In phoenix springsIt's not so much the dazzling hand-drawn images that first catch your attention, but rather the voice of narrator and protagonist Iris. Befitting its name, it behaves like a wandering eye, investigating and describing its surroundings with a clinical, almost robotic detachment. However, Iris is no blank slate: you quickly discover that she is a snob who has little respect for the homeless. She doesn't even seem to matter much to the player, offering withering disdain when you make a connection she considers a bit small. also obvious.
A tech journalist by profession, Iris is the perfect protagonist for a point-and-click adventure, a genre whose mechanics often begin with the simple act of looking. Finally, in classics like gloomy fandango and the Monkey Island In the series, you progress the narrative by combining objects in increasingly esoteric ways. but in phoenix springsIt is not objects that you are combining but ideas; It is not an inventory that you are delving into but an expanding mental map. There are shades of Elysium Nightclub Thinking Cabinet here. In Studio Zaum's 2019 detective classic, the mechanic played a supporting role. In phoenix springstakes the entire game.
Ideas Like Inventory is an elegant overhaul of point-and-click mechanics, transforming what can often seem like an opaque and sometimes clunky genre into something more flexible, stylized and modern. These ideas are not just reminders of the plot, but tools to use in the game and thematic anchors to reflect on while playing. They also function as red herrings in a rapidly moving narrative: Iris's brother, an esteemed bioethicist named Leo Dormer, has disappeared and she is trying to find him.
In an early scene, Iris travels to her university, which has recently been destroyed by student protests. Amid its ruins, ravers throw a multi-day sleep-deprivation party (without the aid of chemicals, they emphasize), to a soundtrack of murky, throbbing techno. Iris doesn't “get it” nor does she seem to understand anything vaguely countercultural. The mystery deepens. In this near-future scenario, censorship is the norm; the privileged sleep in stasis pods. What is happening and where in the world is Leo Dormer?
As Elysée Nightclubthere is a peculiarity in phoenix springs whose world is inspired by our own, features many of the same objects and similar types of locations, but diverges in ways disturbing enough to be deeply confusing. You come across a gigantic staircase in the desert, at the top of which is a rocking chair and a solar-powered radio. There is an oasis in the middle of said desert populated by a community whose inhabitants seem condemned to speak in strange and elliptical phrases. There are rotten fruits scattered around the place. The atmosphere is never less than strange.
The imagery – bold, hyper-stylized illustrations contrasted with harsh painterly textures – heightens the sense of unease. phoenix springs is a game of abundant negative space with large parts of the screen blocked by bright colored blocks and dark shadows. As Iris wanders through eerie, empty buildings and unnaturally lush ruins, she has a tendency to almost disappear into her surroundings, as if her physical being is compromised. Negative space extends to characters whose innermost feelings and motivations remain obscure at all times. The plot is never less than cryptic, even when you're seemingly able to unravel it.
The seductive spell that phoenix springs The molds are only intermittently interrupted by their sometimes obtuse puzzles. In college, having completed much of the seemingly most challenging research, my progress was halted simply by missing a key object. But being stumped is never a deal breaker. Pausing the game brings up a list of tips – there's even a button that takes you to an external web page that offers a walkthrough for the entire game. Does offering a walkthrough betray a lack of confidence, or perhaps conviction, in the game's puzzles? I don't think so. The creators of phoenix springsthree people art collective spread across the UK and France, it doesn't matter if you “realize”; They just want to tell you a strange and disturbing story.
The rarity is precisely the point. The nods to bioethics, toxic fungi, and the “green crater in the heart of the desert” evoke the strange fiction of Jeff VanderMeer (as popularized in the author's book). Southern Reach novel series). phoenix springs It's also a compelling neo-noir, although much of it takes place in blinding sunlight. That's a little weird too.
Yet even as the game mutates into a stranger metaphysical form than its detective premise initially seemed to suggest, it doesn't let up or lose power. Instead, the game becomes more powerful as it becomes clear how far Iris is willing to go to follow her little brother and reestablish their connection. Through it all, Leo Dormer remains at the center of his mental map; he remains the only constant in Iris's thoughts.
phoenix springs launches October 7 on PC.
