In Phoenix SpringsIt's not so much the gorgeous hand-drawn images that attract attention, but rather the voice of the narrator and protagonist Iris. In keeping with her name, she behaves like a roving eye, examining and describing her surroundings with a clinical, almost robotic distance. But Iris is not a blank slate: you quickly realize that she is a snobbish person who shows little consideration for the homeless. She even appears to be short on the player, delivering a crushing defeat when you make a connection she considers little to apparently.
Iris, a technology journalist by profession, 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 Grim fandango and the Monkey Island In the series, you advance the narrative by combining objects in increasingly esoteric ways. But inside Phoenix Springsthey are not objects that you combine, but ideas; It's not an inventory that you delve into, but rather a sprawling mind map. There are shades of Disco Elysium Thought cabinet here. The mechanic played a supporting role in Studio Zaum's 2019 detective classic. In Phoenix Springsit carries the whole game.
Ideas-as-inventory is an elegant reworking of point-and-click mechanics, transforming what often feels like an opaque and sometimes clunky genre into something smoother, sleeker and more modern. These ideas are not just reminders of the plot, but are tools to use in the game and thematic anchors to think about as you play. They also act as red herrings in a narrative that quickly unfolds: Iris' brother, a respected bioethicist named Leo Dormer, has disappeared and she's trying to find him.
In an early scene, Iris travels to his university, which was recently destroyed by student protests. Amid its ruins, ravers host a multi-day sleep-deprivation party (without the aid of chemicals, they point out), accompanied by dark, pulsating techno. Iris doesn't get it and doesn't seem to understand anything that's even remotely countercultural. The mystery deepens. In this near-future scenario, censorship is the norm; the privileged sleep in stasis capsules. What's going on and where in the world is Leo Dormer?
How Disco Elysiumthere is a special feature Phoenix Springs whose world is inspired by our own, sharing many of the same objects and similar locations, but differing in such disturbing ways that it becomes deeply confusing. In the desert you come across a huge ladder with a rocking chair and a solar-powered radio at the top. In the middle of this desert there is an oasis populated by a community whose inhabitants seem condemned to speak strange, elliptical phrases. Rotting fruit is scattered everywhere. The mood is never anything less than eerie.
The visuals – bold, over-stylized illustrations set against rough, painterly textures – heighten the sense of unease. Phoenix Springs is a game with plenty of negative space, with large portions of the screen obscured by shimmering areas of color and dark shadows. As Iris wanders through eerie, empty buildings and unnaturally lush ruins, she tends to almost disappear into the surroundings, as if her physical being is compromised. The negative space extends to characters whose innermost feelings and motivations remain obscure throughout. The plot always remains cryptic, even if you can apparently decipher it.
The beguiling magic Phoenix Springs The cast is only intermittently interrupted by the sometimes dull puzzles. After completing much of the supposedly more challenging detective work at university, my progress was halted by simply missing a key object. But being stumped is never a deal breaker. When you pause the game, a list of tips will appear. There's even a button that takes you to an external webpage with instructions for the entire game. Does offering a walkthrough betray a lack of trust or perhaps belief in the game's puzzles? I do not believe that. The creators of Phoenix Springsa three-person art collective spread across the UK and France you don't care if you're “git gud”; They just want to tell you a bizarre, disturbing story.
The craziness is exactly the point. Allusions to bioethics, poisonous mushrooms, and the “green crater in the heart of the desert” are reminiscent of the strange fiction of Jeff VanderMeer (as popularized in the author's book). Southern range novel series). Phoenix Springs is also a captivating neo-noir, although it largely takes place in bright sunlight. That's a bit strange too.
But even as the game takes on a stranger metaphysical form than its detective premise first suggested, it neither loses nor loses its power. On the contrary: the game becomes more powerful as it becomes clear how far Iris is willing to go to follow her little brother and restore the connection between them. Through it all, Leo Dormer remains at the center of her mind map; He remains the only constant in Iris' thoughts.
Phoenix Springs will be released on October 7th on PC.