Have you ever wanted to be a lumberjack? Now’s your chance as indie studio Digital Melody has brought the iOS and Android tree chopping sensation Timberman to PC via Steam.
The premise is almost too simple: press the left arrow on the keyboard to chop left and press the right arrow to chop right. The only real goal is to avoid dying at the hands of branches as you chop to your heart’s content.
There’s something almost hypnotic about the fast paced action as you feverishly press left or right, avoiding branches before they slam into your character’s face. Rather than the tree falling over, the 8-bit trees come down perfectly each time in assembly line-like fashion, physics be damned.
The single-player will keep you occupied for short bursts with a goal of beating high scores. The real fun is had in the multiplayer. You can either play with a friend split screen on the same computer or with up to three other people online.
The offline mode is a tug-of-war that ends way too fast. If one player gets too far ahead of the other, it’s game over for the laggard. Disappointingly, there is not an option to change how far ahead you have to be in order to win, which means that some matches can end in a matter of a couple seconds.
The online multiplayer is more interesting, allowing you to face off against strangers or with a friend that you invite to the game. This mode does not have a tug of war element. Instead, it emphasizes survival. The last person standing wins a round with three rounds needed to win a match.
If you enjoy the prospects of carpal tunnel syndrome, you’ll love Timberman. Timberman’s simplicity is not only found in the fast-paced gameplay but also in the graphics and sound, which features a single repeating music track. The game reminds me a lot of Flappy Bird and endless runners like Bit.Trip.
For only a buck you can have the game on Steam. The iOS and Android versions are free but an ad-free version will also cost you only a dollar. It may be worth it for at least a couple hours of mindless gameplay.
