Analysis of Sephonie, a colorful story clouded by its flaws

Sephony puts us in the shoes of a few biologists trapped in Sephonia, an island with a soul of its own and many secrets.

Sephony is a 3D puzzle and platform game that offers us a surreal adventure in the caves of an uninhabited island. The game, which launched in April 2022 for PC, landed on consoles on July 21. We had the opportunity to play on Xbox Series X, although it is also available on Xbox One, PS4, PS5 and Nintendo Switch. Sephony is the work of the duo composed of Marina Kittaka and Melos Han-Tani, nominated for the IGF Grand Prix for their previous works such as Anodyne 1 & 2, Even the Ocean and All Our Asias. Although in Sephonia they were not so inspired.

History

Sephonie puts us in the shoes of one of three biologists arriving on the island of Sephony to investigate their creatures. However, a storm leaves us stranded on the island and we will have to explore the underground caverns to find a way out. In the search for the path, we will find all kinds of obstacles

, puzzles and creatures, as well as manifestations of their deepest memories and dreams.

The story of the game is revealed through dialogues between the characters and cinematographic scenes that show us their past and their motivations. The game lasts about 10 hours, although this may vary depending on the level of exploration and the difficulty of the puzzles we choose.

gameplay

The gameplay of Sephonie is based on scenarios with obstacles through which we must advance. Thanks to a parkour-style movement system that allows us to run on walls and jump, we will find the escape route from this strange island. Focusing on this section, we can say that the character control is quite rough and imprecise. The jump and sprint sequence is impossible to achieve with a certain fluidity and difficult to associate with another action. This is all due to the little work done on the animations. The vague level of precision achieved makes reaching a ledge or climbing a wall a constant struggle with control. The part of platform of the game, which represents 50% of the gameplay, is not even worthy of an Xbox Classic game.

Puzzles and nothing else

Sephony It has a checkpoint system that allows us to resume the game from the last saved point, but also with a mode permanent death which forces us to start over from the beginning if we die. In addition to this, the game challenges us to overcome different types of puzzles that require skill, logic or memory. Some puzzles

They are optional and allow us to access secret areas or unlock collectibles. These puzzles are accessible by approaching the beings that inhabit the island, whether they are plants, corals, animals oh insects. Solving the puzzles will provide us with detailed information on biodiversity that will be very interesting as biologists that we are.

He method of resolution riddles It is always the same, a board where we will place pieces that we can eliminate when more than three cubes match in color. The objective is to eliminate cubes until a bar is filled and to unlock the information of the animal or plant in which you are. Each being that we unlock will provide us with a new form of token that we will use in the next puzzle. This makes solving them easier when we choose the tiles we will use. All this system that seems wide and varied, is not. In the end, the mechanics are quite repetitive and apart from a few special boards with obstacles, it’s very monotonous.

Visually very weak

He visual part of the game is one of its poorest points of Sephony. The game has an extreme minimalist art style. Colorful, yes, creating varied and original scenarios, but that feel like a game from a few decades ago. At least, Sephony It has a well-worked screenshot mode that allows us to pose with the characters and creatures we meet in the game and take fun photos. He sound part of the game is also very fair. The soundtrack and accompanying ambient sound is still monotonous and doesn’t reflect the moment or the mood of the moment at all.

CONCLUSION

Sephony This is a game that will not go down in history. It is an original and creative proposal that offers us a different adventure on a mysterious island. But here its advantages end. The game has a rough, stripped down and little worked gameplay if we talk about its platformer concept. It’s not difficult at all, and at times, we can describe it as frustrating and repetitive. The game has a very sloppy visual and sound section. Although the story of Sephony is interesting, it can be somewhat confusing and ambiguous. Unfortunately Sephony Despite positive aspects, like a good story and original puzzles, see how its technical section weighs it down in such a way that it eclipses everything else.