future and result in some very different endings in the story. Time Loader really is a joy to play!