Game: Little Orpheus
Genre: Action, Adventure, Platformer
System: Nintendo Switch (Also on Steam (Windows) Xbox, & PS4)
Developer|Publisher: The Chinese Room | Secret Mode
Age Rating: EU 3+ | US Everyone
Price: US $12.99 | UK £9.99 | EU € 12,99
Release Date: September 13th, 2022
Review code provided with many thanks to Press Engine.
Mobile Hit
Little Orpheus is a cinematic platform adventure that made its mark on Apple Arcade in 2020. The game proved to be quite the hit on the mobile platform, swooping many awards in the categories of graphics, music, voice acting and just being all-round brilliant. The game is now set to release on practically every existing modern platform and of course, here we will be covering the Switch release. But does this mobile delight transfer well to consoles? Let’s strap in and find out.
Platform in the Center of the Earth
Little Orpheus follows the story of Comrade Ivan Ivanovich who has just returned from an expedition to the center of the Earth in a capsule known as Little Orpheus. However, Ivan has returned without Little Orpheus and now needs to explain to a very fearsome general what exactly happened. As the player, you play through Ivan’s adventures which will take you to all sorts of locales like dinosaur infested jungles, mysterious ruins, the belly of a beast, icy landscapes and even outer space. Yes outer space in the centre of the earth, that one did confuse me.
As you play the game, the interview between Ivan and the General will narrate over gameplay. The personality clash between these two characters is quite something to behold. Ivan is overly positive and whimsical whilst the General is hardened and sceptical to the story he is listening to. The dialogue is filled with plenty of humour and really carried me through the adventure to its conclusion which is suitable for all audiences.
The game is presented in eight episodes (and one bonus one) much like an episode of a TV show. Each event ends with a humorous ‘Tune in next time to find out,’ slogan adding to the game’s brilliant sense of humour. The graphics are very impressive.
You visit a completely unique location during each episode as mentioned above. There is always something to observe, like characters moving in the background to the impressive detail to the level designs. The soundtrack also adds to the game’s cinematic feel making this game feel pretty similar to an animated film except you get to interact with it.
Run Right
Gameplay is very simplistic, for the vast majority of this game, you will simply be running to the right of the screen with Ivan whilst listening to the story. Now and then you will be required to do some basic platforming, move a few blocks, flip some switches, a quick time event (don’t worry, they are really easy) and engage in some simple stealth segments. This is a game suitable for gamers of all skill levels.
Control reminders regularly pop up per episode and levels are designed in such a way that it’s almost impossible to get lost. If you make any mistakes, checkpoints place you back very close to where you fail. If I were to rate Little Orpheus on gameplay alone it’s pretty bare bones. The game’s narrative and design is what really sells it more than anything else.
Share the Experience
The ideal way to play this game is to play an episode a day. With its family-friendly design, I highly recommend playing this with your kids or loved ones. With simple controls, you could share the controller around. But if folks just want to watch and enjoy the story, it will likely keep them engaged till its conclusion.
The whole adventure won’t take more than five hours to finish. When you are done you can return to the levels to collect little orbs which will unlock artwork with commentary from Ivan as well as new costumes. While a good gesture, I didn’t feel much need to replay the game again myself unless I wanted to show it to a friend later down the road.
Niggles
As for niggles I only encountered a few minor ones. Sometimes jumping felt a bit flimsy, occasionally animations were missing and even audio voice clips were missing. Since I play the game with subtitles on I didn’t miss any story beats. Lastly, I had a few odd moments where Ivan jumped out of bounds because I tried exploring off the beaten path. None of these issues are game-breaking and I imagine most will be fixed with a post-launch patch.
Conclusion – Memorable Adventure
Little Orpheus is a casual cinematic adventure that is light on gameplay but won me over with its impressive narrative and art style. If you’re looking for a challenge you won’t find it here. But if you’re looking for a good story to share with family or loved ones that will take you to unexpected places that you certainly won’t forget then I highly recommend picking up Little Orpheus.
Final Verdict: I Like it a Lot
