<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
is	O
a	O
2010	O
puzzle-platform	O
game	O
created	O
by	O
Terry	O
Cavanagh	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
the	O
player	O
controls	O
Captain	O
Viridian	O
,	O
who	O
must	O
rescue	O
their	O
spacecrew	O
after	O
a	O
teleporter	B-General_Concept
malfunction	O
caused	O
them	O
to	O
be	O
separated	O
in	O
Dimension	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
built	O
in	O
Adobe	B-Operating_System
Flash	I-Operating_System
and	O
released	O
on	O
January	O
11	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
and	O
OS	B-Operating_System
X	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
ported	O
to	O
C++	B-Language
by	O
Simon	O
Roth	O
in	O
2011	O
,	O
and	O
released	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
Humble	O
Indie	O
Bundle	O
#3	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
port	O
to	O
C++	B-Language
allowed	O
the	O
porting	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
other	O
platforms	O
such	O
as	O
Linux	B-Application
,	O
Pandora	B-Device
,	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
,	O
and	O
Nintendo	B-Application
Switch	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Unlike	O
most	O
platforming	O
games	O
,	O
in	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
the	O
player	O
is	O
not	O
able	O
to	O
jump	O
,	O
but	O
instead	O
can	O
reverse	O
the	O
direction	O
of	O
gravity	O
when	O
standing	O
on	O
a	O
surface	O
,	O
causing	O
Captain	O
Viridian	O
to	O
fall	O
either	O
upwards	O
or	O
downwards	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
feature	O
was	O
first	O
seen	O
in	O
the	O
1986	O
8-bit	O
game	O
Terminus	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
contains	O
eight	O
main	O
levels	O
,	O
including	O
an	O
intro	O
level	O
,	O
four	O
levels	O
which	O
can	O
be	O
accessed	O
in	O
a	O
non-linear	O
sequence	O
,	O
two	O
intermission	O
levels	O
,	O
and	O
one	O
final	O
level	O
,	O
only	O
seen	O
outside	O
Dimension	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
(	O
in	O
a	O
"	O
polar	O
dimension	O
"	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
player	O
controls	O
Captain	O
Viridian	O
,	O
who	O
at	O
the	O
outset	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
must	O
evacuate	O
the	O
spaceship	O
along	O
with	O
the	O
captain	O
's	O
crew	O
,	O
when	O
the	O
ship	O
becomes	O
affected	O
by	O
"	O
dimensional	O
interference	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
crew	O
escapes	O
through	O
a	O
teleporter	B-General_Concept
on	O
the	O
ship	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
Captain	O
Viridian	O
becomes	O
separated	O
from	O
the	O
rest	O
of	O
the	O
crew	O
on	O
the	O
other	O
end	O
of	O
the	O
teleporter	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Upon	O
returning	O
to	O
the	O
ship	O
,	O
the	O
Captain	O
learns	O
that	O
the	O
ship	O
is	O
trapped	O
in	O
an	O
alternative	O
dimension	O
(	O
referred	O
to	O
as	O
Dimension	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
)	O
,	O
and	O
that	O
the	O
ship	O
's	O
crew	O
has	O
been	O
scattered	O
throughout	O
this	O
dimension	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
gravity-flipping	O
mechanic	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
is	O
based	O
on	O
an	O
earlier	O
game	O
designed	O
by	O
Cavanagh	O
titled	O
Sine	O
Wave	O
Ninja	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cavanagh	O
first	O
unveiled	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
on	O
his	O
blog	O
in	O
June	O
2009	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cavanagh	O
wrote	O
that	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
,	O
unlike	O
some	O
of	O
his	O
previous	O
work	O
such	O
as	O
Judith	O
and	O
Pathways	O
,	O
would	O
not	O
be	O
a	O
"	O
storytelling	O
experiment	O
"	O
,	O
but	O
rather	O
"	O
focused	O
on	O
the	O
level	O
design	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
December	O
2009	O
,	O
a	O
beta	O
version	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
which	O
had	O
been	O
given	O
to	O
donors	O
was	O
leaked	O
on	O
4chan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
visual	O
style	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
is	O
heavily	O
inspired	O
by	O
8-bit	O
computer	O
games	O
from	O
the	O
1980s	O
,	O
especially	O
Jet	B-Application
Set	I-Application
Willy	I-Application
and	O
Monty	B-Device
on	I-Device
the	I-Device
Run	I-Device
,	O
which	O
is	O
referenced	O
by	O
the	O
element	O
of	O
collecting	O
difficult-to-reach	O
shiny	O
objects	O
and	O
most	O
notably	O
the	O
naming	O
of	O
each	O
room	O
;	O
Cavanagh	O
aimed	O
to	O
create	O
a	O
game	O
"	O
that	O
looked	O
and	O
felt	O
like	O
the	O
C64	O
games	O
I	O
grew	O
up	O
with.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
He	O
eventually	O
entrusted	O
naming	O
the	O
rooms	O
to	O
QWOP	B-Application
developer	O
Bennett	O
Foddy	O
,	O
who	O
created	O
every	O
room	O
name	O
in	O
the	O
final	O
version	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
graphical	O
style	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
is	O
heavily	O
influenced	O
by	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
Monty	B-Device
on	I-Device
the	I-Device
Run	I-Device
;	O
similarly	O
,	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
music	O
is	O
heavily	O
dependent	O
on	O
chiptune	O
elements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
was	O
the	O
first	O
game	O
which	O
Cavanagh	O
sold	O
commercially	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
While	O
his	O
previous	O
games	O
were	O
all	O
released	O
as	O
freeware	O
,	O
due	O
to	O
the	O
size	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
compared	O
to	O
his	O
previous	O
work	O
,	O
Cavanagh	O
felt	O
that	O
he	O
"	O
could	O
n't	O
see	O
 [ himself ] 	O
going	O
down	O
that	O
route.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
contains	O
many	O
strange	O
visual	O
elements	O
,	O
most	O
notable	O
of	O
which	O
being	O
the	O
sad	O
elephant	O
,	O
sometimes	O
also	O
called	O
the	O
elephant	O
in	O
the	O
room	O
,	O
which	O
is	O
a	O
large	O
elephant	O
with	O
a	O
tear	O
dropping	O
from	O
its	O
eye	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
spans	O
four	O
rooms	O
near	O
the	O
Space	O
Station	O
area	O
of	O
Dimension	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
,	O
flickering	O
constantly	O
from	O
color	O
to	O
color	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similarly	O
to	O
many	O
of	O
the	O
enemies	O
in	O
the	O
game	O
,	O
the	O
sad	O
elephant	O
originated	O
in	O
dream	O
journals	O
kept	O
by	O
creator	O
Terry	O
Cavanagh	O
and	O
not	O
from	O
Jet	B-Application
Set	I-Application
Willy	I-Application
as	O
once	O
believed	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
was	O
released	O
on	O
January	O
11	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
for	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
and	O
Mac	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
X	I-Operating_System
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
trial	B-License
version	I-License
of	O
the	O
game	O
is	O
playable	O
on	O
the	O
website	O
Kongregate	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
Linux	B-Application
version	O
was	O
in	O
development	O
,	O
but	O
a	O
number	O
of	O
technical	O
difficulties	O
arose	O
in	O
the	O
porting	O
process	O
,	O
which	O
led	O
Cavanagh	O
to	O
cancel	O
it	O
for	O
the	O
time	O
being	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
rewritten	O
in	O
C++	B-Language
by	O
games	O
developer	O
Simon	O
Roth	O
in	O
2011	O
,	O
allowing	O
Linux	B-Application
support	O
to	O
be	O
successfully	O
implemented	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
formed	O
version	O
2.0	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
,	O
launched	O
on	O
July	O
24	O
,	O
2011	O
,	O
as	O
part	O
of	O
the	O
third	O
Humble	O
Indie	O
Bundle	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
C++	B-Language
port	O
also	O
allowed	O
for	O
the	O
implementation	O
of	O
new	O
graphics	O
modes	O
and	O
various	O
speed	O
improvements	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Version	O
2.0	O
,	O
however	O
,	O
does	O
not	O
support	O
saved	O
games	O
from	O
the	O
original	O
Flash	O
version	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
;	O
many	O
players	O
received	O
this	O
update	O
via	O
Steam	B-Application
without	O
warning	O
,	O
and	O
hence	O
were	O
unable	O
to	O
continue	O
their	O
existing	O
saved	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Based	O
on	O
this	O
source	O
code	O
it	O
was	O
also	O
ported	O
in	O
2011	O
for	O
the	O
Open	B-Device
Pandora	I-Device
,	O
which	O
requires	O
the	O
data	O
files	O
from	O
the	O
Microsoft	B-Application
Windows	I-Application
,	O
Mac	B-Operating_System
OS	I-Operating_System
X	I-Operating_System
or	O
Linux	B-Application
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
work	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
October	O
7	O
,	O
2011	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
announced	O
that	O
a	O
version	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
was	O
being	O
made	O
for	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
by	O
Nicalis	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Nintendo	B-Operating_System
3DS	I-Operating_System
version	O
was	O
eventually	O
released	O
in	O
Japan	O
on	O
October	O
12	O
,	O
2016	O
,	O
courtesy	O
of	O
Japanese	O
publisher	O
Pikii	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
the	O
10th	O
anniversary	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
release	O
in	O
January	O
2020	O
,	O
Cavanagh	O
made	O
its	O
source	O
code	O
publicly	B-License
available	I-License
on	O
GitHub	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
soundtrack	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
was	O
composed	O
by	O
chiptune	O
musician	O
Magnus	O
Pålsson	O
(	O
also	O
known	O
as	O
SoulEye	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Cavanagh	O
approached	O
Pålsson	O
to	O
compose	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
after	O
playing	O
Space	O
Phallus	O
,	O
an	O
indie	O
game	O
by	O
Charlie	O
's	O
Games	O
,	O
which	O
featured	O
a	O
song	O
by	O
him	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
writing	O
the	O
music	O
for	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
,	O
Pålsson	O
aimed	O
to	O
make	O
"	O
uptempo	O
happy	O
songs	O
that	O
would	O
ingrain	O
themselves	O
into	O
your	O
minds	O
whether	O
you	O
want	O
to	O
or	O
not	O
,	O
hopefully	O
so	O
much	O
so	O
that	O
you	O
’d	O
go	O
humming	O
on	O
them	O
when	O
not	O
playing	O
,	O
and	O
making	O
you	O
want	O
to	O
come	O
back	O
to	O
the	O
game	O
even	O
more.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
complete	O
soundtrack	O
,	O
titled	O
PPPPPP	O
,	O
was	O
released	O
on	O
January	O
10	O
,	O
2010	O
,	O
alongside	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
and	O
is	O
sold	O
as	O
a	O
music	O
download	O
or	O
CD	B-Device
on	O
Pålsson	O
's	O
personal	O
website	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
has	O
been	O
generally	O
well	O
received	O
by	O
critics	O
,	O
earning	O
a	O
score	O
of	O
81/100	O
for	O
the	O
Windows	B-Application
version	O
and	O
83/100	O
for	O
the	O
3DS	B-Operating_System
version	O
on	O
review	B-Application
aggregator	I-Application
website	O
Metacritic	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
was	O
noted	O
for	O
being	O
the	O
first	O
important	O
independent	O
release	O
of	O
2010	O
;	O
Kieron	O
Gillen	O
of	O
Rock	O
,	O
Paper	O
,	O
Shotgun	O
called	O
it	O
"	O
the	O
first	O
great	O
Indie	O
game	O
of	O
the	O
year	O
"	O
,	O
while	O
Michael	O
Rose	O
,	O
writing	O
for	O
IndieGames.com,	O
noted	O
that	O
the	O
release	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
followed	O
a	O
year	O
which	O
"	O
some	O
may	O
argue	O
...	O
didn	O
'	O
t	O
really	O
deliver	O
an	O
outstanding	O
indie	O
title	O
which	O
showed	O
the	O
mainstream	O
that	O
independent	O
developers	O
mean	O
business.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
level	O
design	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
was	O
lauded	O
by	O
critics	O
:	O
Rose	O
considered	O
the	O
game	O
to	O
have	O
no	O
filler	O
content	O
,	O
which	O
he	O
found	O
to	O
be	O
"	O
one	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
strongest	O
points	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Michael	O
McWhertor	O
of	O
gaming	O
news	O
blog	O
Kotaku	O
wrote	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
areas	O
contained	O
"	O
a	O
surprising	O
amount	O
of	O
variation	O
throughout	O
...	O
ensuring	O
that	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
never	O
feels	O
like	O
its	O
designer	O
failed	O
to	O
explore	O
the	O
gameplay	O
possibilities.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
reviewers	O
wrote	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
high	O
level	O
of	O
difficulty	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
These	O
additions	O
made	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
"	O
not	O
unforgiving	O
"	O
,	O
according	O
to	O
IGN	O
staff	O
writer	O
Samuel	O
Claiborn	O
,	O
while	O
still	O
being	O
"	O
old-school	O
in	O
its	O
demands	O
of	O
player	O
dedication	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
IGN	O
’s	O
Matthew	O
Adler	O
named	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
the	O
12th	O
hardest	O
modern	O
game	O
,	O
saying	O
it	O
requires	O
quick	O
reflexes	O
in	O
order	O
to	O
survive	O
and	O
that	O
players	O
will	O
likely	O
die	O
many	O
times	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
price	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
when	O
it	O
was	O
originally	O
released	O
was	O
$15	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Since	O
its	O
original	O
release	O
,	O
the	O
price	O
of	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
has	O
been	O
reduced	O
to	O
$5	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
VVVVVV	B-Application
was	O
awarded	O
the	O
IndieCade	O
2010	O
award	O
for	O
"	O
Most	O
Fun	O
and	O
Compelling	O
"	O
game	O
in	O
October	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Game	O
development	O
blog	O
Gamasutra	O
honored	O
VVVVVV	B-Application
in	O
its	O
year-end	O
independent	O
games	O
awards	O
,	O
which	O
earned	O
second	O
place	O
in	O
2009	O
and	O
an	O
honorable	O
mention	O
in	O
2010	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
's	O
protagonist	O
,	O
Captain	O
Viridian	O
,	O
is	O
a	O
playable	O
character	O
in	O
the	O
Windows	B-Application
version	O
of	O
the	O
platform	O
game	O
Super	B-Application
Meat	I-Application
Boy	I-Application
.	O
</s>
