REVIEW: ‘Deleveled’ A “Jumping” Mind Boggler (PC)

Deleveled is a puzzle platformer developed by Toasterfuel and published by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild. I can say I enjoy puzzle platformers since I’ve played games like Geometry Dash or Luna in the past and Deleveled is right up there with them. Deleveled really keeps it simple in concept and application, you use the Left stick to move and the B button to reset the map. Your goal is to get the cubes to the portal and move on to the next level.

Everything starts off simple. You have a few levels that act as a tutorial to help you get acclimated to the game and then after those levels are up, the training wheels are removed and you’re now on your own to solve these puzzles. The cool aspect of this game, is that though there is no traditional “jump” button you will instead use your cubes to “bounce” one another to get to ledges and such to complete the puzzles. Some levels require high momentum whereas others require evenly distributed momentum to help both cubes clear the puzzle.

As you play through these levels you are entranced with some very addictive and catchy 8-bit synth tunes to wreck your brain to. Though after some time of being stuck on a level, the music turned into an aggravating feature, that can be quickly remedied with the sound settings. Yet I have to say, the music helps give the game a more “lively” feeling as you play.

As you play through Deleveled and attempt to clear the 100+ levels, you will be focusing on a few things: perfect completion, which means you can’t make a mistake or reset; trying to understand the puzzle; learning to master the usage of your momentum. The stars you earn from perfect completion are totaled up and allow you to unlock a bonus level, whereas there’s also a level that is to be unlocked by secret means too. This is something I have yet to unlock in my time playing. As you move through the levels, they progressively get harder and harder and require you to think outside the box. For example, I had a level that required me to go to the opposite end of the level just to balance my momentum so that I could get both cubes to cross a gap. If it weren’t for trial and error and critical thinking, I don’t think I would have figured it so quickly and would have just quit that level.

What I enjoy the most about Deleveled is that there isn’t a wrong way to approach this game’s level design. When you start to get to the levels that have switches you will definitely need to figure out how you are going to approach them. I found myself, numerous times, planning out how I wanted to tackle a level, only to end up at times having to rethink my entire planning or even just winging it. This ability to be more carefree and less rigid is refreshing and something that charms me the most about Deleveled above all else. 

Overall, I have to say Deleveled is a blast to play. I find myself trying to get all the stars and when I think I’m done for the day I find myself going back to complete just one more puzzle. Its challenge is where the heart lies in this game. It’s hard enough to make you think but not too hard where you want to just put the game down for a long time and not come back to it. If you’re a fan of brain-teasing action and physics puzzles, pick this game up!

Deleveled is available now on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and macOS for $9.99.