Rochard isn't your typical hero. He's your typical blue-collar worker, your typical guy with a gut, and your typical space-miner, but hero? Not really. But sometimes a guy creeping into his 40s just has to pull up his pants over his considerable waist, pick up a gravity gun, and save the day.

Rochard is a side-scrolling platforming puzzle game where you play Rochard, an asteroid miner who is having one hell of a day (and who his voiced by Duke Nukem voice actor Jon St. John). First, his crew finally finds something of value, but then things start going wrong with equipment, and then pirates start attacking, and then things, well, they just get worse. The game plays through three different chapters in a variety of locations, solving puzzles and taking out enemies along the way.

Your main tool (and weapon) is a device called a G-Lifter, which allows Rochard to pick up boxes and launch them in whatever direction you want. This can be used to solve puzzles, block enemy bullets, take out enemies with some precision box-tossing, or just move stuff around to make a platform to jump from. Early in the game you also modify it to shoot bullets like a traditional gun, but for the most part you'll find yourself shooting various physics objects around levels.

Rochard doesn't have typical puzzles; most of them revolve around various fields that fill the levels you play through. Each of these fields are a different color, telling you what you can do with them: red fields, for example, won't let Rochard (or enemies) through. Blue fields won't let physics objects pass. Yellow fields block bullets and explosions, and white fields block everything.

Getting yourself from one end of the level to the other means getting past these fields, and making sure you don't get shot up, electrocuted, exploded, or just killed in general along the way. The game is pretty good at presenting puzzles in a way that makes them often feel fresh; the ability to manipulate gravity at any time in order to pick up heavy boxes or make high jumps helps too. There are also a number of upgrades to pick up to increase your health or damage, and some collectibles too, if you're into that.

The game's coated with a fine shine of polish, with fairly tight controls and a pretty good experience overall. Rochard isn't going to break any records or blow anyone's mind, but it's a good solid title that gives a sidescrolling experience with good puzzles in a well-made package. Simply put, it's worth a look if you want something to occupy your time with.