I hesitate to label what Supergiant Games does with their
work as a “formula.” Both of their releases (Bastion a few years ago and now
Transistor) share the same “groove.” The ingredients that form the experiences
of both games are relatively identical. Whereas Bastion had a narrator to
describe the onscreen action, Transistor has a commentator to provide more
emotional weight.
The core gameplay loop of both games revolves around
combining weapons to suit dynamic combat situations, but the potential loadouts
in Transistor exponentially eclipse the simplistic style of Bastion. Silent
protagonists, end-and-rebirth themes, practice arenas… I could go on forever.
But this isn’t a compare contrast essay. You’re here because
you want to know if Transistor is worth playing.
The game doesn’t tell you very much about itself. It plays
hard to get. Some of the basic questions the average story-driven game answers
within the first hour of play are simply not posed in the beginning of
Transistor. Who is Red? Where is she? What happened? Who is she fighting? And
most importantly: Why should I care about this? Transistor doesn’t force itself
to be likeable right off the bat. I admit, my first impressions of the story
were negative because I felt utterly lost. But then, after I found Transistor’s
groove, and by the time I reached the absolutely breathtaking conclusion, I
understood that the experience was designed this way on purpose. 
The incredible story (which does answer all of those
questions) is told in a few different ways. The more immediate action is
punctuated by comments from the Transistor itself as well as from reading short
articles at various news-stand kiosks throughout the city of Cloudbank. Every
time Red and the transistor encounter a fallen comrade, the transistor acquires
a new power, called a function, accompanied by a chunk of that person’s
biography. More sections of his or her story unlock as Red levels up that
function. The amount of reading over the course of the short experience was
overwhelming, however. Pausing the flow of the action to access them after
every unlock distracted from what made playing the game fun.
Similarly, with 16 different functions that can be combined
into potentially 256 different loadouts (or more, considering I’m bad at math),
I was also distracted by the constant desire to stop and tinker with the
possibilities. Battles occur within specific zones that lock Red inside after
she passes into them. There is a good variety of enemy types, known as the
Process, and like the functions at Red’s disposal they can lend one another a
hand in unique and challenging ways, ensuring that the same battle will rarely
play out the same way twice. The transistor allows Red to pause time and plan a
string of moves, limited by her current loadout. Seeing a well-laid plan – with
functions that compliment each other – unfold on the battlefield is extremely
rewarding.
So why did I start to lose interest mid-way through the
game? Everything sounds good so far, right? Transistor puts the real burden of
discovering its story on the player, and if you’re not careful it can become a
tedious task that disrupts the flow of the action. After I figured out the
basics – that Red survived an attempt on her life by a revolutionary group
called The Cameratta and acquired the control mechanism created by the
Cameratta (the Transistor) to control the Process that were dismantling the
city of Cloudbank – I outright began ignoring the character profiles and combat
options and just played. The game instantly became more fun and satisfying as I
worked to its conclusion.
