Double Dose of Fun with Double Wires
(Rate this game! 269 votes, average: 3.99 out of 5)
Loading...Doubles Wires is a small Flash game by d_of_i, a Japanese developer best known for his Falling Sands game (as well as Cat Sledding and some other physics games and experiments). Despite its small scope and limited production value, I think Double Wires does some things very well. So well, in fact, that it deserves unique mention here on Fun-Motion.
[kml_flashembed movie=”/files/doublewires.swf” height=”360″ width=”480″ /]
The Lure of Dangling
Swinging titles are a common theme in physics games, for whatever reason. Personally, I think the attraction is two-fold. One: Actually swinging around on stuff–in real life–is a lot of fun. But, it’s damn hard. While your imagination may have you gliding from object to object with the greatest of ease, in practice it’s slow, clunky, and rather inelegant (plus, it requires a fair bit of strength, and sitting around on computers all day isn’t exactly building up that requirement). Two: There’s a primal attraction to the activity. I was watching an episode of the excellent Planet Earth with some great chimpanzee and monkey footage. I really did have the urge to spend the rest of the day in the jungle canopy, swinging carelessly from one branch to the next.
I’ve already talked about some of the swinging games out there (Rocky the Monkey, String Theory, Squishy the Starfish), and there a bunch of others I haven’t covered yet. So why talk about Double Wires?
Simplicity Trumps Again
What impresses me about Double Wires is how successfully it boils the swinging concept down to its minimum essentials. You simply click to attach a cable–which connects exactly where you pointed–and that’s it. Variables like controlling when a cable releases, its retraction speed, or maximum length are simply removed from the player’s hands. As a result, the game is distilled to a very pure swinging mechanic (in fact, there’s very little you can do in the game except swing on things).
Some subtle complexity remains, though. The two wires the stickman uses to swing around are actually different lengths. And the timing of the automatic release requires you pay careful attention to when you last connected to something. I often myself connecting above a point, wishing to swing below and then forward–what usually happens, though, is that my cable releases just as I reach the low point and my stick figure tumbles to a painful demise.
(Double Wires Game Screenshots)
Just Enough Content
There are 10 different zones in Double Wires, which last to somewhere around 140 yards. After that, the level simply loops back on itself and you start over. It won’t take a skilled player very long to complete all of the zones, but I’d be surprised if anyone was able to do it on their first try. The game is just short enough–and just fun enough–that it’s hard to resist retrying once or twice.
Play Double Wires (26 KB)
I’ve seen Double Wires embedded in various Flash arcades around the web, so I went ahead and included it here. Be sure to check out d_of_i’s other projects on his webpage, though. It can take some digging, but there are more excellent physics games to be discovered there…
Related Posts:
- List of Physics Games
- Turn-Based Pool Meets Rock-Paper-Scissors
- Great-Looking Motorcycle Game, But Is It Fun?
- Throw Metal Pies at Ragdoll Clowns (Redux)
- A Brilliant Physics Game: Ski Stunt Simulator
My name is Matthew Wegner, and this site is dedicated to physics games.
on January 24th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
Wooooo! First comment!!
I completed the game in my first try. It’s quite easy. The trick is to launch the wires quickly in sucession.
on January 24th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
good game but its easy to beat. its easy just make sure there is a wire on a brick at all times.
on January 24th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
This is like the spider game you reviewed a few months back, but with mouse support, which is always good!
on January 24th, 2007 at 4:15 pm
I thimk that the developer could really expand on this game. Maybe have mini-games where you have to launch your character with the ropes.
on January 24th, 2007 at 4:47 pm
I PLAYED THISE game in flasht portal
on January 24th, 2007 at 8:39 pm
Mmm… Needs more content
on January 24th, 2007 at 10:19 pm
Mine is 136ish. This is very old news for my but cool anyway!
on January 24th, 2007 at 11:09 pm
this game is 24kb, crazy.
on January 24th, 2007 at 11:55 pm
152,68 y. Someone beat?
on January 25th, 2007 at 2:20 am
160.03 The first comment’s advice it pretty good. Just fire in sucession and when you fall out of the screen, don’t panic and try shooting at something close.
on January 25th, 2007 at 5:56 am
:D… I thought 56.87 y was a good :D
on January 25th, 2007 at 7:05 am
174 :)
on January 25th, 2007 at 8:52 am
You should always check Dofi-blog because he’s always updating it, in fact there’s a new game on it already where you have to take sticks out of a tower, but don’t make it fall! (sounda like jenga)
on January 25th, 2007 at 9:49 am
This is a terrible, terrible game. There’s very little actual swinging involved. They should have called this game attach a wire to a brick and then smack into it, and then a millisecond later your wire releases.
Yeah, let’s remove the ability for the player to choose when to release the wire because taking power away from the player is always a good thing, right?
Oh, I almost forgot: crappy production values.
on January 25th, 2007 at 7:25 pm
211 yards.
Gizmo, I just wrote up a huge thing and then FireFox crashed. Suffice to say, I don’t agree.
-TGP-
on January 26th, 2007 at 3:37 am
I don’t know if anyone has noticed but there is a extreme shortage of physics game, so when we do find a physics game (like this one) even if it’s a bit shoddy (like this one) we should still be greatful.
So well done
on January 26th, 2007 at 4:11 am
The best swinging game is Umihara Kawase of snes.Try it with an emulator.
http://www.the-underdogs.info/game.php?gameid=3630
It´s only 646KB.
on January 26th, 2007 at 5:32 am
211.60 for me
love the game.
on January 26th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
“This is a terrible, terrible game. There’s very little actual swinging involved. They should have called this game attach a wire to a brick and then smack into it, and then a millisecond later your wire releases.
Yeah, let’s remove the ability for the player to choose when to release the wire because taking power away from the player is always a good thing, right?
Oh, I almost forgot: crappy production values. ”
Well, obviously, you’re playing wrong and have no skill if you’re smacking into the walls and whining about how fast the wire’s releasing.
It would be way to freaking easy if you could release whenever you want, and the power isn’t taken away from the player. It makes the game more fun and challenging.
And about the production values, it says that in the first part of the review. “Despite its small scope and ->limited production value
on January 27th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
How come there’s no gameplay video, Matt? I wanted to see your leet swingin’ skillz.
-TGP-
on January 27th, 2007 at 7:20 pm
I was just about to break out Camtasia to record the video, when I realized I was recording a game I could embed on the page. So I did that instead ;)
on January 30th, 2007 at 5:30 am
anyone saying bad things about this is missing the point. it accomplishes perfectly what it sets out to do. great fun
on February 3rd, 2007 at 11:36 pm
Love it. Hella fun to play of the Wii.
on February 11th, 2007 at 1:44 pm
YOOOOO! i got 367.08 yd!
on March 19th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
392.05 yd! This game is hypnotic… and it does let’s you develop a playing stile in which you have significant control over your character. Too bad it has no time attack mode, because acquired skill enables you to swing your dude quite quickly through the level.
on May 26th, 2007 at 8:58 am
This game NEVER gets old! But if you guys really like physics games u should check out CellFactor! It’s truly amazing…4 real!
on July 16th, 2007 at 3:16 pm
Its like Tetris: Simple, but impossible to stop.