DERU – The Art of Cooperation

Genre: Puzzle

Players: 1-2 Co-Op (Local)

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Review:

DERU is a Puzzle game with a heavy emphasis on Co-Op play. This is a game that can be played in single-player, basically making the player cooperate with themselves, but regardless of whether you play with one player or two, you’ll be coordinating the movements of two geometric shapes to solve puzzles.

The presentation here is simple, but not bad. The action in the foreground is mostly going to feature your two shapes in black and white along with goals and obstacles in matching black and white, in front of a colorful background, with a gentle music that works with the game’s emphasis on a thoughtful approach. Nothing truly spectacular, but it works well for the game. There is one nice thing I’ll make special note of here – one of the main parts of the gameplay here is using your shapes to block streams of the opposite color, and doing so produces a satisfying slop noise while you’re doing so.

The main premise behind the gameplay here is that the black shape can block white streams, but gets destroyed by black streams, with the opposite being true for the white shape. With this being the case, both pieces must coordinate their movements to ensure that each can get safely to their designated goal. As the game progresses, it adds some more elements to complicate things, and overall it remains fresh throughout.

The co-op elements here are strong, and work well both in single-player and in two-player co-op. In single-player, players are basically being tested on their coordination, and ability to manage both shapes at the same time. In two-player co-op, the challenge shifts to one of communication and coordination between two people. This all works really well, and either way, I don’t think players will be disappointed with this element of the game.

Running throughout the game there are these brief “story” sections told in abstract through shapes and movement, although that “story” bit is in quotations because there’s no words, and it’s not always quite clear just what the game is trying to convey is happening. This doesn’t detract too much from the game, but it does feel like something that doesn’t quite work as intended.

While this is a bit perplexing, there is one other issue this game has that seriously detracts from the enjoyment of it. There is a nasty input lag in the game that makes movements sluggish and imprecise. This is seriously frustrating, and both me and the partner I was playing with died multiple times due to the terrible controls.

If it wasn’t for the horrible controls in DERU – The Art of Cooperation, I might’ve been able to give it a higher recommendation. As-is, it’s still a decent little Puzzle game, especially if you’re looking for something with great co-op, but those controls are just too frustrating to ignore.

tl;dr – DERU is a Puzzle game with a clear focus on co-op play, though it’s certainly enjoyable in single-player as well (trading out the need for communication with the need to multitask). The game has you using black and white geometric shapes to block off black and white streams to protect each other so they can get to a goal. There are some good, clever puzzles here, and excellent co-op play, but the game is hurt by sluggish controls that don’t respond properly. Still worth a look for those looking for decent co-op games.

Grade: B-

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