Some studios will find the first-person puzzler development wall too high, but not Mighty Polygon. Valves Mod turned sub-franchise Portal hold a majority share in this regard. Relicta is, again, a first-person puzzler which holds its own in terms of physics-bending game-play and something that resembles a storyline.
Mighty Mophin’ Polygon Rangers
Firstly, Relicta represents everything that developer Mighty Polygon represents as a band of creatives. Here’s a bit of blurb straight from the puzzled horse’s mouth:
“Our focus is to create original games with strong narratives that have great mechanics. As a team we are detail-oriented, and meticulous in our approach to each aspect of the game; from plots and systems, graphics and exquisite soundtracks.
Using the Unreal Engine we are able to create a truly immersive world with beautiful locations. We are all passionate gamers, we love to combine adventuring with logical riddles, and ultimately this enables us to make the type of games we like to play.”
*Insert Story Here*
Secondly, rather than go into too much detail, here’s the official synopsis to put players in the mood:
“The player assumes the role of Dr Angelica Patel, a physicist working in a terraformed lunar research facility called Chandra Base. The station is powered by the Relicta, a glowing crystal-like structure that crashed into the moon and is now situated at the heart of the facility.
Dr Patel is waiting for her daughter Kira to arrive at the station. However: an accident turns the research facility into a ghost town. Alone, Dr Patel needs to find her daughter while finding that she might not be alone after all.
Find your way around the enigmatic, terraformed craters, investigate different locations and ecosystems. Will you rush straight ahead and try to reach safety? Or will you take your time to gather clues and unravel the intrigues of 22nd-century orbital politics?
Buried in the eternal darkness of the lunar craters lies a secret that might claim your daughter’s life – or change the fate of humanity forever.“
Yes, this is still a review…
Relicta, in my humble opinion, is a game that is worth recognition. It’s also a title that will fly under a lot of people’s radars due to its genre. Let’s take a look at the above Synopsis in more detail and see if Relicta does what it says on its tin.
Firstly, yes. There is a story to go alongside a wealth of 3D puzzles. Is it entirely necessary? Well, performing a series of puzzles that are designed to harness the power of Relicta clashes with any meaningful dialogue.
The mother/daughter relationship is portrayed well. Long story short, building a series of puzzles that would seriously hinder an off-world rescue mission just doesn’t mix with a half baked storyline.
More Puzzles, Less Emotion!
If players pull to Relicta is for an engrossing story, they will be sadly disappointed. With that being said, the puzzle elements in-game are fantastic. Players will find themselves utilising the sweet majesty of Magnetism, Gravity and Polarity to solve complex puzzles. Making Sir Issac Newton turn in his grave is channelled through cubes that players manipulate to open new areas.
The game’s hub, the Lunar Space Station, is oversized and borderline pointless. Again, this is Mighty Polygon trying to make a genre something it’s not. First-person puzzler players don’t want to be spending five minutes in-between levels to check a holotable. Having a level by level design with story elements placed in-between would have been such a big win for Relicta‘s pacing.
Puzzlingly Beautiful
The space station does look beautiful as does Relicta‘s various environments thanks to geo forming experiments. I wasn’t expecting the AAA polish this game sports in terms of presentation. Textures are on point, physics behave themselves and framerates stay silky smooth. When separating the core gameplay elements and their presentation, Relicta is on point.
The soundscapes in Relicta opt for quite a calm and collected vibe. The cold silence of space is illustrated well in-game, with slight ambience humming in the background. Puzzlers aren’t exactly known for their OOT soundtracks and full-on sound effects, with the obvious exception of voice acting.
Pick an Accent Please…
A slight nitpick of mine would be the voice actors tend to blur the line between American and Indian accents and it’s slightly off-putting. At least it’s not Fable or Xenoblade levels of voice acting. But maybe that’s a personal preference.
Relicta is a great choice for players who want experience a polished puzzler. Some traversal and story instances outstay their welcome, but Relicta‘s promise of mind-bending gameplay more than makes up for it.
