Moonrise Fall Review

Game: Moonrise Fall
Genre: Action, Puzzle, Adventure
System: Nintendo Switch (also on Steam, Windows)
Developers | Publishers: Made From Strings | CheckMate Publishing
Age Rating: US E10+ | EU 7+
Price: US $9.99 | UK £8.99 | EU € 9,99
Release Date: July 29th, 2022

Review code used, with many thanks to GrabTheGames.

Moonrise Fall by developers Made From Stings was initially released on Steam a few years ago. Now it’s time for the Nintendo Switch to host the game.

Moonrise Fall

You play the part of a young boy who has lost his parents due to a car accident. The game starts with the car accident and the young, nameless, faceless boy wandering around in the dark. Like a mini tutorial, you are shown what controls to use at this stage. Then, the boy finds a strange crow-like mask lying on the ground and puts it on. Instantly the mask reveals the boy is in a mysterious and atmospheric forest.

Exploration

Moonrise Fall is primarily an exploration game as you discover the story and the strange world around the boy. Armed with a camera, a journal, a lantern, and a clock to move time, you’ll slowly uncover its mysteries. You investigate illusions, puzzles and the forest creatures in search of an answer to the main question that drives the story. What happened to the boy, and how did he end up here? It is a simple premise, but it works well.

Use the Tools

Using the camera, you’ll take photos of cryptids (strange forest creatures). Snapping cryptids plays like a mini-game as you must press the correct sequence of buttons to take a picture. You’ll also use the camera to reveal areas through the undergrowth that open up, allowing you to move further into the forest.

The camera and the forest creatures are the keys to unlocking the boys’ story. The clues to their discovery lie in the journal. It hints at their habits and the conditions during which they’re most likely to appear. Then, using the clock and the weather system, you can change them to have the creature appear.

More than Photography

However, Moonrise Fall isn’t just a photography simulator. Instead, every picture you snap is in aid of revealing the bigger mystery, each photo bringing you closer to opening up large and mysterious puzzle dungeons.

In addition, there are lamps to light and pink crystals to find that serve as collectables. In addition to the collectables, every creature you capture on film rewards you with energy, energy used to unlock new areas. You’ll also pick up a Kalimba (a musical instrument) that lets you manipulate the weather with wind or rain.

Creative Puzzles

Most of the puzzles are pretty creative and are primarily environmental or specific object puzzles that you manipulate in various ways to unlock new secrets along your journey. I found one section of puzzling later in the game repetitive, but overall, the puzzles are enjoyable to solve.

Visuals and Sound

The pixel art look of Moonrise Fall fits well with the game’s atmosphere as you explore the dimly-lit forest full of tombstones and candles. The music is brilliant, as are the sound effects of the forest moving around you. I recommend using headphones to immerse yourself entirely in the surroundings.

A Few Niggles

I have a minor niggle with how slowly the boy walks, but it wasn’t anything that overly ruined my enjoyment of the game. The camera mini-game can also get a little annoying as the creatures move around. You have to move the camera to keep up with the subject you taking photos of as well as press the buttons in sequence. That makes it more difficult to follow the button sequence when the creature is moving, there were a few times I had to repeat the process to capture the photo.

Conclusion

Moonrise Fall’s story focuses on loss, death and sadness, which are dealt with well in the game. Though, like I did, you might still have unanswered questions at the end of the game. I enjoyed the story, though I don’t think the game would be suited to all players due to the game’s subject matter.

Final Verdict: I like it a Lot