regemond Posted July 4, 2023 Share Posted July 4, 2023 Kinda surprised there's no thread on this yet, it seem like something a few people here would enjoy. Anyway, this is an awesome little title based on Scandi fairytales. It starts as a delightful, personality-filled romp where you, as young boy Olle, climb out of your log cabin window and follow your sister through a forest. Along the way you skip through peaceful, flower-filled meadows, play hide and seek with gnomes, and even shepherd some cherub-like flower pixies into a paddock. You then explore with your sister, climb a mini-mountain and all is right with the world. Obviously this would make for an extremely short experience, so let me be clear. This is the last good thing that happens to you in this title's brief runtime. Amongst other things, your sister is kidnapped, you're hunted by a character called The Butcher, you wade through a lake of lost/sacrificed souls, and you battle against some naked forest lady whose heart is visible through the open cavity of her back. This is truly one of the darkest, most horrifying games I've ever played, and the huge contrast between the gorgeous visuals and the awful undertones means every aspect has a real impact. Gameplay-wise, it's not going to win any awards. A couple of bits are really awkward to control, and at times Olle doesn't quite do what you want him to. Everything else is so, so good, though, especially considering this is the studio's second ever title. The graphics, at times are stunningly beautiful, with this unique saturation that makes the grass and flowers look almost real. The character models swing from charmingly stylised to incredibly creepy. Sound is great, except for one section set in a village about two-thirds of the way through. I love the fact it's based on Scandi folklore, too. Essentially, imagine Little Nightmares if it was cranked up to 11 and you'll be running along the right lines. It only has a 4-6 hour runtime, so if you've got an afternoon or evening spare, it's definitely worth downloading (especially if you have Game Pass, as it dropped there last week). It's one of the more unique titles I've played in a while. And the music for the final boss is In the Hall of the Mountain King. AKA the Alton Towers advert theme. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinymcshine Posted July 5, 2023 Share Posted July 5, 2023 Don't know if it's a TV / gamma thing (but different settings didn't help) or what, but this game is really frustrating (Xbox Series S). Took me a good 10 minutes to play hide & seek with barely visible gnomes, and now I keep getting caught by invisible bear traps. Feels like there's an interesting story unraveling - but FFS ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted July 5, 2023 Share Posted July 5, 2023 I think the Xbox does run a little darker, doesn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimboxy Posted July 5, 2023 Share Posted July 5, 2023 2 hours ago, DANGERMAN said: I think the Xbox does run a little darker, doesn't it? Alright PS5 fanboy, give it a rest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regemond Posted July 5, 2023 Author Share Posted July 5, 2023 2 hours ago, shinymcshine said: Don't know if it's a TV / gamma thing (but different settings didn't help) or what, but this game is really frustrating (Xbox Series S). Took me a good 10 minutes to play hide & seek with barely visible gnomes, and now I keep getting caught by invisible bear traps. Feels like there's an interesting story unraveling - but FFS ! I had the gamma turned waaaaaaay up on Series X. The gnomes took me a little while, but the bear traps weren't too bad when walking though the grass. I got caught the first time, but after that knew what I was looking for so it wasn't too bad. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shinymcshine Posted July 6, 2023 Share Posted July 6, 2023 I'm done with this - the gameplay is just way too frustrating to be fun. What irks me is how irrelevant repeatedly dying actually is, as the mechanic forces a trial & error approach, so why bother to make it such a part of the experience? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted July 6, 2023 Share Posted July 6, 2023 well, I ordered a copy from The Game Collection (for PS5 obvs), so @regemondbetter be right about this Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regemond Posted July 7, 2023 Author Share Posted July 7, 2023 11 hours ago, DANGERMAN said: @regemondbetter be right about this The absolutely atrocious games I've played over the years and you're trusting MY judgment? More fool you if you don't like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted July 15, 2023 Share Posted July 15, 2023 Enjoyed this. It is kind of a slightly rough 3d Limbo at points, but it kept me playing and doesn't overuse ideas. It is really, really grim though It actually reminds me of Berserk quite a bit. The Nordic /Scandi folklore, its lush and pretty, but then runs with the twisted side of those Hans Christian Anderson style stories. The trolls are a prime example if anyone has read those chapters of Berserk (actually the bee chapters are a great example). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
one-armed dwarf Posted July 15, 2023 Share Posted July 15, 2023 The trolls are so gross, therefore this game must also be ick 🤮 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DANGERMAN Posted July 15, 2023 Share Posted July 15, 2023 They aren't quite as bad as the Berserk trolls tbf Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mfnick Posted September 19, 2023 Share Posted September 19, 2023 I’ve put a couple of hours into this. The gameplay is actually straight up bad. It’s really fucking frustrating at times too. You can die from such bullshit or just the bad controls. However it keeps throwing up some interesting and messed up imagery so it’s keeping me going out of intrigue of what will come next. It also let me ride on top of a hedgehog. & I fucking love hedgehogs. Still a bad game. Hope it doesn’t last much longer or I may end up just checking rest of it out on YouTube. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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