<http://schema.org/articleBody>
" Release Date: April 23 (North America), April 24 (Europe) Platforms available on: PS3, PS Vita, PC Developer: Curve Studios Genre: Puzzle platformer Though Thomas Was Alone is a single-player game, it takes a co-operative approach to its puzzle platforming stages.  Thomas is the first character introduced, who in fact is little more than a red rectangle distinguished by his average jump height and an insatiable curiosity about the world. But as the title suggests, Thomas is not alone for long, as the cast of quadrilaterals grows. The characters are all literally squares and rectangles, embracing a minimalist visual style without a facial feature among the lot of them.  Yet it is a testament to Thomas Was Alone that a band of geometric shapes can be imbued with such life. Much of the game&amp;#039;s charm comes from actor Danny Wallace&amp;#039;s BAFTA award-winning performance as the narrator, providing insight into each shape&amp;#039;s personality by changing perspectives and intonation between characters with each level. The commentary track sets a new gold standard for other games to aspire to with its candid self-appraisal. Wallace puts his all into the performance, turning Chris the grumpy orange square and John the energetic and egotistic yellow rectangle not only into sympathetic personalities, but into believable character arcs as the story unfolds. While Wallace&amp;#039;s narration fills in the details to flesh out each character, what makes Thomas Was Alone so brilliant is how the core jumping mechanics reinforce each character&amp;#039;s personality.  John&amp;#039;s arrogance and enthusiasm is earned due to him being taller and able to jump higher than most anyone else. Meanwhile, Laura is a squat pink rectangle that other characters can bounce on to reach higher platforms, which manifests as a fear that others are just using her rather than truly becoming friends. Perhaps the most memorable of the bunch is Claire, a giant blue square who, despite being slow and rubbish at jumping, decides she is a superhero after discovering she is the only one who can float and carry others safely across bodies of water. Each one has its own unique attribute, which either helps the other shapes reach the level&amp;#039;s exit or acts as a hindrance that makes use of the others to progress.  The levels take full advantage of the co-operative dynamic between characters, with absolutely brilliant stages to traverse that will often have you grinning purely because of some clever new use for a character.  There are some mild pacing hiccups along the way, mostly due to the sheer number of characters as each one is introduced with a few stages on the simplistic side so that players can get acclimatised to the varying play styles. The interspersed tutorial-like levels are quick though, so they don&amp;#039;t bog the game down too much. And even then, there is still the fantastic narration to keep your interest. Thomas Was Alone is a celebration of the differences between people, and as a celebration its puzzles are far more concerned with offering a hurdle to overcome rather than obstacles to fail. As a bonus treat in the PlayStation 3 and Vita versions, creator Mike Bithell provides an audio commentary for every level. Even for fans who already played through Thomas Was Alone on PC, the commentary could be its own selling point, offering fascinating insight into the thought process behind every puzzle and character.  The commentary track sets a new gold standard for other games to aspire to with its candid self-appraisal, even at times admitting that a puzzle didn&amp;#039;t work as well as planned or that two particularly frustrating levels probably shouldn&amp;#039;t have been placed back to back. The console and handheld release also has the advantage of using a proper controller with a D-pad or analogue stick and buttons, which is almost always preferable when it comes to platforming games. The Vita version has an additional tweak, letting players change characters either with the shoulder buttons like on PS3 or by tapping on icons in the bottom corner of the screen. Most players will probably prefer the shoulder buttons, but using the touch screen is admittedly faster so it is nice that the option is there for those who want it. Also launching with the game is a DLC prologue called &amp;#039;Benjamin&amp;#039;s Flight&amp;#039;. About halfway through the 20-level expansion Benjamin gets a jetpack, letting him propel upwards by holding the jump button.  The DLC levels don&amp;#039;t quite hold up to the quality of those found in the main game, skewing away from clever interplay between characters and instead favouring narrow spike-filled corridors. &amp;#039;Benjamin&amp;#039;s Flight&amp;#039; is also over rather quickly, and the story doesn&amp;#039;t exactly add much to the main game aside from one brief character cameo, making it a truly optional expansion. It doesn&amp;#039;t change the fact that Thomas Was Alone is just as much a pleasure on PS3 and Vita as it was on PC last year. Perhaps even more so, given the new version&amp;#039;s improved controls and illuminating developer commentary. At its core, Thomas Was Alone is a celebration of the differences between people, and as a celebration its puzzles are far more concerned with offering a hurdle to overcome rather than obstacles to fail. It&amp;#039;s a subtle difference, but an important one.  Take your time with Thomas Was Alone and get to know the odd shapes living on the screen. Their plights and growth will stick with you long after the credits roll.       "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/gaming/review/a476500/thomas-was-alone-review-ps3-puzzles-with-personality/>