The Tower of Shadow
Konami showed off one of their new projects called The Tower of Shadow, which is arguably one of the most innovative games shown during the Gamescom Press Conference. On this Wii exclusive platformer, you happen to control the shadow of a character, instead of the character itself, making your way through levels making extensive use of what’s called shadow physics.
As you see from the picture, you don’t actually see the person casting the shadow, just a silhouette. This puzzle platformer has you leaping across gaps, navigating through the tower as you make your way up. The hook to this game is how the game makes use of the angle of lighting. The angle of lighting will actually affect the platforming aspect of this game. It’ll allow you to reach places you weren’t otherwise able to reach.
That is where the shadow physics come in. The angle of light will determine how you interact with the shadow, you’d have to see a video of the game in action for you to understand. It’s the first time I’ve heard of a concept like this put in a game. I’m curious as to the underlying code, sounds like something interesting on the programmers part. The light can change drastically depending on what part of the level you’re at. Not only that, but you have a winged companion called Slyph that can manipulate real world objects, which can cast shadows to help you on your way. It will arrive on the Wii some time in Spring 2010.
