Herman is a 2D platform game where you play the character named Herman who must escape from his workplace. Why is he trying to escape? Read on to find out!
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Herman is clearly influenced by Braid, the introduction sees Herman walking to work in a Braid style scene with accompanying music and scenic backdrops, the narration once inside the building is also presented like Braid. Herman is having a midlife crisis and quits his job, his boss is not too happy and has ordered the other employees to stop him from escaping at any costs. You start in your workplace and must complete 25 levels to make your escape.
The levels scroll from left to right with four platforms to navigate via ladders, you can also use a shovel to dig a hole to fall to a lower platform if you need a quick escape or are blocked. You start on the left of the level and must make your way to the exit on the far right which running non stop would probably take a minute or two. Unfortunately it is not as easy as that as your now enemy ex employees make an appearance and try to put a stop to your escape.
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There are eight enemies in total which are introduced throughout the game. Each character has their own weapons of choice such as Mr. Blue who is your standard enemy that chases you but is fairly harmless unless close range, Miss Mu throws tangerines at you, Kyle who controls a remote control airplane which you must duck and Randy Ello who bowls items along the floor which you must jump to avoid. The variety of enemies is good and make for an interesting game where jumping and ducking are regular occurrences.
Scattered throughout the levels are bowls of tangerines which are your weapon, enemies can be dispatched with a number of these or if you want to conserve them or have run out you can dig a hole to make them fall to the below platform or perform a jumping attack which is your last ditch attempt as it is not very strong at first. There is a fairly good strategy here as tangerines are not always in plentiful supply so you often need to decide which is best; fight, dig your way out or run.
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There are a few difficulty levels to choose from, this is a challenging game and even playing on the default level can end in regular death. The enemies spawn regularly and if you leave them alive for too long you can be overwhelmed. You will start to learn some tactics to make your escape but do expect to die often as the game can get very hectic!
At the end of each level Herman visits Chesters Shop where you can purchase upgrades to help your escape. After you complete a level your Chester Tokens are calculated based on your performance on the level. Upgrades include the Fedora hat which reduces the likelyhood of enemies hitting you, Shin Guards which reduce your damage taken, Trainers which make you run faster and a one time use shield. The variety of upgrades is good but I noticed that the tokens are not carried to the next level which often means you may not have won enough tokens to perform the upgrades you want.
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Graphics are a mixture of good and bad, the background graphics look great, a kind of mix between real life photos and the game. The actual game graphics are a bit of a let down in comparison and are roughly drawn and do seem out of place. The animation is not great but its not bad enough to affect the game. The music is done very well and there are several tracks which have been composed for the game, it is one of the highlights of the game.
Herman is a tricky game to review, I called it a Marmite game in my trial impression as people will either love or hate it. If you can get past the lower quality main graphics there is an interesting platform style game which is fun to play and you will keep playing to see the story told in the background. On the other hand it can be seen as a fairly basic game that can be repetitive and difficult to play. Either way you should really check out this game, you have to try Marmite at least once to see if you like it?
Herman costs 400 :MSPoints: and you can find more information on the game as well as the trial and full versions on the Marketplace.
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