Imagine taking elements of
The Legend of Zelda: The
Wind Waker, Journey,
Icoand The Witness, then blipping in a few drops of Dear Esther and some
obvious influence from the famous episode of The Simpsons,
‘El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer’. The result could very much
be something akin to Rime.
A puzzle adventure that
doesn’t smash you over the bonce with either hand-holding exposition
or insanely obtuse puzzles – which isn’t to say that some aren’t
challenging - you find yourself washed up on some weird island full
of statues, glowy blue things and farm animals after coming a
cropper in a crazy storm. Oh yeah, there’s also some peculiar Little
Red Riding Hood meets Darth Vader character that’s stalking you. Eep!
You can potter about checking out the surroundings, breaking
pots like a little brat, going for a swim, getting your Nathan Drake
climby-climb-climb on or collecting toys and pizza slices and such.
You can also decide to actually progress through this thing and find
out just what the fuck is going on. What are those blue beams of
light? What happens if I shout at stuff? Why the cape?
While you can aimlessly wander, if you gain a sense of purpose
you’ll find yourself on a fairly linear path – especially once
meeting a furry friend. There are five distinctly individual levels,
and emotions will certainly be challenged – both onscreen, and
within any player who possesses even a poofteenth of humanity.
While certain puzzles can become annoying, things are balanced
enough that you’ll usually find that just before cracking the sads
big time you’ll have a eureka moment and fall back under Rime’s
thrall. That’s a tricky balancing act that many games fail dismally
at.
Rime is a visually and sonically gorgeous,
engaging and sometimes eye-opening creation. Get lost!
