Somerville

"When the journey was over, with the credits rolling, I found myself left deep in thought, reflecting on what I had just seen unfold and the meaning of the journey I had embarked on. Quite whether this grand conclusion actually …"

"Gorgeous, creative, and tense, Somerville can make for a fairly gripping adventure, but difficulty seeing what you&s;re doing, a fair amount of frustration, and an underwhelming conclusion make the experience less than it could have been."

"So yeah… Somerville kind of sucks. The best parts of the game are when it focuses on the alien invasion aspect. The worst parts are everything else. Honestly, skip this game. It actually makes me worried for what Playdead has …"

"In Somerville&s;s attempt to differentiate from Limbo and Inside, player&s;s are left with a moody, wordless story lacking technical finesse and head-scratching puzzles that define the genre&s;s best."

"It feels like cheating to call Somerville a debut indie title when its creator&s;s individual pedigree is so strong, but it&s;s a tremendous spiritual successor to both Limbo and Inside. It takes an ordinary setting, quickly removes all normalcy, and …"

"An escape from alien invasion, with beautiful art direction."

"Somerville is a beautiful and smart environmental puzzler filled with great ideas and a story that grips you from start to finish."

"While not reaching the expressive heights of Limbo or Inside, Somerville is in the wake of Playdead&s;s videogame experiments."

"Somerville doesn&s;t stand quite as tall as some of its contemporaries, but its unsettling sci-fi mysteries are still a good way to spend a Friday night."

"A remarkable science fiction adventure that shines more for its tone, its context and its stimulating ending, than for the story of its characters. Despite this, it has narrative maneuvers that raise the interest in its text, and with a …"

"Somerville is one of the year’s biggest surprises, and I’m still shocked to see it fly under the radar. Its portrayal of an alien invasion raging across the British countryside hit close to home, while the story of a father …"

"With his particular vision of The War of the Worlds, Somerville proposes a precious cinematic adventure focused on narration."

""Some technical issues here or there but the worldview, the puzzles and the tense and eerie atmosphere make Somerville well worth playing""

"Somerville never hits its stride, thanks to flat direction and frustrating mechanics."

"It&s;s hard to recommend Somerville purely on the basis of what loosely-tied and ultimately lacking material its narrative provides."

"Somerville does at least stick the landing with a third act that largely pushes the puzzles to the side in favor of an alien mind game that plays with one’s perception of what came before, and some surprisingly effective emotional …"

"Somerville is held back by technical shortcomings, but is full of impressive moments worth experiencing with the lights turned low and and your headphones up high. The father’s adventure lingers in my mind as I reflect on what happened, and …"

"Jumpship&s;s wordless debut comes uniquely structured, but neither the story nor the gameplay do enough to help it carry the torch it&s;s been passed."

"Though getting through it was occasionally bumpy, I only wish I&s;d been able to get more of it once it really got going. And had Somerville maintained its human element front and center, I think I would&s;ve loved the way …"

"It was a bold move for the devs to try and move this traditionally 2D style of game into this hybrid 3D space, but I can’t help but feel that Jumpship would have been better off leaving it in 2D, …"

"Somerville is a near-perfect adventure game themed around an alien apocalypse, with fantastic puzzles and exploration. Its few missteps do little to detract from the overall experience."

"Somerville has ties to modern legends Limbo and Inside, but it’s equally reminiscent of another Hall of Famer: Out of This World. The end result is a unique physics-based puzzle adventure that isn’t quite on the level of the games …"

"Jumpship&s;s debut is a fantastic sci-fi tale with an intense atmosphere and wonderfully touching narrative, even if there are a few puzzle and movement frustrations."

"Some clever puzzles, great visuals, and a solid story help carry Somerville through its occasional rough spots."

"Overall, Somerville has a fantastic and intriguing world that’s begging to be explored from the off. Wonderful art and sound design compounded with excellent character animations really bring this narrative adventure to life, but a smattering of bugs, lacklustre puzzle …"

"Somerville is a flawed game and doesn&s;t execute all of its ideas perfectly, but from its captivating story to some of its striking imagery, there&s;s plenty still to like in this brief adventure."

"Although Somerville has some standout features, gorgeously peaceful environments, and atmospheric, silent storytelling, they&s;re somewhat dulled by its terrible controls, awful performance, and lack of exposition. Being restricted to walking pace and the path forward often unclear, you frequently end …"

"Somerville is a fantastically evocative game as it depicts an everyman&s;s journey through a War of the Worlds-like alien invasion, leaning on countless sci-fi tropes and ideas along the way. Disappointingly, it&s;s undercut on a number of levels by controls …"

"A promising debut for Jumpship, with a perfect Game Pass title that can easily be finished in one evening but that would have deserved some extra polish. I want to believe."

"Somerville does for Inside for what Inside did for Limbo. While the means of gameplay has evolved into a 3D realm, it’s more an emphasis on an actual narrative that sets it apart."

"In truth, I’m not the biggest thinker when it comes to media. I watch a film, read a book, play a game, and take what’s happened at face value. If meaning is hidden behind a 10k-post Reddit thread, then, well, …"

"One man and his dog traverse the English countryside after an alien invasion in this haunting, wordless game: a masterclass in foreboding sound design and minimal storytelling"

"Somerville has some enthralling set pieces backed by some stellar sound design. While its narrative may be too much for some to decipher, its nuanced way of conveying emotion and drawing the player into the mystery is really excellently pulled …"

"Somerville relies on its fantastic animations and settings to tell a story of a father trying to reunite with his family. But without important story fundamentals such as exposition, you have no idea what is going on. Coupled with the …"