Thank you Jenito for sending us this game to review!

Never judge a book by its cover, and don’t judge a game by its graphics.  Although Addict sports 2D pixel art, it has managed to make me and my kids jump in our seats a few times with its scary music and random screams.  While I generally don’t watch horror movies or play horror games, the story behind this one is worth the meager admission price.  

Besides being scary, Addict has a combination of platformer and Minecraft gameplay.  Each randomly generated level has a few requirements to advance to the next one.  On each level you must collect a purple box, a letter from your beloved, and the key to unlock the passage to the following area.  Of course, this is easier said than done since you have to move around in the dark avoiding enemies that can harm you.

Along the way you can collect bread to sustain you, Holy books to light your path, pickaxes to break away blocks, and wings to briefly fly around.  For each pickax you collect you can break away and store one block.  With the collected blocks you can make walls or stairs to navigate through the complex labyrinths. 

If you fall too far or get attacked by an enemy you’ll lose a heart.  To add to the difficulty, there is no way to replenish a heart once it's lost. After your three hearts are gone, you’ll restart the level again with a new layout and a zeroed out inventory. This game would be so much easier if it wasn't for the randomly generated levels.  There are eight levels in all and after you complete the game, an even more challenging mode becomes available.

Although challenging, the story and conclusion made this game all worthwhile.  The letters from your spouse are very loving and sad as she’s trying to understand why her husband will not get help for his problem.  The game doesn't specify what the addiction was, but it is based off of a true story.  I won’t reveal the ending, but I will say that it’s very uplifting.  

While my kids have watched me play Addict, it has startled them at times (funny to watch!).  They haven’t gotten any nightmares from it but this game may be a little too dark for some.  Though pixilated, there are some blood splatters on the walls.  

Addict is available on Desura for Windows based PCs.  I’ve been spoiled by Steam and wished for cloud saves instead of moving my save file manually between my desktop and laptop.  Since this is a simple 8-bit style game, it doesn’t require a powerful system to play it.  I had no problems running it and the controls are pretty straight forward.   

The asking price of $1.99 is very reasonable and if you like to be scared by creepers in Minecraft, you’ll probably enjoy this game.  The story is very touching and almost brought tears to my eyes after realizing it was based on a true story.  While it did not make me cry, it sure did make me jump a few times.