The Unfinished Swan

The Good
Well that's 2 for 2 this week in games rated 'E' that have surprised me wholly with the ingrained quality and heart they've brought. The Unfinished Swan is a grade more avante guard than Rain, but both are worth checking out. As part of my ongoing series of reviews of games in the Playstation Plus club 'Free Game of the month' series, here's a game that deserves it's status as an award winning innovator!

The Atmosphere

I almost feel remiss in making a 'Little Nemo' reference in my Rain review – I should have saved it for this game, because this is even more apt a parallel. The atmosphere of this game kind of reminds me of Quantum Conundrum, but honestly this one is a lot more inspired. From starting on a blank canvas and having to uncover detail through careful use of pure black on spotless white, to using water to both illuminate your way and solve puzzles, and grow plants – The Unfinished Swan invokes a pure sense of exploration in the player that is (almost) frustration free. Up until the latest stages there is no pressure – no rush, and that organic feeling of play really makes for a fun time. The austere environments of the early levels grow darker as you approach the physche at the heart of the painted kingdom, and your heart still leaps whenever you catch sight of your intended quarry. I was constantly left in awe of the few but well placed other animals in the game, from a predatory fish that seems to follow you, to red eyes in the dark that skuttle away individually but are bolstered by numbers...

The Game-Play

This is a shining example of simple but effective game-play, the same element that made a game like Portal a landmark (this game even has a one-room-omage to Portal). By taking a relatively simple concept (splashing paint) and making it into something more. In fact, every new chapter CHANGES the way that you interact with the environment – from sploshing ink, to tossing water, to making 3D shapes on blueprint paper. One of the most interesting points in this game is that you never fight anything in it. It's all pure exploration. You don't spend your time sneaking around and running away either, there's a short chase sequence and a few sequences where you need to keep ahead of rising water, but these aren't really conflicts. Why is this a big deal? Well, most games are conflict based, that's the way forward and keeping the player engaged. A game like... Yakuza 4 would be boring (and a lot shorter) without the street fights every 5 minutes or so. Any RPG, without random encounters, would drag out and feel like busy work. The Unfinished Swan never FEELS like busywork despite not having goombas or other minion type enemies to toy with. The item collection is also very well done – here it's balloons, which can be used to purchase additional features, toys, weapons, and tools. In fact, it only takes 5 balloons (which can be found within 10 minutes or so of gameplay) to unlock every level in the game, which is the complete inverse thinking to most games that are stingy with treats like that. The balloons range in difficulty to find from dead obvious to well hidden, but the purchase of a 'balloon radar' (only 3 balloons) will make this side-quest a more enjoyable and fruitful occupation. There aren't a lot of 'extras' with The Unfinished Swan; by the time you've played through the story and the credits (yes, you play through the credits) you will probably have everything you want out of the game. Which is a point in its favour as you can walk away without feeling you've left anything behind in my opinion.

Story

You'd think that if I had a complaint to make in a kid's game it'd be in the story department. You'd be wrong, actually I think the story is beautifully done. It's told in literal storybook pages and narrated by your grade 2 teacher. And although archetypal in places, the story is always humorous and contains a lot of adult humour if you know where to look for it. The foreshadowing for the plot twist at the end is pretty obvious, but in no way unwelcome. In fact, I'd guess a kid would be pretty proud of his or herself for figuring it out the first time through. As an adult, the story is even better because I can see the primary character (the King) as an adult and how sad the story really is – a story about a man given a godlike power, but like all mortals given such power he winds up abusing it, alone, and miserable.

The Bad
Short-comings

No game is without flaw, and this is no exception. Whereas I was ready to give 'rain' an award for being the perfect length, I can't do that with 'The Unfinished Swan'. This game should have done a final level requiring every trick the player had learned, and finished off the story or the big fish. You don't foreshadow something TWICE and then have no payoff, even if it does vaguely resemble a big-lipped alligator.

The Bottom Line
Bottom Line: This is one of those games that will go without a sequel and be fondly remembered by anyone who played it. If you have kids – get this game and let them play it. It doesn't have any annoying repetitive sounds to bother you, there's no singing or yelling, and it'll expand their minds. And it'll do the same for yours too, because this is a rare example of a game that lets you think and explore organically instead of confining you to a right or wrong decision. That' s a rare animal.