Game: Summertime Madness
Genre: Adventure, Puzzle
System: Switch (also available for Steam(Windows, macOS) PS4. PS5, Xbox Series)
Developers | Publishers: Sometimes You
Age Rating: US E | EU 3+
Price: US $11.99 | UK £13.49 | EU € 11,99
Release Date: January 26th, 2022
Review code used, with many thanks to Sometimes You.
Summertime Madness is an adventure puzzle game that pits players against several walking puzzles and a time limit. Players have a limited amount of time before they fail, killing the main character and failing the game.
The Story and Gameplay
Summertime Madness is a story about a painter who has been driven to the brink of madness by the constant threats all around him. A war is being raged in the city around him, and his whole life is bombs, warning sirens, and the constant threat of death. However, one night, a mysterious figure appears. It offers the man a way out for a while; he will be put into one of his own paintings, but will die if he doesn’t find his way out by midnight.
Players can choose a three-hour game time limit, 6 hours, or unlimited time to play the game. I chose the 6-hour timeframe, which was labelled “Classic.” Then, you get sucked into the canvas of one of the artist’s paintings, and you must solve all of the puzzles and find the way out before time is up.
The gameplay of Summertime Madness is very simple; players only really have three things they can do: move, check their watch, and interact with certain items. The artist can’t jump, climb, or do any other kind of actions that players might expect from a video game.
At the beginning of the game, the puzzles start immediately. Players are given a watch to keep track of the time which counts down in real-time the six or three hours that you have to finish. This watch can also supply hints which uses 15 minutes of play time.
The puzzles are mostly walking puzzles; players have to move from one location to another, interacting with buttons, levers, wheels, or other moveable objects to open and close doors. This allows you to continue through the world and open new areas. There are also a lot of hidden-object collectibles in this painted world. Player can collect names, fireflies, and even a miniature orchestra’s worth of instruments.
The Pros of Summertime Madness
The visual style of Summertime Madness is really beautiful. There are wild islands, Escher-like staircases, rainy noir cityscapes, and creepy voids with massive statues. The whole painted world is visually stunning and beautifully crafted, reminding me of other puzzle game beauties like The Witness and The Talos Principal.
Some of the puzzles are difficult and different, but still leave the player plenty of time to complete the whole thing in the six hours they get. There is something incredibly satisfying about collecting all of these collectibles, solving the puzzles, and exploring this pretty game.
The Cons of Summertime Madness
This game may be beautiful, but the puzzles are not great. Most of the puzzles are elongated by winding paths that lead nowhere. This extends the length of time it takes to complete the puzzles, but doesn’t add anything of value to the game itself.
While some of the puzzles are incredibly simple and a little too easy to even be called puzzles, there are a couple that are winding, long, and the hints are less than helpful. The simple puzzles are fun, but the long, winding versions just feel like the game is trying to waste your time. There are so many massive staircases in this game, I think I spent most of the four hours I played it walking up or down stairs.
Summertime Madness even has one puzzle that is extremely difficult if the player has no musical knowledge. It gives players a piano and a set of musical notes. Thankfully, you can count the notes’ locations to complete the puzzle, but it was very daunting for me who has no musical training at first.
Conclusion
This puzzle game feels like something that someone put up for sale without playtesting it much first. While the visuals and the story are gorgeous. Some of the puzzles are confusing, winding, and waste the player’s precious time for no real reason. I liked a lot of aspects of Summertime Madness, but I wish it contained a little less aimless wandering and a little more puzzle solving to get where you need to be going.
Final Verdict: I Like it.
