This game was developed and published by Michael Hicks a one man company who’s been making video games for a very long time. You might know him from certain games like Pillar and Sentenia games released for the 360 on the indie section.
In this game you play as Motus a troll with a dream to do more, his village is covered in this forest that nobody can find a way out of. Many have tried but all have failed but you as Motus believes he can find a way out and on his journey he encounters bullies who are there to stop him, but he uses his words to beat them.
Now while this game appears to be like any other platformer you have played before but it’s not. At first it starts off very basic but then it brings this unique way of fighting to the table. By literally using your words each action button says a different word and while this might seem simplistic at first. Some bullies can only be attacked with a certain word as if only a certain thing hurts their feelings and this is why I feel it’s amazing with what Michael did here. This only scratches the surface with how deep this game goes.
There is also a change up in the gameplay but using this very unique style of puzzling that doesn’t make you feel like it’s a waste but it’s refreshing with what it does. While this can be a bit hard at times it really does make you think and try to get through it. After making you struggle through puzzles it does feel rewarding when you get through it. Micheal also makes a good use of easter eggs in these optional caves that’s not really part of the story, it only holds collectible pages that adds to the back story which is something I want to touch on.
He does such a good job at telling this story about bullying that I feel comes from a personal place. Throughout the game you have bullies who are literally there to give you a message that you should give up and stop trying because your life is worthless, but you as the player pushes on, you don’t give up and you see how Motus achieves what he set out to do and that’s make a difference. That’s why I said this is coming from a personal place, like a lot of us in our lives people doubt us and with good reason. We usually have ambitious goals that nobody thinks we can achieve. This is why I feel the over-arching message here is to never give up on your dreams and to always believe in yourself no matter what.
This is why I love story driven indie games at times because these guys pour their hearts and souls into these games and they have such powerful messages behind them. I couldn’t help but get reminded of a time where this happened in my life and I could relate to the story in my own way, I think this was what micheal was trying to do. Even when you complete the game it provides new puzzles and collectibles and this is what did it for me. The “high roads” collectibles which is throughout the levels now I at first couldn’t understand how to collect. You have to get pass certain sections of the game without hurting the bullies, so you have to be better even when they bully you. Which at first I didn’t get but it provides a nice challenge.
Do I feel the game is worth your time I say yes, apart from certain things like the game not saving and a few puzzles feeling almost impossible at times Other than that for a game only made by 2 people mostly they did an incredible job at telling a story and I wish all the best for micheal and any else he works on.
I rate this game a 9/10
