Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive!

Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive!, known in Japan as Ikimono Zukuri: Crea-toy (いきものづくり クリエイトーイ, Ikimono Zukuri: Kurieitōi), is a video game developed by Asobism and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 3DS handheld system. Available exclusively through the handheld's Nintendo eShop online store, Freakyforms lets players create their own characters, named "Formees", for use in the game.

Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive!
Packaging artwork released for PAL region territories.
Developer(s)Asobism
Publisher(s)Nintendo
Director(s)Hiroshi Moriyama
Producer(s)Kensuke Tanabe
Composer(s)Kohei Matsuoka
Platform(s)Nintendo 3DS
Release
  • JP: September 7, 2011
  • WW: November 10, 2011
Deluxe Edition
  • EU: July 28, 2012
  • AU: September 13, 2012
  • NA: November 5, 2012
Nintendo eShop
  • EU: August 17, 2012
  • AU: September 13, 2012
  • NA: November 5, 2012
  • JP: April 10, 2013
Genre(s)Simulation
Mode(s)Single player, multiplayer (Deluxe edition only)

Gameplay
A player is creating a blue bear in the creating room.

In Freakyforms, players must first create an on-screen character, known as a "Formee". Formees are created using various shapes placed however the player decides. After the character is completed, players use the touch screen to navigate the character throughout the game world.[1] As the player explores, they are asked to complete assigned tasks within a given time limit, such as collecting a number of items or assisting other characters.[1] With continued play, additional features are unlocked, such as using the handheld's augmented reality features to take pictures of their creations in a real-world setting.[2] Users may share their Freakyforms content by using the Nintendo 3DS system's StreetPass feature or by creating QR codes that can be scanned using the system's outer cameras.[2]

Deluxe edition

An enhanced retail version of the game titled Freakyforms Deluxe: Your Creations, Alive! launched in Europe on July 28, 2012 and in North America on November 5, 2012. This new version adds features such as the multiplayer mode where players make Formees together and explore dungeons. The software was released as a digital download on Nintendo eShop in Europe on August 17 and in Australia on September 13, while the original Freakyforms software was removed the day before. The original game was also replaced with the Deluxe edition in the North American eShop on the day the Deluxe edition was released. The game was also released in Japan as a Nintendo eShop-only game titled Oomori! Ikimono Zukuri: Creatoy (大盛り！ いきものづくり クリエイトーイOomori!, Ikimono Zukuri: Kurieitōi) on April 10, 2013, while the original Freakyforms software was removed the day before.

In June 2016, a homebrew exploit (Freakyhax) was released that is exclusive to the deluxe edition of the game. The exploit allows users to run unsigned software and code such as the Homebrew Launcher via the game's QR code features. As a result, the game can no longer be purchased on the 3DS eShop in all regions, although it is still available to redownload for anyone who purchased the game before the game was removed from the store. As of system version 11.1.0-X, the game is loaded in a PASLR (physical address space layout randomization) mode, and this temporarily broke the exploit. However, an updated version of the exploit that worked even when the game was loaded in PASLR mode was released on September 16, 2017.

Reception

Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive! has received mixed reviews.[3] Lucas Thomas of IGN said that while the game's creation functions are "fairly well done", the developers then "surrounded it with this weird, tossed-together collection of desperate ideas that don't ever really feel like a cohesive game".[1] In Nintendo Life's review of the game, Thomas Whitehead said Freakyforms was "a title that can give hours of childish pleasure", even though "repetitive exploration segments and control issues are negatives for anyone".[2]

References
  1. Lucas M. Thomas (November 10, 2011). "Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive! Review". IGN. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
  2. Thomas Whitehead (November 14, 2011). "Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive! - Review". Nintendo Life. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
  3. "Freakyforms: Your Creations, Alive!". Metacritic. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
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