Weaving Tides Review

Game: Weaving Tides
Genre: Action, Adventure, Indie
System: Steam (also on Nintendo Switch)
Developers | Publishers: Follow the Feathers | Crytivo
Price: US $24.99 | UK £19.49| EU € 20,99
Controller Support: Full
Release Date: May 27th, 2021

Review code used, with many thanks to Crytivo

Developers Follow the Feathers launched a Kickstarter campaign last year for Weaving Tides which was successfully funded shortly after. Inspired by the likes of Zelda and Bastion the game has now been released on Steam and Nintendo Switch. I got to try out the Steam version of the game for this review, lets have a look at it.

Tass and the Carpet Dragon

In Weaving Tides, you play the role of Tass a young boy who has been adopted by a blue carpet dragon, named Kilim a mystical breed of creature. You’re the last human, on a mission to find your parents and it turns out that Kilim the dragon just so happens to be your foster father who accompanies you on your quest to assemble fragments of the past and eventually unveil the long-forgotten secrets of the woven world.

Kilim is a ride-able carpet dragon, and I think that it looks a lot like giant manta-rays only with long ribbon tails flowing behind it. Along the way, you will meet two other dragons, Twill and Luce both with unique abilities and personalities. During Weaving Tides, you’ll travel through different environments from silken sands, lush forests and a moth kingdom, and battle bosses at the end of dungeons. 

Mend Broken Fabric

The games textile theme is explored to great effect, with the puzzle mechanics taking inspiration from various crafting techniques to complete tasks. Using your ribbon tail to mend broken fabric, connect markers to create shapes, or use your dash to cut thread. Often you will need to pay close attention to the environment for clues to solve some of the puzzles. Puzzles start off simple but become much more challenging, and inventive as you play through the game.

So you’d better get used to the controls quickly and that’s pretty easy to do and the weaving feels very natural, which I must say I was surprised by. Controlling the dragon couldn’t be any more simple. You use the ZR to hop between the top of the woven landscape and below. As you move between the layers, the dragons tail acts as a thread letting you stitch the landscape back together.

Combat Involved

In between the puzzle-solving, there are some enemies to deal with. The first time I took out an enemy I had a smile on my face. You see it is not normal combat, after all a dragon doesn’t carry a sword. Instead, you dash into enemies to stun them, then you knot up enemies by bobbing through the floor and tangling them in the ribbon. Enemies range from small beings which pursue you, attempting to corner you, to ranged creatures which try to keep their distance and rain down trouble.

Secrets to Find

During story segments which are delivered in towns and campsites, it is Tass who takes the helm talking to NPC’s and visiting the shop. As well as solving puzzles and visiting campsites, Weaving Tides has secrets to discover, spread throughout the game. Most can be found by diving under the world and manoeuvring your dragon through underground paths that take you to treasures that reward things like money, ribbons, and even pieces of heart.

You need to search for these secrets in each world, as Weaving Tides is quite linear. There is no backtracking. If you miss any secrets in an area, you have missed them for good on that playthrough. One lovely and cool addition to the game is you can pet the dragon and give it some loving.

Visuals and Controls

Visually Weaving Tides hits the spot with its woven worlds. The aesthetics of the game are very realistic to what they represent. With a colourful cast of characters and fully hand-painted portraits and a captivating musical score.

Controlled fully with a controller on Steam which, for the most part, feels fine, especially the weaving which is done really well. Unfortunately, I found the UI and the menu to be a little fiddly, but that doesn’t interrupt the gameplay.

Conclusion

Weaving Tides is a charming single-player adventure set in a world of magic, textile and dragons. The weaving and embroidery angle is fantastic, it feels like a fresh and smart way to create an adventure game. Repairing the world by stitching down enemies or floating woolly sheep and dashing through piles of cushions is very satisfying! And best of all, you can pet the dragons!

Final Verdict: I Like It A Lot