FAR: Lone Sails

[h2]TLDR:[/h2] A relatively chill side-scroller and puzzle game about perseverance. [h2]GAMEPLAY OVERVIEW:[/h2] Far: Lone Sails opens with the player portrayed as a small figure in a red raincoat. The game is a left-to-right side-scroller, so running to the right quickly allows the player to find a steam-driven landcruiser and drive away from their home to ... points east. Or points on the right. Inside the cruiser, there are several controls, including a throttle for the engine, a fuel scoop to feed the engine, a brake, and a grapple ring on both the front and the back. The cruiser starts with limited fuel but various objects lay in the player's path that be collected and used as fuel. Pretty much anything can be fed into the engine, though some items are more efficient than others. A few may even be damaging, so be aware. Even if the cruiser completely exhausts its fuel, the player can tow it via the grapples, albeit very slowly. The cruiser will (early in the game) obtain a sail unit, which must be manually raised or lowered. In places, the sail will propel the cruiser, though using it and the engine together will of course bring much faster travel. The player need only watch the flag to make sure the wind is blowing the right direction for the sail to push the cruiser ... but make sure to lower it before passing under something. In the course of the journey, the cruiser will encounter various obstacles and stations. The cruiser can bash through some barriers, though others require light puzzle elements. None of them are overly complicated or difficult, and as near as I can tell, none can be fouled to the point of being unsolvable, so don't be afraid to push buttons and move things to figure them out. Colliding with some at speed will damage the cruiser, setting off fires, requiring use of the hose to put them out. Left unchecked, fires will eventually spread and explode the cruiser, leading to a game over, so don't leave them alone for long. There's not much more to say on the gameplay loop. It's all relatively simple. Far: Lone sails isn't a long game and shouldn't take even casual, experimental players more than a few hours to finish. Unless one is working achievements (see below), the replay value is relatively low. [h2]STORY / WORLDBUILDING:[/h2] There's no direct story presented, though the backgrounds and terrain show a world in disrepair, with marooned ships abandoned like the bodies of great sea creatures washed ashore. Mechanical maintenance facilities stand isolated along the land, waiting for a visit from a landcruiser like the player's. Such stations quickly perform their duty, and reset to wait for the next visitor ... although it is heavily implied there won't be anyone else coming behind. The whole tone of the setting is of loneliness and melancholy decay, mixed with the player's drive to just keep going. Even after finishing, I'm not sure how to feel about it. Later background scenes show a would-be inventor's quest to solve the mobility problem produced by the receding shores, but by that point, the player will immediately see coming the technical problems for that solution. I won't spoil the game's end other than to say it's left up to player interpretation, and I can see it being either hopeful or depressing. [h2]TECHNICAL ASPECTS:[/h2] The game feels stable and ran without issue. The graphics aren't fancy and neither is the sound scheme but both serve the minimalist gameplay well. Music plays intermittently, adding a hauntingly lonely dirge to the experience. There's no dialogue, which is suiting, since the player will see no one other than themselves. Steam achievements require several runs, including a speedrun, though getting one-hundred percent should be easy for someone who doesn't mind playing a few times. [h2]FINAL WORD:[/h2] I think Far: Lone Sails is worth a look for players wanting something brief and relaxed. [h2]SCORE: 7/10[/h2]

Мой отзыв на игру FAR: Lone Sails Игра, которая доставила мне нереальное удовольствие — и от геймплея, и от визуала. Это одна из самых красивых игр, в которые я играл. За почти 3 часа прохождения игра дарит море эмоций. Разные локации, ситуации и головоломки. Я обязательно пройду продолжение, когда будет возможность. И кстати, тут главный герой — маленькая девочка, которая в соло может тянуть огромную махину за трос… А нам лень вставать с утра, ребята. 🙃 Так что это не просто игра о том, как доехать из точки А в точку Б. Это настоящий маленький аттракцион по уходу за ржавым, но верным другом, который везет тебя через опустевший мир к неизвестной цели. Очень советую всем, кто хочет отдохнуть от перестрелок и просто погрузиться в меланхоличную атмосферу.

Давно моя душа так не отдыхала

Atmosphärisch sehr dicht. Ästhetisch absolut gelungen. Schön verarbeitet. Toller Style. Aber keine Story. Keine Herausforderung. In drei Stunden bist Du durch und fertig. Wie eine kleine feine Praline zum Abendessen.

[b]TLDR[/b] A beautiful, atmospheric puzzle-platformer with satisfying puzzles, a clean vehicle mechanic, and a world that leaves you to piece together its story. [18/20⭐, 4h🏅(+5h all achievements), 1/5💡] [b]Context[/b] FAR: Lone Sails is a puzzle-platformer with simulation elements where you play as Lone, travelling through a post-apocalyptic landscape in a peculiar train-like vehicle. It reminds me a lot of [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/macwh/recommended/304430/]INSIDE[/url], in terms of bleak atmosphere and cinematics, but is much more forgiving and has far fewer deaths. [b]Writing[/b] There is no explicit plot or written narrative. Lone navigates the world in a vehicle that seems to have been built with a parent who has passed away, triggering her voyage through the post-apocalyptic landscape. The world seems to have been shaped in part by a company specialised in building these kinds of vehicles, presumably for travelling through the changing environment, and Lone appears to be one of the few people left. You don't meet any other human beings as you traverse many abandoned locations. Many of these are factories, where the vehicle can be upgraded, and the environment gradually gives you a sense of what happened to this world without ever spelling everything out. [b]Aesthetics[/b] This is a beautiful game, with rich environments and plenty of attention to detail. There are long stretches of just travelling forward, allowing you to absorb the atmosphere. The soundtrack is also great, and always seems to come up on cue. [b]Gameplay[/b] The game is rather simple in terms of gameplay, but it's (literally) about the journey. The puzzles are mostly about pushing and pulling objects, but they are well thought-out and nicely integrated into the environment [spoiler](getting the ferry rolling put a smile on my face, even though it's such a simple mechanic)[/spoiler]. The vehicle is an integral part of the experience, and its various upgrades are some of the most satisfying moments of the game. It also introduces a vehicle-simulation component that adds a nice twist and keeps you on your toes. You basically have to keep collecting fuel, keep the vehicle running, and repair it as needed. But it's nothing too demanding (I never ran out of resources, and I imagine you can push the vehicle manually until you find more). All the mechanics are very smooth. You can die occasionally, but you'll simply respawn at a previous checkpoint. The game also auto-saves at checkpoints, so there is little frustration when something goes wrong. [b]Value[/b] This is a short game; it took me less than 4h to beat all the chapters, and about 9h to get all achievements. There is a single progress slot, but you can revisit previous chapters. The game is linear, so the replay value is mostly for the experience (and getting missed achievements). Most achievements are tied to game progress, but there is also a speedrun achievement (which is fairly easy) and a more grindy achievement that requires multiple playthroughs. I ended up having to revisit the game at a later point just to finish that one.
 [quote][i]For more puzzle-game reviews and curated lists check out the [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/43326007-The-Clueless-Adventurer-Puzzle-Trove/]Puzzle Trove[/url].[/i][/quote]

好评。

A quiet journey through a broken world that somehow feels beautiful instead of hopeless. There’s almost no dialogue, yet the game says so much through its music, atmosphere, and lonely landscapes. Every mile feels like a memory, and every little repair feels like keeping a small piece of hope alive. It’s short, simple, and deeply emotional.