Night Shift

You're driving your car along an empty road in the dead of night. From out of the ether, a ghost tells you to find the light to bring back the sun. You flash your highbeams to uncover the secret fire in a ring of moths and a kickin' 80s electro-rock riff shreds the truth of your victory in defiance to all the ghosts of lost drivers on this forgotten road. How is this not a Led Zeppelin song? We're talking air-brushed-on-the-side-of-a-van levels of ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥' and righteous in that order. So as you can tell, I love the idea of this game. How much do I hate giving this game a negative review then? A lot. A real lot. I really hate reviewing games like Night Shift: games that have got a full tank of new ideas, but lay on the gas and they explode long before they reach the promised land. Watch a "Red Asphalt" video and you'll have an idea of what I mean when I say NIght Shift is poorly executed. And it's unfortunate that it is, since that makes this review one of those back and forths where I have to praise the game, telling diehard fans of the genre "NO PASSING" on this one and, out of the other side of my mouth, damn it for its many faults and tell most readers, "DO NOT ENTER." Alright, alright. Let's shift this thing into gear! What exactly is wrong with the game? Chiefly, it's more cryptic than a hearse doing doughnuts in a mausoleum. Night Shift starts being exactly that obtuse right from the start where it (one can only assume) deliberately obfuscates how to play the game. Not only is there no tutorial, but if you decide to get clever and go to the menu to try and find the keys from the rebinding options, be prepared for disappointment. There's no such option. But, hey, this is basically a 2.5D FPS in layout, so W, A, S, D, Space, and E are pretty much the holy gospel of game design, so maybe we can give it a pass? Maybe, but the game continues to be as impenetrable as an ice queen in barbed-wire panties with the layout of its many puzzles. To find one, you drive around aimlessly for long stretches of minutes until hopefully you stumble backasswards into one. And god help you if you should leave the puzzle because you decided to test the problem by moving just too far out of the puzzle's bounds or you got momentarily frustrated. You will have a lot more aimless driving ahead of you as you try and guess how the handful of landmarks are related to each other or if they are at all. You know those RPG type games, like Zelda, where sometimes they have a screen that will repeat if you don't exit it from exactly the right direction several times? It feels like that, except after a ton of random wandering you hit a puzzle. So I found driving around in the dirt without a clear sense of direction really frustrating. But this is a game about driving at night and the atmosphere is great, it's a major draw, and this lets you experience it. Fair enough. The actual puzzles and how they relate to the controls are pretty dodgy. Quite a few of the puzzles rely on you flashing your high beams at things, but the time between when you hit the button and when the beams flash is very sluggish and they only affect objects that are an annoyingly precise distance from the car. This makes hitting the enemy ghost cars and other puzzles that rely upon timing your flash a teeth-grindingly grotesque experience. And, for some reason, you can only flash your beams while completely stopped, which badly breaks the flow of driving through the night. If real cars worked that way, I wager I'd have a lot more speeding tickets, if you know what I mean. Just like in real life, you can get a single sentence hint for some puzzles by running over a nearby ghost. And there are a few other clues like the activity on your radio and the descriptions for the game's achievements (yes, I needed to use them to figure out how to solve a couple of them). But, overall, the puzzles are wickedly unclear. To give you an example: there was one puzzle that gave me the victory music after I wasted some ghost cars, but after pulling about a million U-eys looking for my prize, I finally gave up driving in the manner of my Polish heritage and continued into the night where the victory music died, right into another half of the puzzle that I accidentally solved while trying to return to where the music was. There were at least two puzzles I still don't know the logic behind but I solved them somehow in a crowning moment of "huh, I guess I was supposed to do that?" That said, I did solve all of them by myself in less than three hours, so they aren't impossible. But that brings us to the last nail in the coffin that was at some point meant to be a favorable review for Night Shift: it's short. There are only seven puzzles in the game. Yeah, they'll take you a while, but only because the game is stick-a-paper-bag-over-your-head levels of opaque and there's so much driving around lost in the dark to get to the puzzles. And while the game's atmosphere is thick and rich like a seven layer chocolate cake, the story is more like a single chocolate chip. There is really no more than the blurb on the store page: [i]"The sun has disappeared from the sky! Darkness chokes the land, depriving it of all things good. Now it’s time for you to figure out how to bring the sun back! Get behind the wheel and find the sun in Night Shift!"[/i] That's really it. No further characterization of you or the task at hand or the world around you. So that's my long list of grievances with Night Shift. And I'm sad to have it. The ending to the game was easily the most radical thing to happen since the 80s ended and the overall tone and idea behind the game are great! How many adventure games exist where you play as a car driving on a 2.5D haunted highway practically reinacting the song "Radar Love?" Night Shift. That's it. And that's why I can still recommend it to long time veterans of adventure games who have legendary patience and can put up with logic that's been filtered through glue sniffing. But to everyone else: sorry, you'll find more frustration than fun. And even to those adventure gamers who will stick around for something new, there's really not enough here to be worth the cost of an entire gallon of gas. There are meatier indie games with better puzzles and more character for the same price. Wait for it to go on sale.

A dark road lit up only by the lights of a lone driver's car in the dead of night, the pulsing beat and warm synth of the 80's era radio, all haunted with the actualization of surreal entities and glowing white butterflies before you. Whether they are real or a figment of your driver's sleep deprived imagination is unknown. The world you've cruised into is the essence of 80's obsession with a technological dystopia and sunless futures, the soundtrack ([i]Dance With the Dead[/i] - http://dancewiththedead.bandcamp.com/album/out-of-body) the embodiment of cyberpunk, retro-future values recently re-popularized by the likes of [i]Perturbator[/i] or the rest of the artists on the ever-popular [i]Hotline Miami[/i] soundtrack. [i]Night Shift[/i] caught my attention recently with it's appearance on Steam's Early Access, standing out with it's strangely unique concept and almost [i]Knight Rider[/i]-like aesthetic. [i]Night Shift[/i] is a decidedly confusing game, pitting your solitary and anonymous retro hero against the empty pitch-black depths of the unknown and ruined roads before you. Many questions are presented without any real explanation, what happened to this world, who are these other phantasms and who is our driver, what exactly am I supposed to be doing? You're dropped into the pitch black land without any clue or indication of what to do other than the trail of butterflies leading you back on the road setting you on the right path for exploration. The gameplay is very straightforward and simple in execution but sprawling and secretive in it's discovery, having you explore and steal light from dimming lamp posts with your seemingly magical high beams while watching your energy closely, which can only be recharged by the glowing white trees that stand out in the darkness. You'll be stopped on your journey to gather and restore the light around you by the ghostly apparitions of other cars, perhaps even previous drivers on the same failed quest to find the sun as you? [i]Night Shift[/i] already has an attractively old school and fully realized atmosphere, but in it's current form lacks any narrative as to what you're doing or where you are which while effective in it's mysterious and strange nature is exactly why it's in Early Access. The developer, creator of the puzzle-platformer [i]10000 Amps[/i], apparently has some pretty ambiguous ideas for where the story is headed in the future of [i]Night Shift[/i] and is enlisting your help to ensure it's further shaped into something great with the addition of story cinemas and lots of new plot, new levels, as well as full Steam integration for controller support, achievements, cards and the like. Overall, [i]Nightshift[/i] is an awesome and quirky concept with a really cool dark and retro atmosphere that still has a long ways to go in terms of the overall experience given, and if you're the kind of person who's keen on watching as well as help an uncommon and unique idea develop into something even bigger you can pick it up for a very reasonable $4.99. I'm personally pretty excited to see where this one goes.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvPkxKJ_rhQ About 15 minutes in I realized that it was puzzle/mystery driving game(What?!) and it began to pull me in. The puzzles that I played were not all that difficult, but they were a lot of fun and gave me a good sense of accomplishment upon completion. The puzzles give you very little guidance, but when you're on the right track, it will give you some indication through the soundtrack gradually getting more complex or some sort of visual display. The soundtrack is one of the best parts of the game and the gradual shifts it makes as you progress are very satisfying! I'd have to say that this game is more for the mystery/puzzle game enthusiasts rather than driving. While the driving controls and gameplay are fine, the game would would have been just as appealing to me if you played as someone walking around in the dark with a flash light. But I can think of a few games that have done something like that, whereas a puzzle/mystery driving game is a new breed for me.

Night Shift is a strange bird. A driving game where your headlights are your means to interact with the environment to achieve something that... well, like a good drive, it's all about finding out on the road. The destination is but an incidental consequence of the journey.

Every so often, a game comes along that defies everything you know and makes you feel lost. Night Shift is one of those games. I've no doubt that anyone interested will be looking at the screenshots and video available on the store page, and wonder why would they ever play a retro game. The answer is, you won't, the game will play you. [i]It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt, It lies behind stars and under hills, And empty holes it fills, It comes first and follows after, Ends life, kills laughter. J.R.R. Tolkien[/i] Without any further delay, I present to you my review of Night Shift. [h1]Gameplay[/h1] There's an old saying that goes something like this: [i]All roads lead to Rome.[/i] This is not the case. All roads will lead you to the dark, a long and empty dark. Until a light appears, and you follow the light, thinking it will lead you home. It won't. It will force your mind to think of ways to make the light show you the way. Night Shift is, sort of, a puzzle game, one that does not provide the players all the clues, but it does provide you the melody to light that flame of yours that will light up the world, or at least find your way out of the dark. The game consists of a series of challenging puzzles, some of which are more like charades, and the end goal is to bring enough flames to the sun so that the world can shine once again. The graphics might feel retro, but do not let that fool you, it fits like a glove, and so does the soundtrack, which will make you take a trip down the memory lane. Let there be light. [h1]Pros[/h1] [list][*] Quick and concise tutorial; [*] Challenging; [*] Great soundtrack, the music is really nice; [*] Retro graphics incredibly well adapted to the game. [*] Price; [*] Guaranteed entertainment when watching a friend trying to do a complete playthrough; [*] A wonderful sense of accomplishment when you finish the game.[/list] Quite frankly, there aren't many cons to the game, as it delivers everything it promises. [h1]Cons[/h1] [list][*] Should have an option to enable some hints; [*] Can be considered a bit short if you're a puzzle master.[/list] [h1]Verdict[/h1] I'd give it a [b]9/10[/b] It's a really interesting challenge, that you can easily play on your own, or even have your friends play and laugh as they fail miserably to find their way, only to get their mind blown away when they find the way.

Night Shift is a driving puzzle game where you try to save the world. I'm not making that up. Night Shift as stated before is a driving puzzle game. You play as a driver who must save the world with the help of his muscle car. One day the entire world is consumed by the dark and you need to save it. Night Shift consists of you driving around and solving cryptic puzzles. It always ranges from a few different puzzles like destroying cars, turning on lamp posts and looking for butterflies. Your main goal is to collect 6 flames and to destroy the orb that's consumed the sun. You have a few buttons that do different things. You can drive around, flash cars and turn off and on the car lights. The music is pretty much non existent. You have one track which serves you as a indicator if you solved the puzzle. There's no music if you don't do the first part of the puzzle, you get a very quiet version of the song if you do something right and if you complete the puzzle you hear the full uncut and loud version of the song which I though was an interesting way to use music as an indicator. The graphics are pixel art type art style. I love the graphics in this game as I love all pixel type games. Overall the graphics are okay. The game took me 3 hours in total to finish. It might take longer for some people as some of the puzzles are incredibly hard and very very cryptic. Apart from the one playthrough you will do there's basically next to no replay value. In the end I would say only buy this game on a sale or skip it entirely. While the game is a fun time, it's way too cryptic and short for the full price. Final Rating: 6/10 - Buy only on sale or skip If you liked this review consider giving it a like and if you disliked post in the comments on what you disliked about the review. For more reviews follow Snort's Review curator page [url=http://steamcommunity.com/groups/snortsreviews#curation]here[/url] - follow for regular updates on reviews for other games!

In Night Shift you drive a car in a dark world, but it is not a racing game or even a driving game. Instead, it is a puzzle game. You have your basic movement controls as well as one 'button': flash the lights. This should mean the game is very simple, but the challenge is never in what to do, but where and when to do it. In one level you may be trying to re-light lanterns that have gone out, in another you may be eliminating ghost cars with your lights, and in yet another (or another part of the same level) you may simply be lost and looking for the road. What really ties together the game are its minimal yet functional graphics as well as some really good sound design, especially in the music compartment. Solving a puzzle rewards you with some pretty epic electro. Give Night Shift a try. You might get stuck at first but it's worth it playing for longer, and likely by the time you solve the first puzzle you'll be hooked.

Summary: Short 1st person driving puzzle game with obtuse puzzles. Proceed with caution. In Night Shift, you play a driver trying to bring the flame back to the sun and light up the world. You play in first-person view from inside the car. The game consists of a series of puzzles that you reward you with pieces of the sun's flame. Puzzle-solving involves the manupilation of light, mostly using the car's headlights. You drive in darkness in loops, till you stumble upon a puzzle. Throughout my playthrough, it seemed that once I've hit a puzzle, driving off would bring me back to the same puzzle again, which probably means that the game gives you the puzzles in sequence, rather than having all of the puzzles available at the same time. The puzzles tend to be obtuse and some of the requirements are a bit too fussy (i.e. I would know what needs to be done, but find the execution difficult). The game makes nice use of audio cues: choppy guitar riff for partial solutions and full-on blaring guitar goodness when the puzzle is solved). The game is on the short side, as it took me 1.5 hrs to fully complete it (though to be fair, I cheated on one puzzle that frustrated me). Recommended for those who want something different and do not mind getting stuck on puzzles.

В очередной раз: интересная задумка, которая разбилась даже не о реализацию, а о способность автора грамотно преподнести те аспекты, которые хотят от игрока. Вся проблема в том, что 90% людей дропнут эту игру не пройдя до конца и оно очевидно: 1) Нулевая видимость. 2) Отсутствие какого-либо сюжета и лора - только предложение в начале - "путь есть всегда, его лишь нужно найти". 3) Геймплей сводится к катанию на машинке в потемках, зажигании фонарных столбов/ослеплении машин призраков и сборе огоньков. Объяснения же дают призраки, это ладно, но понять когда уровень обновился, куда ехать, зачем.... Это отбивает все желание играть 4) Саундтрек, кажется, вообще 1. И ладно бы в кромешной тьме нужно было ориентироваться по звуку (подобная реализация поиска вещей в Betrayer была просто сок) - нет. Мелодия начинает играть в 1 месте и ты по полчаса катаешься вокруг пока случайно не наткнешься на активность, поэтому самая рабочая тактика - перезапуск из меню после подбора огонька, так как спавнит в начале уровня. Вот, по сути, и все. Рассказывать тут больше не о чем. Итог - Неплохая задумка, цепляющая таинственностью, обезображенная однотипным и монотонным геймплеем и, увы, никак не объясняющаяся и не раскрывающаяся в финале. 2 однотипных ландшафта из 10

This is a driving game. Or at least that's what you think when you start to play this game. It quickly became a driving RPG simulator that you need to solve the puzzle and make the sun raise once again. Great concept, exciting music with smooth control. What failed this game is the puzzle and the plot are very well hidden. You get nearly no hints on what you need to do to proceed the game though most part of this game. Since the developer has used infinite loop on many part of the game. That makes me clueless and completly lost many time though out the game and really have to result to online guide to progress though the game. We play games for fun and we have no mind power to guide us though game. We try many things when we get stuck playing any games but if it's soo well hidden like this game. Most people would lose interest and giveup. I almost gave up many times but thanks to the complete guide on steam forum I was finnaly able to finish it. For a game that only should take less then 1 hour to finish. I spent way longer. (maybe 3-4 hours, forgot to close the game last night). The graphic is very retro like but it's still decent enough. I did have some fun playing though the game but it's really not worth that much time being lost. 4/10... Not recommend to most people since the puzzle issue removed the fun in the game. But if you willing to use the online guide every step of the way. You can play and 100% this game quite quickly.