Although the onset of the downloadable content markets is no doubt one of those ‘good things’ that periodically occur in this industry, you’d have to reckon that as we stand now (March 2008) things aren’t exactly kicking off for us European bods. A particular case-in-point is the PlayStation Network, from which our American chums can readily download a raft of content most weeks, but which gives us multi-lingual chaps a selection of uninspiring demos and… er, nothing most Fridays.

Even the excellent original content takes its sweet time making it over here too, with the brilliant looking Pain still not available in these parts despite being out at the end of last November across the pond. To try to sooth this outrageously outrageous outrage, we’ve finally been allowed to get our hands on Riff: Everyday Shooter, brainchild of lone programmer Jonathan Mak and his Queasy Games company. Yeah, it’s about six months late, but at least it’s been worth it.

Riff is the latest in the line of top-down shooters that have been defalcating from my gaming skills since I picked up Ikaruga a few years back. Coming across as a mixture of Geometry Wars’ survival Asteroids-type play and a Mizuguchi sound experience ala Rez, Every Extend Extra etc, the game is not only a beautifully presented seven-level title, but a fiendishly addictive score-chasing effort to boot. Oh, and it’s more than a little hypnotic, especially after a few cups of rather strong coffee or a few too many Skittles.

The basic idea is that you float around the screen as a dot, using the left analogue stick to steer and the right to aim your fire at an ever-increasing number of invading shapes. Whilst the general idea is to survive through each level, with a bit of practice you’ll end up focusing instead on chaining your enemies together to notch higher and higher on the score charts.

The way Riff does this is a little different to most shooters, and will be quite a divisive point for many shmup fans. Rather than having one consistent technique throughout, each level has a subtly different method for you to discover as you go along. This involves zooming around checking for small graphical hints as to how you go about doing so, and means that each level feels rather unique as a result. Quite whether this breaks up the flow slightly too much is open for debate and it definitely won’t float everybody’s boat, but personally I find the changes in tactic rather refreshing, allowing Riff to keep you on your toes at all times.

The other main hook to Riff, obviously, is the musical element. It’s all rather clever and sees each enemy you shoot emitting a note or sound that goes perfectly with the background music. In keeping with the game’s ever-changing nature, each level mixes and matches different tempos and styles, from the opening rocky guitar riff through to more psychedelic offerings and more simple, acoustic tunes. Whilst you could say that shooting your enemies and having them effectively form part of the game’s soundtrack for you isn’t necessarily integral to the core score-chasing efforts, it’s certainly an important aural feature and helps you absorb yourself deeper and deeper in what you’re doing.

It looks rather beautiful, too, with flat cartoon graphics dazzling with all sorts of garish shape and colour combinations. During more hectic moments the screen gets more cluttered that a city centre traffic exodus on Friday afternoon, but it always runs wonderfully smoothly and makes great use of high definition screens. Anyone playing on a standard old school telly need not fret, though; Riff’s visuals are so distinct and brash that even in slightly fuzzy vision it’s more than clear enough for them to be able to play properly.

At a cost of £4.99, you can’t really level that Riff’s not worth the investment either. It’s a fraction the price of similar games offering the same level of content, it’s purchasable from your sofa without you even having to inconvenience yourself with a brisk walk to the local video game purveyor and it’s hopelessly addictive. This kind of quality is the exception rather than the rule for the PlayStation Network at the moment unfortunately, so it’s best you make hay while the sun shines and get yourself a slice of cheap fun.