Echoes of the Eye
Video Game / Discovery
I talked about this independent game last year – I was more than enchanted, I was amazed by the poetry, by the beauty, by the intelligence of this game, by the amazing work on the 3D movements, on the effects of the gravitation – in short, I had discovered a gem.
This year, the sequel.
So the sequel…. the sequel, it is admirable.
It takes place in a Halo, almost exactly like those of Halo – almost. It looks more like an oversized movie reel – if you ever saw it.
In the original game, you find yourself caught in a hellish time loop – and your whole objective is to get out of that loop.
To do this, you go into the middle of space archaeology, as you randomly discover traces of an ancient civilization that may be able to help you. You find texts that they had written – visualized in a just splendid way. But at some point, you know them, these people, their names, their friends, their children, their habits, you have made friends out of time.
In the expansion, originally named: Echoes of the Eye – there is also an unknown species that seems to have disappeared.The Halo is beautiful, lush, a real paradise – but empty – in ruins. And what is particularly original is that there will be no dialogue. No text to translate – to understand.
No, no, you are there, with your eyes and that’s all.
If you don’t use your eyes, if you pass by without seeing, without looking, without paying attention, then you won’t get anything out of this Halo and you’ll find it lame.
But the moment you suddenly understand something – an unheard of magic begins.
Incredibly poetic magic – breathtakingly beautiful – but always, there’s the loop and always, you’re starting from almost zero.
I just had to tell you about it and salute these creators deeply.
They are this new generation of game creators and they are proof by all means that video games have come of age – they are as strong as they are smart, as beautiful as they are impressive – and they require your whole mind – not your shooting ability. By no means.
Mmm – okay – right : you have to be able to fly this kind of string thing called a spaceship that you could build in your garage. It’s an infection to drive – that’s pretty common in games, vehicles that respond like ill-formed hooves and rage at the same time.
But, well, it’s a dimension of the game – if it’s not a little annoying, a little difficult, it’s not a game anymore.
This game, of course, is the most perfect game when it comes to the theme: Discovery. As for its soundtrack, it is simple – but it works so, so well!
Featured Image : from Outer Wilds – developed by Team Outer Wilds, then by Mobius Digital
ALTAIR - Concepts 