The Sun and Moon (PC)

Thank you Digerati Distribution for sending us this game to review!

The Sun and Moon is a unique retro style platformer game that has you go underground to propel your character (whatever it is) upwards.  You have to avoid falling off the platforms and you must dodge the spinning stars of death.  There is no story or goal other than to get your character through a portal to complete the level and move onto the next.

For every level that is completed a couple more will open up.  New areas will become available as a pre-determined number of levels are completed.  There are ten areas or systems to explore and conquer.  You can play levels in any order which is good, since some of them are brutally hard for me!

Each level has a gold, silver and bronze ranking for completing it in the recommended amount of time.  Completing a level within those time limits is not easy and borderline unrealistic in my opinion.  There are Steam achievements available for getting one hundred medals of any kind. Thankfully you are not required to complete a level by a given time.  There are over one hundred and fifty levels to entertain and frustrate you!

Fortunately, there is both keyboard and game controller support.  According to the system requirements on the Steam store page, it specifies Xbox controller support.  That was the controller I used and it worked well.  In fact, I preferred it over the keyboard.    Other controllers should work out of the box or they may have to emulate an Xbox controller using free software like x360ce. 

Graphically, this game is very simplistic, but they get the job done.  The backdrop is layered and the colors blend well together.    Most levels have  just your character, the platforms, enemies, and deadly spinning stars and/or triangles to avoid.  When the character runs into a spinning star, they go splat.    

 At first, the audio isn't very complex and loops repeatedly.  As you progress in the game the electronic/dubstep music gets more complex and interesting.  If you're stuck at the lower levels you won't get to experience the soundtrack fully.   

The street price of the game is $9.99 and it's been on sale with its recent Steam launch.  There's a lot of levels available if you're good enough to unlock them.  While there is no Steam demo available, you can play the game for free in its unpolished state here.