RiME on Nintendo Switch
- Genres : Puzzle, Adventure, Platformer
- Publishers : Grey Box
- Developers : Tequila Works
- Players : 1
- Consoles : Nintendo Switch
- Languages : Japanese, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian
- Release date : November 14, 2017
Hello everyone!
Today I am proposing you a little test on the video game: Rime which got out on November 17th.
After having seen the trailer, a few months ago, I was waiting for the game to get released with impatience and had also developed a few expectations. Unfortunately, the Tequila Works company, which is responsible of the game’s development, was a little late with its releasing on Switch.
But it is finally out, an opportunity for me to redact a little test to check if Rime met my expectations.
Rime, a bewitching world of emotion
As you might have guessed, I am going to speak of the game in general first.
When you launch the game, a little scenery that presents the developing, editing and commercial team of the game: the name of one of the member of the team appears written on the sand then a wave washes onto the shore and another name appears and so on and so on. I found this little presentation quite nice although maybe a little long, but it has the benefit of plunging us directly in the game’s ambiance.
When you start your adventure, you find yourself alone on a beach after having weathered a storm. Your only company is the sound of the waves and the sea gulls that live on the island, or what you think is an island. The décor then appears meticulous, peaceful and refined! You will have to leave the beach to find the mysterious ruins that oppose a contrast to the rest of the general scenery by their white colour. This white colour puts the ruins in evidence and make them the centre of the story all while integrating them perfectly to the landscape of this lyrical and dreamlike universe.
The game’s soundtrack is a pure delight for the ears. The music is of a mesmerizing beauty and so appeasing which participates totally to the emotion and change of scenery that one feels when playing (the original soundtrack is actually downloadable via a downloading code that is given with the game).
The entire universe of Rime is an enchantment that invites one to calm and reflexion but that seems a little melancholic…
Guided by a fox
Rime, offers you a free roaming world that pushes you to go and explore. This effect of freedom is accentuated by the mute narration of the game. Indeed, there are no dialogues in Rime! And for a good reason, your guide is a little magical fox. Once you wake your little companion up, he will show you the way towards the different enigmas of the game, yelping. It will not bring you any help as to the solution of the enigmas, but its cute side suffices to give you the envy of following it and sometimes you have to rack your brains to be able to join it.
Rime, is a poetical experience
The scenery of the game invites from the start the player to a change of scenery: ancestral ruins at the heart a mysterious and almost desert (yes there is a fox and also a man in a red coat that you will be able to sea, but that you won’t be able to hear) world!
This scenery could also be perfect for a horror movie… thankfully, the graphics and the soundtrack allow from the start to dispel this theory.
More seriously, the poetical soundtrack and the “artistic” scenery give a sensation of serenity and plenitude from the start of the game.
The enigmas are varied and perfectly integrated in the universe of the game. To solve them, you have to manipulate the sound, the light, the perspective as well as time. They are many of them, well-staged and ideally integrated into the décor. They are not that complex which allows to go through the plot smoothly without getting stuck for too long on one of them.
Whether it is the universe, the soundtrack or the graphics, the artistic side of Rime shines through everything and cannot leave the player indifferent.
It is also the case concerning the story of the game, as there is no dialogue. The story takes the form of stained glass cinematics or frescos painted on walls of the buildings that one finds here and there during the adventure. You then have to interpret those drawings in order to better understand the story, a little like in a children’s book.
Rime: the verdict
As I told you, I awaited a lot from the game:
- A beautiful soundtrack
- A dreamlike landscape
- A world opened to exploration
My expectations were met and I really appreciate this game! I tested it quickly; two hours this morning without seeing the time go by.
However, I have a few observations:
- The gameplay is not that intuitive; I had a few difficulties jumping or with interactions with the elements of the scenery
- A few lags and camera back jumps during the “loading” of specific scenes.
Rime still is a nice game, enjoyable and nice that invites the player to relax. It’s exactly what I was expecting when I bought it. However, I wouldn’t recommend it to the players fan of enigma games that would be disappointed and could get quickly bored because of the simplicity of the enigmas.
In short, in order to fully appreciate Rime, you have to want to get yourself fully immersed in the artistic and dreamlike universe created by the Tequila Works team.
My advice to enjoy it even more: get yourself comfy in your sofa, relax and put the sound loud enough to appreciate the music and the artistic side of the game.
The universe and the music of Rime remind me of the “Child Of Light” universe on the Wii U that I had really loved. However, I feel despite myself a little of melancholia when playing but I think that Rime is a game to have if you own a Nintendo Switch.
