We all have a part of us that wants to burn things...right? Please tell me that its not only me that feels that urge to set things on fire sometimes? Its not? Good, thank God for that.
Anyway, Little Inferno from developer Tomorrow Corporation appeals to the inner pyromaniac in all of us, whilst also giving us a small lesson about the environment in the process.
Little Inferno's story is easily overlooked and for the most part very dismissable, however what is there is actually quite good. It follows a nameless young boy who recently purchased a Little Inferno Entertainment Fireplace, a product that allows you to buy toys and burn them to get more money to burn more things.
When you your next door neighbour, a young girl by the name of Sugar Plum who also owns a Little Inferno, contacts you and befriends you. You begin to send her gifts and see her life unfold as well as learn the reasons behind why its always cold outside and why the sun never shines anymore.
Its only a short game and the story isn't overly prominent in the majority of the game. But what is there is enough to keep you going through the entertaining, though repetitive and occasionally monotonous gameplay.
The bulk of Little Inferno's gameplay involves staring into a fireplace and burning things. There are seven catalogues to burn through (excuse the pun). The base goal of the game is to burn each item in all 7 catalogues, however you can make things more interesting for yourself and try to solve the game's 99 combos. Combos involve burning two or more specific items, the combo list gives you a hint as to what they might be but its up to you to figure out what they are.
This combo mechanic is also another way to keep the game moving, though it doesn't change the basic gameplay of the game from just watching things burn.
Items take time to be delivered and the more expensive items may be out of stock for a small amount of time after buying it. The more expensive the item the longer it takes to be delivered and all of this is just a way of extending the games lifespan beyond a couple of hours.
Little Inferno has a child friendly aesthetic to it. The fireplace and items have a cartoony realism about them, whereas characters follow more of a stick figure kind of look. It does communicate the games oppressive tone well in a way that doesn't feel threatening or upsetting for a game that would easily appeal to children.
The games object and fire physics are superb. Each object has a distinct way of moving and weighs differently from another, even if its a similar object. Fire physics are also the best in a game since 2008's Alone in the Dark. Fire is completely unpredictable and it effects different materials in different ways. It also looks great whilst doing it, there is nothing more satisfying than watching an object slowly start to catch fire before seeing the entire screen engulfed in flames just a few seconds later.
As a game, Little Inferno is not really worth the full asking price. Its a game that offers very little beyond watching things burn for the best part of 5 hours. Though the story can be quite interesting towards the end of the game it ultimately offers very little that we haven't already seen before and the ending makes you wonder if it was really worth it in the end.
That being said as a game to pass the time or for something to entertain the kids for a few minutes here and there, its a great game to jump in and out of, however that doesn't justify the asking price.
Check it out if its on sale and the concept interests you, but its not a game you should be dying to play.
Little Inferno – 5/10
+Fire Physics
+Looks Good
+Fun to Pass the Time
-Too Repetitive
-Waiting Times Just Attempt to Pad It Out
-Too Expensive For What It Is
