A new Humble Indie Bundle is out and this time it is quite adventurous! The games included are the well known from the past Machinarium and Samorost 2, plus the new Amanita design studios creation named Botanicula. Those of you who will pay more than the average, will get the movie Kooky directed by Jan Sverak, and the magnificent Windosill – a point and click puzzle game with toy like graphics and design. This week I laid hands on Botanicula which is the highlight of this bundle, so I prepared a brief review of this great game.
Botanicula is basically a point and click adventure game with some puzzle elements. In game you control five “tree creatures” that have different abilities due to their different nature. The story begins when an evil parasitic spider eats all the fruits of the tree you live on. The five fellows save the last seed from being eaten and the journey begins…
The game environment is “natural” and very alive. You guide the company from branch to branch, sometimes flying, others sliding, and in some cases even swimming, trying to find a way to go further. You basically have to explore, solve puzzles, and collect items that will be used to proceed like keys for example. Because the environment is pretty much alive, you can find many interesting things here and there. All you need to do is press anything that seems interesting and wait to see what happens.
The design of Botanicula is awesome. I believe that Amanita studios went a step further on this sector with their newest creation. The “vains” of the trees are visible, the design of the insects is surrealistic and the lush is everywhere. This gives a strong sense of naturalness to the player, and provides the game with the right optical experience possibilities.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Syuy3pszAHw&feature=related[/youtube]
The sounds and music of Botanicula is what makes this game shine with excellence. There are no dialogs and such, but instead tinnitus, exclamations and a beautiful selection of ambient sounds. The music wraps the whole thing with complete coherence with the generic game atmosphere. Botanicula is the winner of the 2012 Independent Games Festival – Excellence in Audio award and it’s surely worth it.
The latest Humble Indie Bundle deal is the usual pay-what-you-want deal. This time your money will help the rainforest to be saved through the World Land Trust international conservation charity. Do good and buy a suitable for everyone, “natural” game that you will love playing.
