Analysis: The Center of Entropy – Zone Xbox

This time we bring you the game analysis The center of entropy. A title developed by the British studio chunky games and distributed by Playstack. We are facing a game of the puzzle or puzzle genre, in which we must use our ingenuity and logic to be able to advance in the story. You already have it available for both your Xbox Series X/S as well as Xbox One. This game may ask you many questions before you play it, so if you want to clarify them all, we will give you the explanations below.

Save the earth and humanity from collapse

The story of The center of entropy takes place in a spatially advanced future with an impending apocalypse on earth. Our protagonist Aria is in a space station at the edge of Earth’s atmosphere. We wake up in this desolate and somewhat dilapidated place, not knowing how we got there and what is going on there. Soon we will realize that we are alone in this place. However, we will find a nice robot called “E” whose curiosity will encourage us to keep moving forward.

We will soon find a weapon with a small screen, equipped with an artificial intelligence called Astra. This will be responsible for guiding us through the station The center of entropy and to explain to them how the weapon in our hands works and the obstacles we are going to encounter. The story continues with a public announcement from the station, where we are told of the impending molecular collapse of the earth, which will implode and disappear. Our mission will be to restore the laser beam responsible for controlling this molecular entropy of the earth.

Playing with time at the Entropy Center

Anyone who has seen images and videos of the game will quickly notice that this style sounds like another title. We see that our protagonist Aria wields a weapon with which she moves a series of objects and carries or throws them. The Valve hit game called Portal comes to mind for all of us.

. Nothing could be further from the truth. In The center of entropy the main mechanism is time. A time that we can freeze or go back, but always with a certain limitation. This limitation could not be other than time itself.

The box as the most basic element of the game

But let’s go into more detail. First of all, our weapon equipped with our companion Astra has a first basic function, which is to pick up certain objects. These objects will be kinds of boxes that can have different functions. The smallest of the squares will make us jump from a certain height. Then there is a simple cube box with no effect. Another of the boxes will create a bridge of light that will allow us to reach distant areas depending on how we place it. We also have a box with a laser beam that allows us to activate certain switches. Finally, there is a large box that we can fold or unfold and that will give us a double use. We can ride on it and use it as an elevator or unfold it and block areas or laser beams.

These boxes will be the ones that allow us to play with time. Our weapon has a small counter. This counter will start moving from the moment we take one of the boxes and will memorize the movements it makes until the box finally remains completely still. If we point to one of the boxes that we have moved, we can press the rewind button and the box will move all the way back. We will have a trigger option that will reset the initial position of the counter.

Not everything we interact with will be boxes

Other elements that we can control will be certain infrastructures of the space station. For example, we can knock down a ladder or a passage. To be able to cross this area we will simply have to aim for the rubble or the destroyed elements and rewind in time to restore them to their original state. The varieties are many. Having all these existing elements and mechanisms, we are going to explain the puzzles to you.

Finally, one of the most “alive” elements that we will find are small robots that, for some reason, see us as a threat to the space station. There are two types. Some have the ability to make an energy charge and throw it at us. We can counter it by aiming for the energy ball and rewinding so it hits them back. The other type of robot that we will find carries a constant electric charge and its mission is to hunt us to leave us fried. Our objective against them will be to flee without seeking any type of confrontation, since we have everything to lose.

Break your head to save planet earth

In The center of entropy We will see an evolution of the puzzles as expected. We will be presented with the different boxes that will exist and which will be added or combined in the next puzzle. The puzzle areas are perfectly delineated, with numbered rooms, like a technical test of the entropic weapons that are available on the space station. Once we cross a room and solve the puzzle, our way back will be blocked. At times we will find simpler puzzles to be able to reach the new puzzle rooms.

Elements with which we will interact on our way

As already said, we will integrate an increasing number of elements that will interact with us and the boxes. Some of these elements will be a kind of trampoline that will launch us or the boxes that we place on it, towards a distant or elevated area. Another element of the environment will be water.

. There will be certain magnetic fields, strategically placed, which will restart the weapon so that we cannot rewind previously used elements. We can activate fans or conveyor belts back and forth as needed. Finally, another addition that we will have is the magnetic doors that transform the boxes. Once we go through this door, our box will turn into another depending on the color of the door light.

Variety of combinations and puzzles available

The number of options for combining these simple elements is very large. Some of the puzzles are quite difficult. This mostly happens when you get used to using a box or external item in a certain way and don’t think about giving it a different use. Until you find the key, you can despair, because a small move that hurts one of the squares can destroy all the previous cycles and moves that we had prepared.

Despite this variety of options, there comes a point in the game where the puzzles look the same but on a different map. It can be made somewhat monotonous by disconnecting the game’s plot too much with the kind of new puzzle we are facing.

How does The Entropy Center feel technically?

Graphically, the game feels good. It works quite well and on-screen elements move around without any issues. The graphic quality is not at all demanding and the level of textures is somewhat limited. There are areas that look like loading points where the textures jump around a bit until they finally appear. It’s not a gameplay-altering thing at all. The center of entropy. You can see how we are faced with an intergenerational title, in which lights and shadows, textures or graphic load are restricted. However, that doesn’t seem a bit problematic either, because what it shortens in graphical detail, it gains in fluidity and simplicity.

At the sound and musical level of the game there is nothing remarkable or noteworthy. There are slightly more tense moments in the story in which we feel more immersed thanks to the effects introduced. However, during the normal course of the game it is something that goes completely unnoticed because the music is in ambient mode. I wouldn’t consider that a negative, but I wouldn’t consider it a highlight either.

Final conclusions and personal opinion

We can conclude by saying that The center of entropy is a game specially designed for everyone who loves puzzle games. For this type of gamer, they will find around 10 hours of entertainment in this game. The escalation of difficulty in the puzzles is correct and the way to start or to seize the mechanics which are proposed to us is simple. We have a perfect alternative to games like Gate, with mechanisms rarely seen in the genre. For more demanding players, parts of the game can become repetitive by repeatedly doing the same step in the moves needed to solve the puzzle. Personally, I think the cohesion between the story and the mechanics used could be better exploited.

We hope you liked everything that was said about The center of entropy. We’re sure it won’t disappoint you and you’ll have a great time looking for the best combination to keep moving forward. If you want to read any of our latest news or analyze recently released games, we invite you to visit us in the Xbox area.