Game: A Fold Apart
Genre: Puzzle, Adventure
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, Apple Arcade )
Developer | Publisher: Lightning Rod Games| Lightning Rod Games
Age Rating: US E | EU 3+
Price: USD $19.99 | UK £16.99 | EU €17,99
Release Date: April 17th 2020
Review code used with many thanks to Lightning Rod Games!
A Fold Apart is a cutesy, origami type puzzle game that follow the long distance relationship between a couple. The one who is a teacher stays behind while the architect moves away to help design and create a new building and further his career. They vow to make their relationship work despite the distance but miscommunications and emotions threaten to break up their relationship. Only you can help them patch their relationship and help fold their journeys back together!
A Game with a Unique Concept
This game has an artsy, indie vibe to it with an almost handcrafted look to the graphics. It reminds me a bit of Little Big Planet but the mechanics are completely different from any other game I’ve ever played as it allows for the user to figure out the puzzle in any way that they can. You can fold, flip, rotate the paper multiple ways to allow for the person you are playing as to reach the star on the paper as this allows them to move on to the next area. It also allows for the player to play the entire game as a couple that most relates to their own personal life, allowing for a more immersive experience.
What This Game Does Well
A Fold Apart has some really great features and you can clearly tell the creators put a ton of time and effort into this game. Some puzzle games have the problem of being too difficult for some people, which causes them to quit the game and never pick it back up. Different pages in this game can be a bit hard to figure out but you do not have to give up if you cannot figure it out. There is a hint system that you can use as much as you want and it will do the entire puzzle for a page if you need it to.
I also really love the added text message part of the game that is included. It is always nice to be able to choose what you want to say and the responses you get back change based on which option that you choose. At one point, I ended up messaging as the architect in the game and essentially gave the teacher the go ahead to get a puppy with a pretty silly name.
This game can be a bit emotional at times and it definitely plays up on these emotions with the graphics. The scenery often matches the emotions the current person is feeling. This pairing really helps draw the player in more and gives more depth to the story, in my opinion.
The controls are also quite intuitive and really give you the feeling that you are actually folding paper. The game quickly reads what the JoyCons are doing and the paper responds quickly. I was worried that it would be a little laggy or it would start folding from a place that I did not want it to but that was never a problem. The instructions are also descriptive and it slowly builds on adding in new things you can do. You start off only being able to flip the paper and fold from the left or right side but by the end of the game, you are able to rotate the page, push blocks, climb, and fold from any angle.
Where the Game Folds
The story of A Fold Apart had me rolling my eyes throughout. The characters take text messages the wrong way and have a complete breakdown that last several pages before they talk sense into themselves. I wanted to shake the teacher when she decided to give the architect the silent treatment since all it did was make the story even more dramatic. I found myself yelling at the characters that if they just talked and actually communicated rather than just making wild assumptions, they really would not have a problem. This may be a positive thing for some people because the story does draw you in but it really irritated me to the point that I couldn’t play in longer sessions. I also had a couple glitches where I could not move on to the next page but these glitches were easily solved by restarting my game.
Overall, Not a Tear-able Game
Paper puns aside, A Fold Apart is a pretty good game that is worth the time and money if you can look past the overly dramatic story. It is definitely one of the more unique games available right now and the puzzles are sure to keep you occupied!
Final Verdict: I Like it
