Two Dutch developers are leading one of the most beautiful projects of 2024
Maybe Twitter (now known, unfortunately, as jewels of enormous value. One of the best and most recent examples of this is Viewfinder, the amazing puzzle that used perspective and photographs in a fantastic combination.
The next one on the list was burned into my retina, but despite my growing interest in him, I did not write down his name. For me, and for many others, he became “the shadow game“and that reference was enough for anyone to think of a beautiful image. Now, with the arrival of the usual Steam Next Fest in June, the title by Ewoud van der Werf and Nils Slijkerman has been made available to taste.
SCHIM -I will never forget it again- it has barely allowed me to taste a pinch, a gram, of all its quality, but I am more than satisfied after having tried first-hand what is coming for July 18. Although the dark creature that can be seen in the images has been classified as a frog, it is actually the being that gives its name to the video game itself.
A schim is the spirit of an object or living being, or what is the same, a kind of soul that we all possess. In this world, schim can jump from one place to another, using shadows, but they must always return to their original owner to avoid greater evils. This maintains a harmony that is broken as soon as the game begins.
And the schim that we control is separated from his human due to an accident, so we have to travel through a city full of beautiful places to be able to reunite with him once and for all. Obviously, the most outstanding section of SCHIM It is none other than the visual and all you have to do is be amazed at the artistic display that both developers have achieved.
One of the most interesting twists is to turn an environment like the urban one, associated with aggressiveness towards passers-by and linked to the imposition of practicality over aesthetics, into a place where you would want to stay and live. It is not that the title lives in a permanent dusk, since there are different daily sections, but the truth is that few video games convey so well the feeling that you are in the middle of summer with the sun at its highest.
The shadows cast by streetlights, seats, trees, bicycles, cars, signs, railings and practically any element we see are the ideal visual contrast. And there is a prevailing minimalism in the designs, since Their creators are not recreated in great detail, but rather they add the necessary nuances so that we can perfectly distinguish any object. All of this in a movement accompanied by the rhythms of routine, fun or rest of the citizens who make the most of the day as much as they can.
There are scenes so typical of any park such as elderly people sunbathing, children playing on the swings or people doing sports outdoors. A daily life that is supported by the protagonist’s own story, who we see grow and go through all the possible stages of an adult, but with the fateful bad luck to lose your schim. So, that is the moment when the jumping festival begins.
The fusion of the stage with the platform mechanics themselves It is fabulous and allows you to explore the places without touching the light. And a ray of sunlight had better reach us, since the schim barely lasts a moment outside the shelter of the shadows. In this way we have to think ingeniously about how to move forward, because here the straight line is not the fastest way to reach our objective. It is not possible to see it with the naked eye, since the camera is fixed -although it can be rotated-, so with the right trigger SCHIM makes an approach to the target.
In this panning we will see all the obstacles to overcome, since we will have to jump onto a very narrow railing, take advantage of the passage of a moving car to cross the street and return to stand in the shade of a tree. All of this You have to calculate it with foresightdetecting the small routines of the stage to figure out the best route to follow, always punctuated with the sound of a splash when reaching a new shadow.
And not only do you have to get from point A to B, but along the way you can find abandoned objects. There is no obligation to collect them, but you will give a little joy to the schim who has lost his home, which is a little more incentive to explore. Be careful, I have not found a challenge during my game SCHIMalthough it must be taken into account that it is a demo, but it is certainly not the typical game that I expect while avoiding shadowy spikes and wandering stones made of darkness.
I just know for sure that I won’t miss the appointment next month to one of the most promising 3D platforms. An excellent demonstration that the indie market always knows how to manage to surprise the audience.
SCHiM file
- Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series, PS4, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch
- Multiplayer: No
- Developer: Ewoud van der Werf and Nils Slijkerman
- Company: Extra Nice and PLAYSIM
- Launch: July 18, 2024
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