Developed by Silver Wish Games
Published by 2K Play
Released for Xbox Live Arcade (10/2009)
Also on PC
Backwards Compatible with Xbox One
The backgrounds in Axel & Pixel are, for the most part, photo-realistic digitized pictures which lie in stark contrast to Axel, who looks like he stepped out of a cartoon. It's a style that works to some extent and some folks will like it, but personally it's not my cup of tea. The movements of the characters typically consist of a few frames of animation, giving it that stuttering look similar to the South Park cartoons.
There's not much of a story in Axel & Pixel, other than you fall asleep and explore your dream world along with your dog. There's not much as far as character development, which is not usually a big deal in a video game, but in an adventure game like this it would certainly help. The bit of story you're told involves a giant ice beast that you must defeat before winter freezes everything over.
In addition to exploring, you'll encounter a few mini-games while playing through Axel & Pixel. The game is broken up into 4 seasons and between each season there is a min-game, where you'll directly control your character rather than clicking about to tell them where to go. The 1st mini-game is like a poor man's version of Lunar Lander, where you must guide a hot air balloon through caves while avoiding the floors and ceilings. The 2nd mini-game is a Trials style driving segment (nowhere near as fun as the game that inspired it) and the last mini-game has you guiding your sailboat down a river while blowing the sails with a fan. The mini-games in general were quite frustrating, particularly if you're attempting to snag the collectibles that are scattered within them. While the mini-games were a nice attempt to add some needed variety, they ultimately feel a bit out of place in difficulty when compared to how easy the rest of the game is.
Axel & Pixel is one of those point & clicks that can become impossible to complete if certain actions are done out of order, resulting in a required restart. While there are abundant checkpoints to resume from, this is still an annoying aspect of the gameplay. In some ways Axel & Pixel almost feels like something you would've played on XBLIG rather than having the polish of a full-fledged XBLA title. While this may sound like a negative review, it's not at all. I actually found myself compelled to see the game through to the end, so while it's not the most polished adventure, it's not a bad game either. It's a bit on the short side, taking about 3-5 hours tops to complete and once the game is over there's not much to warrant a replay. This was one of those games I'd normally suggest waiting for a sale, but that doesn't matter since the game has been de-listed from the storefront. It's a bit of a surprise to see 2K publish an indie title like this since they're not usually a company that takes many risks and will usually stick with the sure-shot bestsellers like the sports titles. Props to 2K for taking a chance on something different and I don't think I've seen much from them in this vein since.
Final Verdict: Axel & Pixel is a point & click adventure that's a bit easy and short with annoying minigames, but can still be fun despite its faults.
Related Links:
Axel & Pixel - Metacritic
Axel & Pixel - GameFAQs
2K - Official Site
Axel & Pixel Achievement Guide - Xbox Achievements
Axel & Pixel - True Achievements
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