Game: Iris.Fall
Genre: Adventure, Puzzle, Strategy
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam & PS4)
Developers | Publishers: NExT Studios | PM Studios
Age Rating: EU 7+ | US E
Price: EU €16,99 | USD $19.99 | UK £15.29
Release Date: January 7th, 2021
Review code used, with many thanks to PM Studios
Iris.Fall is a story-driven puzzle-adventure developed by NEXT Studios, about a young girl who wakes during the night and is led on a nightmarish adventure to uncover her past.
Play in Light and Dark
The entirety of the story in Iris.Fall is told without a single written or spoken word. It all takes place in a black and white world, where the art manages to be vibrant with a sparse splash of colour.
You take on the role of Iris who is awakened in the middle of the night by a mysterious black cat, Iris follows the cat, much like Alice following the White Rabbit. Following the cat leads Iris on an adventure into a dark, dilapidated and strange papercraft theatre.
Enter the Theatre
The game is all about alternating perspectives, the shift between light and shadow play, illusion and reality. As she enters the theatre, Iris finds a magical book which allows her to move between the real world and shadow world to solve puzzles. You’ll find things in the environment to use with various devices in a stage to open the way forward.
Most areas have a strong light source off to the side and items that can be positioned in front of them, creating black lines on the back walls. Some puzzles require you to use the shadows to build bridges. For example, if an exit door is atop a balcony and the stairs have crumbled away, you can simply tilt a see-saw so that a line of shadow on the wall links the ground to the platform. Then you switch to shadow form, run to the exit, and then switch back.
Look out for Clues
Other puzzles use the light to blot out what lurks in the shadows. Some puzzles have environmental clues, but not every puzzle is so easily completed. There is an interesting variety of challenges centred around proper positioning and switching between light and dark. It also allows the game to function between a 2D and 3D experience simultaneously. You’re able to move things around in a 3D world to transform into the 2D shadows that you must travel across to continue.
Iris.Fall does make you work for solutions, and the logic style puzzles offer more challenge. The environmental puzzles are easy enough to complete unless you fail to spot the relevant clues hidden amongst the surroundings.
Cutscenes tell the Story
While there is no text or narration, the story of Iris.Fall is told through the journey. You will get glimpses of the past through pictures and cutscenes of Iris’ memories. There is no violence in the game, though the story does have themes that might scare small children. One particular scene that might scare a child is the stealing of children’s souls and the use of puppets as a channel for those souls.
The story is also a little cryptic and you won’t really know what’s going on until the end. The end of the game will come quickly, I completed the game in one sitting, just over a few hours of gameplay. Iris.Fall is a bite-sized experience and whether this amounts to value for money obviously depends on your own perspective. I think the price point for the game is a little high for the few hours of gameplay it offers. I don’t think it’s the type of game that would give replay value either, unless it’s quite a while between re-plays.
Visuals and Controls
Sound and graphics are very nicely done, with the palette of dark and light greys and the odd splash of colour, I like the way the game looks. It’s quite stunning in certain scenes with carnival themed images, clockwork machinery, and the creepy staring eyes of marionettes. And the ornate art style makes each room of the theatre a new experience.
You control Iris with the joy-cons, and for the most part it works well. There where some instances where Iris got stuck behind parts of the scenery. Her movement can also be a little slow and clunky feeling at times.
Conclusion
Though it isn’t the first time we have the transition between the 3D world and 2D worlds in a game before, it works well as does the play on light, dark and shadows! Depending on your puzzle skills you may find the puzzles easy enough to solve. There isn’t much help from the game in solving the puzzle themselves which could make the game more difficult and a frustrating experience for those not used to the genre.
Iris.Fall offers a good variety of brain teasers to solve, which are well-designed and present an enjoyable experience for any puzzle gamer.
Final Verdict: I Like It A Lot 