Somerville
The Playdead development team has gained a very loyal fan base of players with its classic Limbo and its masterpiece Inside. Our game today is Somerville, the first game from the Jumpship development team, and one of its founders is Dino Patti, the former co-founder of Playdead and CEO of the aforementioned wonderful games. Will Patti return to deliver another classic experience? ?
Like the games Limbo and Inside, Somerville is a game that tells its story in a cinematic way through what happens in the game world and some story scenes without the presence of text or dialogue, but the difference is that Somerville is clearer to us comes story and with a greater focus on the feeling of excitement rather than the feeling of curiosity and trying to also deconstruct the game’s connotations. This was particularly the case with Inside.
Somerville: A Cinematic Adventure
The story puts us in the role of a father who lives with his small family consisting of his wife, his child and his loyal dog. The family is surprised by the alien invasion of Earth, which results in the father being injured in this attempt to help one of the injured soldiers. The father wakes up after a while and finds himself alone in the house with his dog. The father acquires a strange ability. This creates electrical energy that affects light, which in turn affects the aliens’ materials. Here the father begins his journey in search of his family in this difficult world that has become full of dangers.
One downside that the game focuses more on excitement and adventure is that the silent narrative style doesn’t answer many questions that need to be explained in more detail. Unlike Inside and Limbo, Somerville hardly provides any revelations and connotations through its world, which brings about the ending. The story and the final part of it are very fuzzy and lack… connotations that can be analyzed, so unfortunately we are left with nothing but pure imagination remains to explain what happened, but that does not stop us from enjoying the most of the events of the story.
A Unique Artistic Approach
Somerville offers a unique and simple artistic approach, and although the focus is on depicting a world in somewhat dull colors, the game is very beautiful and contains enchanting scenes from time to time, while most of the time there is a depressing and silent atmosphere, and that too is punctuated by some moments where exciting or sad music dominates, depicting the scenes in a wonderful and exciting way.
The gameplay is simple, with one button used to interact with the environment and one button used to harness the strange electrical energy the father acquired after his injury. The game is primarily based on interacting with its world and solving a series of puzzles to advance, and most of the puzzles revolve around the Father’s special power, which is used to transform with any source of light… Transforming the materials left behind by the aliens into a liquid-like state that allows you to move forward.
A Journey of Puzzles and Exploration
During this journey you will also learn the ability to solidify space materials, where you will have to combine both skills to solve puzzles, which makes for an excellent variety in the experience, but the experience is not ideal in this regard due to the provision of a 3D experience Experience instead of the 2D experience in games like Inside and the choice of viewing angles by the development team. The fixed camera was not always successful and you will often feel lost because the road is sometimes open but not clear! It’s also sometimes difficult to know which elements of the environment need to be interacted with in order to solve some puzzles, which is a confusing proposition in some areas.
A Wonderful Experience
We completed the experience in three and a half hours and at the end we can say that in many concepts and applications it is similar and even identical to the Limbo and Inside games, but with some changes, such as: B. Providing a 3D experience and a different direction for the story. Somerville is a wonderful experience and a successful start for a new development team. We look forward to his future projects and hope the developer learns from his mistakes to deliver a new classic experience in his next project.
Pros of Somerville PC Game
- Unique storytelling: Like its predecessors Limbo and Inside, Somerville tells its story in a cinematic way without the use of text or dialogue. This creates a unique and immersive narrative experience.
- Beautiful visuals: Despite its somewhat dull color palette, Somerville features enchanting scenes and a simple yet artistic approach to its visuals.
- Exciting gameplay: The game offers simple yet engaging gameplay mechanics, with puzzles that revolve around the protagonist’s special abilities.
- Variety in gameplay: Players will learn different abilities throughout the game, adding variety and depth to the gameplay experience.
- Successful start for a new development team: Somerville marks the debut game from Jumpship, and it showcases their potential as a new development team in the gaming industry.
Cons of Somerville PC Game
- Lack of narrative explanations: Unlike Limbo and Inside, Somerville does not provide many revelations and connotations through its world, resulting in a fuzzy and unclear ending.
- Confusing camera angles: The game’s fixed camera angles can sometimes make it difficult for players to navigate and understand the environment, leading to moments of confusion and feeling lost.
- Difficulty in puzzle-solving: Some puzzles in the game may require players to interact with specific elements in the environment, but it can be challenging to identify these elements, leading to frustration in certain areas.
- Short playtime: The game can be completed in around three and a half hours, which may be considered relatively short for some players.
- Unanswered questions: The silent narrative style of the game leaves many questions unanswered, requiring players to rely on their own imagination to interpret the story.
FAQ
1. What is Somerville PC Game?
Somerville is a PC game developed by Jumpship, the team founded by Dino Patti, the former co-founder of Playdead and CEO of games like Limbo and Inside. It is a cinematic game that tells its story without the presence of text or dialogue.
2. What is the gameplay like in Somerville?
The gameplay in Somerville is simple and revolves around interacting with the environment and solving puzzles. Players use one button to interact with objects and another button to harness the protagonist’s special electrical energy. The puzzles primarily involve using the energy to transform alien materials into a liquid-like state and advance through the game.
3. How long does it take to complete Somerville?
The average playtime to complete Somerville is around three and a half hours.
4. How does Somerville differ from games like Limbo and Inside?
Somerville shares similarities with Limbo and Inside in terms of its artistic approach and puzzle-solving gameplay. However, it offers a different direction for the story and introduces a 3D experience instead of the 2D experience found in the previous games.
5. Does Somerville provide a clear ending or answer all questions?
Somerville’s narrative style is more focused on excitement and adventure rather than providing detailed explanations or revelations. The story and ending may leave some questions unanswered and open to interpretation, relying on the player’s imagination to fill in the gaps.
