Shape

내 그림자와 함께 떠나는 자기성찰적 게임 말은 거창하긴 한데, 정확히 말하자면 게임 내 세계를 탐험하면서, 종종 나오는 거울에 비추어진 그림자와 얘기하다가 결국 세계를 탈출하면 되는 간단한 게임이다. 그림자와 나누는 이야기는 나에 대해 물어보거나, 약간 자기계발서에 볼 듯한 상투적인 말도 있으면서, 가끔은 예상치 못한 사소한 이야기를 나눌 때도 있는데, 대부분은 뭔가 어디서 들어봤는데 한쪽 귀로 듣고 한쪽 귀로 흘려서 잊어버린 거 같은, 혁신적인 이야기는 아니다. 그래도 인상깊었던 점은 그림자가 나에게 질문을 하고 그에 대한 결정을 해야 할 때가 있는데, 이 대답에 따라 그림자의 모양이 달라진다는 점이다. 예를 들자면, 게임 초반부에 강아지를 좋아하는지 고양이를 좋아하는지 물어보는데, 대답에 따라 그림자의 얼굴이 강아지 또는 고양이로 바뀐다. 사실 의도는 꽤 나쁘지 않은 게임인데, 실제 게임플레이 부분인 퍼즐 플랫포머 부분이 그리 재밌지는 않아서 (다행히 난이도는 후반부에 나오는 부분 빼고는 꽤 쉬워서 다행이었다) 실망스러웠던 게임이다. 게임 내 편의적 기능은 나름 있지만 (특정 스테이지로 텔레포트 및 달리기) 주인공의 움직임이 매끄럽지 않아서 재미가 반감된 부분도 있었다. 왜냐하면 게임 내 색감을 다양한 종류를 안 쓰다 보니 몇몇 구간에서는 벽과 벽의 경계를 알기 어렵고, 주인공이 결정적으로 점프를 못해서 진짜 점프 하나만 되도 쉽게 넘어갈 부분들을 몸을 비틀며 넘어갈 때도 있다. 차라리 게임 내 그래픽이나 레벨들을 좀 다듬어서 비싸게 팔았으면 괜찮은 게임이 되었을 수도 있어서 더욱 아쉬웠던 것 같다. 결론적으로, 아이디어는 좋았지만 그걸 보여주는 방식이 약간 답답한 게임. 그래도 플레이타임은 약 1시간 30분 정도 하고, 4400원이라는 점을 따져보면 가격 대비 분량상 나쁜 게임은 아니니 일단 추천은 한다. 여담) 게임 자체는 짧지만 엔딩까지는 일직선형 진행은 아니여서, 몇몇 스테이지의 경우 엔딩을 보기 위해 달려만 가다 보면 놓칠 수 있다. 개인적으로는 게임 자체도 그리 길지 않기 때문에 엔딩을 보기 전 모든 세계 및 스테이지를 한 번 훑어보는 걸 권장한다.

[quote][url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/32732116-IndieGems/]Follow our curator page: [b]IndieGems[/b] if you like and want to see more reviews like this one.[/url][/quote] [h1]⇥TL;DR⇤[/h1] ‘Shape’ is a short experimental game, where you explore a maze to find the exit while talking to your shadow as it takes shape according to your answers. Leaving you with food for thought at the end. [h1]⇥Scenario⇤[/h1] You’re in a maze where you have to try and find your way out. Along your route, you encounter a shadow that will converse with you and occasionally ask questions. Your responses will shape this shadow, making each time you see it a little bit different. Besides finding your way out, as it turns out this shadow is yours, there is a self-reflection that comes to play. The examination of one’s conscious thoughts and feelings or one’s soul. [h1]⇥Gameplay⇤[/h1] Pretty straightforward; all you have to do is explore at your own pace and occasionally work out a few easy puzzles to advance, which makes the whole thing relaxing. Additionally, there are light cubes that serve as checkpoints if you need to return to a previous section of the maze. Which is useful if you missed something. [h1]⇥Visuals⇤[/h1] I would even dare to say modern abstract, if I may use that term. They are distinctive, and I liked them as I wish we could’ve seen more of them. One of my favourite visual moments occurred near the end, which I prefer not to spoil, just make sure you look up now and then and you might spot it too. [h1]⇥Sound⇤[/h1] Not every level seems to have background music, which is a bit of a shame since the ones that do have it are very lovely. I have to admit I got shivers from the wind's sound effects. –Insert bad joke of how it blew me away here- [h1]⇥Controls⇤[/h1] Super easy. The game learns you how too. But for the curious ones: Left thumb-stick to move, LT to run, RT to warp, and any of the buttons to interact. Or if you play with the mouse; WASD to run, space or shift –whichever one you prefer- to run, hold M or hold tab to warp and E to interact –again whichever one you prefer-. When in doubt you can always visit the pause menu as they’re shown there. [h1]⇥Issues⇤[/h1] It seems like one achievement may be bugged. At this point, it’s unknown if it’ll be fixed or not but we’re rooting for a fix. A very minor issue that didn’t trouble me that much, yet I still would like to point it out; sometimes the path, shape, contrast etc. was a bit hard to see due to the same colour on the same colour. It would be nice to have a tiny bit more distinction so that you have a more proper view. And as mentioned in the sound section, it would be nice to have a bit more background music so every level has its own thingy. [h1]⇥Closing word⇤[/h1] I have to be honest, the first time I opened it I closed it after a few minutes; I wasn’t feeling it. And that’s ok, that can happen. I’m confident we’ve all been there at least once. But I have to admit, after giving the game another shot, it grew on me and won me over. Sure it still has a few imperfections and it could be polished a bit more, but I enjoyed my time in there exploring and having food for thought. Some questions came naturally to me; Do I prefer cats or rather dogs, while others made me think about which side I lean towards more. It’s a shame it’s so short, I would’ve loved to explore some more and spend some more self-reflection time in there. I’m curious to see if we’ll get more 'shape' in the future or if we’ll be surprised with a new game. I wouldn’t mind either as I really would like to see more of this art style and this type of gaming. I would encourage people to give it a try because you never know—it just might surprise you as much as it surprised me. With love, Tchii [quote]I received the product for free. I did not receive any compensation to write this review. The opinions represented here are entirely my own and were not influenced in any way.[/quote]

It was fun and really intresting, the music is beautiful, the art style is great and visualy it's amazin. I wish it lasted longer. I really recomend it. :)

Des mécaniques intéressantes, une ombre qui se dessine selon ses choix, un univers épuré et captivant mais très court et les puzzles trop simple, mais pour le prix c'est très bien. Un jeu qui mérite une suite enrichi de nouvelles mécaniques.

Great game!

Great art, solid first person puzzler. It's just a bit short, but worth the price if this dev will make a longer part 2.

poetic

An odd, strange game. Makes you think of the anti-chamber, but than a tad bit more easy. Sadly, my achievements got glitched, but that is a minor detail. (was also not able to post this as a Curator review, so I posted it this way!) 6.5/10

Incredible game, absolutely nuts. Great work. 10/10

A little rough around the edges, but it has beautiful music and sound with some pretty neat concepts.