Arise: A Simple Story

اللعبة عبارة عن رحلة خلال ذكريات الماضي و كل ذكرى تصممت مرحلتها بمظهر يناسب مغزاها ، حل كل مرحلة يحتاج مجهود عقلي بسيط و ملاحظة للبيئة من حولك ، الموسيقى أبدعوا بتلحينها بطريقة تلامس مشاعرك لكل حدث مرت فيه الشخصية ، ايضًا تحولك ما بين الشروق و الغروب يعطيك مشاهد مختلفة و خلابة للمناطق ، تجربة جميلة و مؤثرة لأنها توضح لك مفهوم المودة و الرحمة ما بين الزوجين من خلال مواجهتهم لظروف الحياة المختلفة

[h1][b] TLDR: A simple but heartfelt journey through grief with clever time manipulation puzzles. A short and sweet platformer/walking simulator. [/b] [/h1] [h1]PROS: [/h1] ➕Neat puzzles and puzzle mechanics ➕Story ➕Music [h1]NEUTRALS: [/h1] 🔹Achievements are a bit tedious [h1]CONS: [/h1] ➖Some of the story details are hidden optional pickups ➖Gimmicky co-op, it’s a single-player game [h1] [b] Content (Game world/Narrative) – [6/10] [/b] [/h1] The game world has various different biomes, all of which are of the viking-type of setting. You’ll mostly be in snowy, forested areas, with the occasional surreal setting. There isn’t much exploration to be had here, though there are a few harder-to-get-to areas that contain memories, which is your collectible. The narrative is a simple yet emotional journey. It’s about the struggle of loss that most people have to deal with. A few parts were definitely sad, but nothing very powerful. The story is told entirely without dialogue, and I feel like the game does a good job of conveying what is happening non verbally. [h1][b] Gameplay (Mechanics/Difficulty) – [5/10] [/b] [/h1] The mechanical loop consists of completing puzzles to get through the levels. There’s not a whole lot of mechanics - this is basically a walking simulator combined with a platformer. The biggest mechanic would be the control of “Time”. While it’s never addressed as time, you solve puzzles by changing elements around you, like from autumn to winter, or before vs after an earthquake, or moving lily pads up/downstream. There are additional mechanics such as climbing, grappling, and freezing time. The game is fairly forgiving - I died a lot, maybe around ~20 times, and each time you simply start at the last checkpoint, just losing some seconds of progress. [h1] [b] Technical (Graphics/Performance) – [7/10] [/b] [/h1] Good, but simple. I’d say this is around PS4-era fidelity. Some areas look great, while the snowy ones are a bit boring. Technical side is fine, the game ran at a solid 120 FPS with no issues. I did run into a few bugs, nothing game-breaking. My character was flown off the side at a ridiculous speed. 1440p @ 240hz | installed on SSD [h1] [b] Audio – [7/10] [/b] [/h1] Good, each level has a different vibe and, therefore, a different score. Some levels were better than others, but I did notice the music and enjoyed it. Sound effects weren’t impressive. There is no spoken dialogue of any kind. [h1] [b] Replay Factor (Longevity) – [2/10] [/b] [/h1] Low, the only reason to replay is achievements, as this is a linear game. There is co-op, but that seems like a gimmick, as the game is more than capable of being played solo. [h1] [b] Final Verdict – [6/10] [/b] [/h1] Arise: A Simple Story (AASS) is a short game that focuses on its narrative with some light puzzle and platforming elements. There are definitely some emotional bits to the story, and I felt the closest comparison was the beginning of the movie “Up”. It’s even in the title, but this is a game that tells a simple story. It’s a story about loss and overcoming grief. It’s a fairly easy-to-guess narrative without any plot twists, but it’s still a good story. The mechanics are, again, simple but well done. I liked the puzzles. Though there wasn’t much depth to them, controlling time and things like earthquakes and fires is a fun feeling. There’s not much negative to say about AASS (other than the abbreviation, lol). It is rather short, especially for its price, and there isn’t much replay value. But picking it up on a sale is still some good fun for a few hours. Overall, I’ll give AASS the thumbs up. It tugged on the heartstrings, just a little and the puzzles were cool. Good, and of course, simple enough. [h1] [b] Recommend? (Price) [Y/N] [/b] [/h1] [h1]Yes[/h1] For $20 base price, I would say no, there’s simply not enough content to justify that price. Historical low sale is around $4, which is much better from a dollar-to-hour ratio. You can find my curator page here: https://steamcommunity.com/groups/Synik_GR