Turn it Around, developed by 505 Games and published by Red Ant Entertainment, is one of the more recent attempts to cash in on the minigame-friendly DS’s apparent ability to print money. The premise is a simple one, if a little bizarre - the game features a collection of minigames played through the use of ‘MawasunderPAD’, a touchscreen-controlled turntable. For each minigame, you spin the turntable on the bottom screen, watching the action on the top screen. Sometimes you spin it fast, sometimes you spin it slow. However, spin it you will, probably to the detriment of your touchscreen, to be honest.
Luckily, the learning curve is fairly shallow – what you see is pretty much what you get. All the minigames use this turntable in some form, whether it be through hitting a golfball, cracking a safe, or throwing a rather rotund man in a somewhat strange analogy to the hammer throw. Some games require a fast spin, others require a slow spin, but if spinning the turntable consistently seems a little difficult, players are also given the option to use the A and B buttons to control spin direction and speed. While one can’t help but feel that the game would be better suited to a proper spin wheel rather than the half-baked attempt at a touchscreen controlled spinner, it does at least represent a potentially novel take on control schemes. Unfortunately, some things just aren’t meant to be.
Fishing for gameplay.
All told, there are 24 minigames on offer, which sounds rather anemic until one finds out that all of those games use the same control scheme. Then it just seems depressingly sparse. Given there’s only one control mechanic in the entire game, the developers tried to mix things up a little bit by classifying games into a variety of categories. ‘Technique’ events require spinning precision, such as through having to guide a drunken salaryman through a street of surprisingly annoyed individuals. ‘Power’ events require the player to spin the wheel as fast as they possibly can, involving activities such as reeling in a fish. ‘Brain’ events generally involve memorisation and pattern recognition, such as through memorising combinations to crack a safe or solving spinnable puzzles. There’s various nods to the ‘old-skool’ through the inclusion of Arkanoid and Bust-a-move minigames, but fundamentally, it’s all about the turntable.
There is a two-player mode on offer, but given it requires both players to have a copy of the game to play against each other, it’s debatable whether or not one will actually ever be able to experience it. However, should one actually find someone else with a copy of this game, multiplayer largely amounts to more of the same. It’s marginally more fun than singleplayer, mainly because one then has the opportunity to watch someone else experience the frustration of the ‘MawasunderPAD’.
The control scheme is inconsistent at best. Intentionally or otherwise, despite all the minigames apparently relying on spinning the turntable, not all actually seem best controlled through using it. For a noticeable percentage of the minigames, using the A and B buttons actually makes it easier to achieve a high ranking, something that seems somewhat incongruous given the absolute focus on the turntable. This isn’t helped by the pinpoint precision required to actually use the turntable – for a game dedicated to a single interaction mechanic, the interface design is amazing unforgiving. While it’s definitely possible (and eminently achievable) to use the turntable with a reasonable amount of proficiency, spinning it with any success requires almost a perfect circle and consistent (not fast) speed. Not the band, either – deviating from said circle frequently leads to a rapid drop in rating and success. While on one hand one could argue that this offers a mastery mechanic, the other (more reasonable) hand could also present the counter argument of repetitive strain injury. And, unfortunately, the second hand probably has the worm behind it, so to speak. The inconsistent performance of the touchscreen doesn’t help, either – spinning too fast can actually lead to a lack of motion capture, counter-intuitively forcing the player to slow down in order to win.
A somewhat unstable overall experience.
The graphics are average. And, to be frank, that’s probably being generous – while the bar’s never very high for a good set of minigames, Turn it Around barely meets the standard. The best minigames on offer tend to be the remakes such as Arkanoid, and that’s primarily due to the nostalgia factor moreso than creative artistic design. While many of the cartoon characters are sufficiently quirky to be momentarily entertaining, the lack of breadth makes this quirkiness get old fast. And, without any consistent thread through the collection of minigames, the impression becomes one of quirkiness for the sake of quirkyness, not one of an overarching artistic theme. The sound effects are mostly in the same vein – while there’s nothing that’s going to set one’s heart on fire, it must be said that they’re better that the core premise of the turntable. Of course, that’s much like saying having one’s legs broken is probably less painful than having one’s eyes gouged out. It’s true, but it misses the point.
Not everything’s bad. It’s easy to understand, which may be a positive for younger players. There’s some variety in there, which again could be a plus for the kiddies. And, most places are selling it as a budget title. Also, it doesn’t start global thermonuclear war when you turn it on, always a positive. Unfortunately, on the other hand, the negatives are pretty noticeable and fairly numerable. There’s remarkably little variation within specific minigames – guiding the same sets of people through elevators onto the exact same floors is a little repetitive, as is solving the exact same set of puzzles over and over again. The control scheme is inconsistent at best, needless frustrating and potentially ergonomically hazardous at worst. The selection of games is highly limited, and there’s no ‘story’ to speak of. Multiplayer may offer a few minutes of enjoyment for the easily amused, but seriously – what are the odds of finding someone else with a copy, let alone someone else who hasn’t exhausted everything this already has to offer?
For some, perhaps, spinning a wheel presents a most agreeable challenge. For these lucky individuals, Turn it Around is a veritable goldmine, resplendent with hours, weeks, potentially months of unimaginable fun. For the rest of us, however, playing Turn it Around is likely to become a painful, RSI-inducing chore, one that grows old within the first half an hour. If highly repetitive, physically damaging tasks with little imagination, backstory, or logic make you excited, this may be the game for you. If not, maybe it’s worth waiting for something else. Anything else.
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