We have all done weird little things as kids that were purely powered by our wild imaginations. Maybe you pictured a fast person running alongside your car on a road trip as you stared out the window, or maybe you used to stare at the clouds and fight with your pals over which one was shaped like what. Or, maybe you were someone who would shout ‘The Floor Is Lava!’ and hop onto the nearest piece of furniture before trying to awkwardly plan a route across the room.
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SCHiMis a game that takes the latter and hones in on this to provide an intriguing concept where you can only use the shadows present in the world to get from place to place. So effectively, the light is lava in this case. It’s a game that is sure to catch the eye of the indie gaming faithful because of its interesting core premise, but does this game build on this strong foundation?
A Beautiful Silhouette
Let’s dive right into this shadow-based epic by discussing the overall presentation ofSCHiM. Honestly, there isn’t a lot ofshadewe can throw this title’s way. You can see right from the start that there’s a lot of time and effort that has gone into the level design, asset creation, lighting and dynamic animations for each and every asset. It’s one of those games that has a trailer so enticing that you almost half-expect the full experience to be a washout, but it’s far from it, as the experience remains a treat for the eyes from the first moment to the last.
Whether it’s thePersona-inspired silhouette transitions between levels, the contrasting color palette design that makes each level pop, not to mention color-blind accessible, or the easy-breezy soundtrack that plays in the background to put you at ease as you explore each level at your leisure, it all culminates in creating a calm-yet-dynamic space to hop around and explore.
The only criticism of the presentation is that occasionally, scrolling from the endpoint to the level’s beginning caused a bit of a motion blur that is a touch nauseating, but all in all,SCHiMis a visual and auditory triumph.
Ghosted, Quite Literally
For those unaware,SCHiMis a Dutch word that means either ‘Shadow’, ‘Ghost’ or ‘Apparition.’ Which is a fitting name for this title, as the story sees you play as a shadow who loses their person, meaning you’ve literally ghosted your human, so all could apply here. After the blind panic of losing the hunk of flesh that casts your shadow in this world, you need to navigate a series of levels, using the surrounding environment to get back to them.
As you progress through each level, however, the game aims to tell a silent story of your human companion’s life. It’s something that the game does rather well, managing to convey their ups and downs and creates a cohesive reason to be in each location without ever saying a word. Not to mention, it somewhat endears you to a faceless character who can only be discerned from all other NPCs within the game by his absence of shadow and his trademark baseball cap.
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That being said, though, this is not a game that offers a riveting story worth investing in. The way we see it, the fact that it has a story at all, much like any platformer that offers a story, is a bit of a bonus. It’s more of a means to an end that allows you to get from one level to the next as you, ahem,Shadow,your human companion. So, while you shouldn’t expect the world narratively right, it’s a unique and interesting way to deliver a story, if nothing else.
Casts A Long Shadow
The game looks the part and has some semblance of a story. But it lives and dies on the gameplay, and to be frank, it’s a bit of a mixed bag. From the off, you have to praise how the small team takes the shadow platforming concept and puts it into action. The concept is one of the most clever and unique things you’ll come across in gaming this year, and a strong starting point that immediately feels cathartic and satisfying to engage with.
Jumping from Shadow to shadow feels great, and being able to interact with certain objects to create paths, and affect the environment around you feels rewarding. It’s essentially like a modern take on the old classicFrogger, with a little bit ofFezthrown in there as you need to rotate the point of view to plan your route.
The big issue thatSCHiMruns into early on is that after that initial catharsis becomes the norm, you begin to realize that the game doesn’t do much to build on the mechanics present. There are occasional moments where you’ll need to use a signpost to fling yourself forward, play a little golf mini-game to launch yourself up the green, or need to time your jump to align with a lightning strike, but these moments are quite fleeting, and after a while, everything feels repetitive and mindless.
SCHiMoffers a huge number of dynamic levels in a variety of locales, but aside from a few standout moments, it all feels like more of the same. It fails to truly take advantage of each area’s unique quirks, making it feel like it overstays its welcome. And it’s only a four-hour experience, so that’s never a good sign.
The game would have benefitted from reducing the number of filler areas that pad out the experience and instead focusing more on areas that take a puzzle-focused approach. But alas,SCHiM’sremarkable concept feels like just that – proof of concept rather than a game that takes an idea and pushes it to its limit.
Self-Imposed Challenge
What is ‘The Floor is Lava’ if not a self-imposed, imagination-led challenge? There’s a lot of fun to be had from setting parameters like limiting the amount of jumps you’re able to do, or how many tries you get before you burn up in the fictional magma below. And this is the saving grace that makes the somewhat lukewarm gameplay ofSCHiMcome into its own.
Sure, there are some challenges in the vanilla game, and some collectibles to find if that’s your thing. But there are no stakes. If you jump into the light, you just go to your nearest checkpoint and start hopping again. When the player gains access to the end-game content that allows you to turn off your extra jump and activate ‘Risky Mode’ and suddenly you have a game with stakes – a game where your route is so much more important and a game where every jump matters.
Having the choice of playing this game as a quintessentially cozy game or a challenging platformer is much appreciated, and it’s easy to see a future where this game is adopted by speedrunners who want to optimize their routes through each level and become a shadow master. Watch this space, it’s inevitable.
Closing Comments:
SCHiMis a game that initially shows a lot of promise with a truly unique concept that is realized through expert-level design and makes the world around you feel believable and dynamic. It’s a blast to hop around and enjoy the lazy afternoon tunes as you experience a quaint, if rather unremarkable, silent narrative. In the end, however, the game fails to squeeze all the juice out of this fantastic concept, offering far too much filler content to pad the experience and not enough unique puzzles, engaging platforming challenges, and environmental gimmicks to justify the number of levels present. The optional challenges and collectibles will appeal to some who are able to make their own fun, but overall,SCHiMfeels like a wonderful proof of concept that fails to achieve its true potential.
Version Reviewed: PC
SCHiM is a game where you play a soul detached from its person, and must make your way back using only the shadows for traversal. It features a stunning, abstract style and large open-world.
