Flockers - Early Access Impressions

You remember Lemmings, right? That classic puzzle platformer made by the same people who went on to make Grand Theft Auto V (now they're called Rockstar North, back then - in 1991 - they were called DMA Design) and published by the studio that would later create Wipeout and eventually absorb into Sony (when they were retired they were called SCE Studio Liverpool, back then - in 1991 - they were called Psygnosis). It's an illustrious title, released onto a plethora of platforms in the 20-odd years since it was first released. Team 17, the studio that has developed Flockers, even ported the game to PSP in the mid-naughties.

If you've been living under a rock for the last two decades, then the premise of Lemmings is simple, you control a group of the titular lemmings and guide them through a series of precarious levels, from start to finish, trying to keep as many of the little blighters in one piece as possible. The game's central concept is based on the popular myth that the rodent creatures will, in real life, willingly follow other lemmings to certain death as swarms of the furry critters commit mass suicide (that's not strictly true, but why let facts get in the way of a good story).

We've mentioned Lemmings because it's the basic concept and laws set down in that game that informs so many of the design decisions made in Flockers. You're responsibility is to shepherd a flock of bouncing sheep - those made popular as a weapon in Team 17's main IP - through hazardous environments, your final score reflecting how many you managed to keep alive as you marched them through the plethora of spikes and blades and other ghastly traps that laid in wait. It's clear as day homage, and it's impossible to consider the new without first reflecting on the old.

So, what makes Flockers different to Lemmings? What sets it apart? Firstly, it stars sheep. Normally reserved as an explosive showstopper in that timeless multiplayer classic, Worms, the sheep are now stepping out of the shadows of their invertebrate forebears and are starring in their own title. Each level here is bristling with danger, and when a sheep bumps into a spike or a rotating saw blade, it explodes into cloud of blood, gore and gristle. The challenge in Lemmings was more focussed on the destructible environments, mining and bridge building. In Flockers it's a much more grizzly affair.

Dangers can be avoided via a series of unlocks (crates) that your flock must be directed over. Once selected you can use your sheep to build barriers and short stair-like structures, halting progress or allowing the rest to hop over an obstacle. There's also a series of special skills you can give to individual members of your flock, so they can leap over huge walls, or hop over extended gaps. Or even explode, taking out certain destructible elements as they go. As you move through the levels (there's currently 25 in the Early Access demo that we tried, but there'll be more when the game finally gets an official launch) you have to employ these various skills and tricks and keep as many of the sheep alive as possible.

As you can imagine, it quickly becomes chaotic. The long line of ambling sheep can be spread out across two or three parts of the level, and keeping an eye on them all, making sure that none of them dies needlessly, can be a genuine challenge. At some points you'll be trying to ensure that the sheep at the front have a new skill so as to traverse a new obstacle, while others at the rear are avoiding environmental traps. It becomes a balancing act, with you frantically switching between the front and rear of your flock as you aim to keep as many of the sheep in the game as possible.

The levels around you quickly become complicated, and you have to assess each and come up with a plan of action, but even then, when you've got a vague idea of what you're going to do, it can still be tricky to execute your plan and keep everything alive. In that respect it presents a stern challenge, and for fans of the genre, there's no doubt that you'll be kept occupied. There's leaderboards for competitive types, and a three star system that grades you upon each level's completion. Although there's only 25 levels currently in place, attaining mastery of what's there would represent a serious challenge. Especially when you throw in the 'Golden Fleece' in each level that can only be unlocked by straying off the beaten path and taking additional risks.

It certainly fits within the studio's aesthetic style, the one popularised by their continuing work with the Worms IP. It's got a darker, more mechanical edge to it, but the devilish sense of mischief that permeates the rest of Team 17's output is evident here. The gore and blood splatter is so comical that it won't offend anyone, but the art style of the levels and backgrounds that we've already seen definitely pitches it as a slightly more macabre experience than your average game of Worms (or indeed Lemmings). The 25 levels already online are spread out across two of the different areas revealed so far, and there's a third pointed at that'll no doubt be revealed at a later date.

Community engagement promises to bring heaps of longevity to the table, with fan created content being accessible from inside the client, a move that'll no doubt have creatives building impossibly tricky gauntlets for others to run. There's also rewards to unlock (we've not yet played enough to see what difference these will make) which are in place for dedicated players. All in all it looks like a fairly robust package, and even though it's not fully loaded with different stages, it's not a bad amount of content for an Early Access game to build on. We did encounter a couple of technical issues - sheep getting stuck on scenery, that sort of thing - but nothing game breaking. If you're a big fan of Lemmings and/or Worms, there's enough polish in place for it to be worth checking out even at this early stage. While Flockers doesn't really do anything new or exciting, it does scratch an itch that hasn't been addressed for many years, and for some that'll be enough.