Hekaba

"Hekaba" is one of literally thousands of student projects infesting Steam. It's from Objectif 3D in France. While student projects tend to be better quality than most "amateur" made games, we must still question what value such projects have for gamers. As with all student projects, this isn't really a fully fleshed out game, it's just the result of an academic exercise, and as such it has much more limited value as a game than a professionally developed game would have. Educational institutions should not be using Steam as a dumping ground for homework assignments (especially if the students didn't even pass the course). Sure, it helps their marketing and helps the students feel good about themselves, but this is another case of a business putting themselves before the needs of gamers. This year the students were instructed to make a basic Prince of Persia ripoff, and yeah, that's what we have here, only really barebones. But, just like the later Prince of Persia games, it does look and feel like a crappy console port. Honestly as a goal for students, that's great, but we're not here to be part of someone else's academic exercise, we're here on Steam for real games. And …

A very short puzzle game. Movement in this game could use a bit more polish (playing on KB/M, I am sure it would be better with controller). The last puzzle was not overly difficult, I would say the puzzle plans which are not aligned straight away are somewhat harder, considering you would have to remember the pattern and then apply it to the pressure pads somewhere else. For a free game, it's great. If you're looking to kill 10-30 minutes trying something new, give this a go.

Visually game its good

Hekaba is a small 3D puzzle platformer that I found surprisingly enjoyable. I play through an abandoned temple in the middle of a desert, trying to figure out its mysteries while making my way through different areas. It is a very straightforward adventure, but I liked the combination of platforming and puzzles because neither side completely takes over the experience. The pressure plate puzzles are easily the main attraction for me. The game builds most of its puzzles around this mechanic, so I have to pay attention to the environment and work out how different parts of the room interact with each other. I liked that the solutions are based more on figuring things out than simply following a set path. Some of the puzzles can make me stop for a moment and actually think about what I should be doing next. The platforming works alongside the puzzles rather than feeling like a completely separate system. I can run and jump across platforms, and certain environmental elements give me special movement abilities such as double jumps and longer leaps. I enjoyed having to look at the area from a movement perspective and think about where I could actually reach. It gives the temple a litt…

The platforming feels frustrating - the character has too much inertia. Levels don’t seem to follow proper design metrics. I did enjoy the puzzles, though.

[quote=author] Not terrible at all! The problem buttons puzzle were stuck after I went back and redrew it, which was the only thing that caused me confusion and difficulty the puzzle. You should anticipate that the controls will be a little challenging to use! However, I promise that you will be able to jump&go from the first level to the next once you settle in! [/quote]