Floating Point is the kind of experience that relishes in it’s lack of structure and embraces the feeling that can come from simply zoning out while playing a game. The game puts players in control of a small dot with a Spider-Man esque tether ability. It starts off with the player’s dot spawning in a randomly generated 2D level that consists of only a bunch of floating cubes and some water. From there, the only objective is to swing around and increase your score by passing through beams of light that radiate from the cubes. The game lacks any sort of negative consequences, while pressing a single key will warp the player to a new level. It feels very relaxed.

The visuals are neither here nor there. While the minimalism makes it easy to focus on the gameplay, it is obvious that most of the assets come from components found within the Unity Game Engine. It’s the audio suite that’s the real highlight of the game’s presentation. The background track is relaxing and constantly fluctuates based on where the point is located within the level. The sound effects blend well with the music and the cohesive nature of it all makes the visuals seem all the more generic.

Swinging around may be fun, but the control scheme does lead to a few mishaps. The input response for reeling in your point’s tether seems very inconsistent. Sometimes the rope would quickly reel itself in, while others saw it flailing around as if nothing was happening. Placing the tether release command on a separate key is also cumbersome. The game lacks the option to enable firing/letting go to a single input and the available control scheme never felt natural.

Despite a lack of control options, the game features an impressive custom content suite. Players have the ability to control several variables that goes into the level generation algorithm. The game also features a built in screenshot ability. It lacks any reason to be included, but it is nice nonetheless. Floating Point is currently available for free on the Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms.

Review by Tyler Curran:

Tyler Curran is someone who fondly remembers scribbling out notes about games back when he first learned to write. Who knew design documents scrawled in crayon would lead to him becoming a game design major?