Re-e-wind! How games use their time-reversal mechanics to undo mistakes, build puzzles and even tell stories
Slowing time, so you can dive elegantly aside to dodge an attack, is great. Stopping time, so you can pluck bullets out of the air, is even better. But turning back time, spooling backwards through the last few moments of play to erase your mistakes from history? That’s the ultimate prize.
But let’s rewind. The original Xbox was actually ground zero for these kinds of space-time continuum-breaking antics, with 2002’s Blinx: The Time Sweeper. Developed by Artoon, which was founded by the creator of Sonic The Hedgehog himself, Blinx was an attempt to give Microsoft its own furry mascot: the titular gogglewearing cat, armed with a vacuum cleaner that could control time.
Blinx could rewind time in a localised area, returning a crumbled bridge back to its original state, or record his actions and then jump backwards in time to team up with his recorded self. The powers were fairly limited, however, and Blinx never did become the adorable face of Xbox. In another timeline, perhaps.
Just a year later, though, Prince Of Persia: Sands Of Time took those ideas and really ran with them. Ran along a temple wall and backflipped onto a teetering balcony, in fact. The prince could pull off remarkable acrobatic feats – and if he faltered, there was a safety net in the form of the magical Dagger Of Time. Instead of falling to his death, sending you back to a checkpoint, you could simply undo your mistake with a squeeze of the trigger.
Esta historia es de la edición September 2019 de Official Xbox Magazine.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición September 2019 de Official Xbox Magazine.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Why I love... Roaming the post-apocalypse
How modern releases are continuing to find creativity and beauty within gaming’s most prevalent setting: the end of the world
10 Best Multiplayer Games
From shooters to kitchen chaos, these titles are best played with friends
Revved up and ready to go
EA hands the wheel of Need For Speed back over to Criterion Games
The Elder Scrolls Online: Greymoor
Return to Tamriel’s frigid North this summer Chris Burke
Remothered: Broken Porcelain
We’re going potty for this cult classic survival horror sequel
Yakuza 0 Yakuza Kiwami Yakuza Kiwami 2
Triple trouble: Sega’s crime drama trio brings glorious thug‑thumping action to Xbox
Mosaic
ALL AROUND ME ARE FAMILIAR OFFICE SPACES
The Falconeer
Savouring the joys of flight with an indie that’s living on a (gigantic) wing and a prayer
10 Best Examples Of Great Architecture On Xbox
Games are crammed full of gorgeously crafted designs and architecture. From gables to gargoyles, we look at the best building designs on Xbox One
THE PROMISED 'LANDS
With so many great games competing for our time, how do you keep gamers locking and loading? Gearbox’s looter-shooter, Borderlands 3, knows how…