It takes some time to understand why the shades of blue and light blue are dominant in A Space for the Unbound, the latest video game created by the Indonesian team. Mojiken. Once you understand it, you will never look at the sky the same way again. The paths taken by Atma, Raya, Marin and the rest of the lively cast of characters are full of life, but also of bullying, domestic violence and oppressive expectations from their parents. The children trapped in these '90s video games are caught between the magic (and sometimes horrors) of childhood and the responsibilities associated with adulthood: above them, an endless, deep, always beautiful sky, which It often takes up more than half the screen space.
A Space for the Unbound is a point-and-click adventure with strong narrative traction, with lots of text - and excellent average writing quality - and simple, but meaningful interactions with the environment and the city's inhabitants, including a myriad of cats, essential in the plot masterfully woven by Mojiken. In a world that places the West and its customs at the center, it is splendid to look towards the East and in particular towards the magnificent colors ofIndonesia, where postcolonial architecture coexists with a nature capable of reflecting all the nuances of humanity. Despite a slight drop in pace in the central part of the game, we can say that A Space for the Unbound is a great confirmation for the developers at Mojiken, who reach new expressive and artistic heights.
We tell you about this extraordinary teenage adventure in ours Review of A Space for the Unbound.
All the colors of the soul.
La history begins by introducing us to Atma, a boy who attends high school, and Nirmala, a girl with a vivid imagination who is passionate about drawing and writing. Atma helps his little friend structure a story that seems to interest Nirmala very much and that will be the leitmotiv of the entire plot of A Space for the Unbound. Unfortunately, Atma is swept away by the waters of the nearby swollen river, only to mysteriously wake up in class at school and meet a girl, Raya, who tells her that she is her girlfriend.
It is immediately clear that the plot of A Space for the Unleashed wants to take advantage supernatural elements, but in general the story created by Mojiken is concrete, vibrant and current. This is because he tackles difficult topics, but he manages to do so with elegance and with very little rhetoric: a helpful opening warning informs us that topics such as anxiety, bullying and depression will be touched upon. There is also room for strong criticism of the school system and the expectations of parents, who are sometimes forced to take out exorbitant loans to be able to afford to send their children to school, seen as a place of "glorified detention", more similar to a prison than to an institution that should cultivate knowledge and sensitivity. It is noticeable in the oppressive architecture, in the gates at the entrance, in the violence of the bullies before the distracted gaze of the teachers. However, in A Space for the Unleashed there is always room for the beauty of the sky, for the spontaneous - but not obvious - affection of a kitten found on the street. It is the story of a journey dedicated to developing the ability to lovingly care for ourselves and others, in the name of the apocalyptic powers of a girl seemingly like many others.
If this message mutual understanding seems to contradict some game mechanics - hitting bullies as much as you can with Street Fighter-style combos isn't exactly the best way to teach empathy towards others - A Space for the Unbound redeems itself in some surprising moments, in which the The solution lies in taking a step back and simply listening to the other person's reasons. Here you can enter the mind of an elderly person to help him remember his brother, or assist in court proceedings surrounded by solemn honking geese, or even help a video gamer with a passion for arcade games defeat a deadly boss. , really nothing more. than his authoritarian boss at work.
Immerse yourself in the souls of others.
This is the central mechanic of A Space for the Unbound, the goal of which is to allow Atma to enter the minds and hearts of friends and adversaries to discover their true reasons, searching for the problems that prevent them from expressing themselves fully. Spacedive will take us to the depths of the human soul, offering the Mojiken team the perfect help to showcase the extraordinary artistic abilities of its members: from kitty kingdom From Raya to the Masterchef style of the poor cook tormented by her grandfather's expectations, the minds of the supporting characters in Unleashed always offer fascinating ideas and suggestions, rich in imagination.
As we mentioned, there is no shortage of confrontations, managed very simply using key combinations that appear on the screen. Nothing too complex even in the point-and-click aspects of the title - the solutions are usually intuitive, except for a couple of more structured puzzles. Generally speaking, it is the story and surprises of space dives that keep players' attention high. twelve to fifteen hours necessary to complete the adventure, accompanied by secondary objectives drawn from a list of life experiences drawn up by Atma and Raya at the beginning of the game. Pixel art offers unforgettable glimpses and always maintains great clarity in what is happening on the screen; As for music, we were happy to discover an entirely Indonesian musical genre, keroncong, the result of the integration between Portuguese and local musical traditions starting in the XNUMXth century: very coherent for a story that makes encounter its main theme.
Very bad for him lack of translation into Spanish, which would certainly have expanded the pool of potential local actors for A Space for the Unbound, but this is absolutely understandable for an independent production that doesn't use stratospheric capital. The large amount of texts requires a good level of understanding of the English language, even if the dialogues are written simply and simply, without excessive linguistic embellishments.
Conclusions
Tested version Nintendo Switch digital delivery Nintendo eShop Holygamerz.com 9.0 Readers (8) 5.7 your voteA Space for the Unbound is characterized by a magnificent narrative arc, which slows down in the central part of the adventure, and then moves towards an ending that will remain engraved in the memories and hearts of the players of the Mojiken adventure for a long time. time. The Indonesian team speaks honestly about their land, its wonders and its social problems, creating a game mechanic, Spacedive, perfectly functional to the needs of the story and capable of providing extraordinary opportunities to show inventiveness and artistic talent. The adventure deserves to be experienced for its colors, the atmosphere of the city and its unexpected narrative journey, in the name of two female characters written in a truly impeccable way. We unreservedly recommend A Space for the Unbound, as long as you know the English language: the stories of Atma, Raya and Nirmala will not leave you indifferent, also thanks to the artistic and emotional triumph of the excellent ending.
PRO
- Outstanding art direction
- Interesting insight into Indonesian culture and society.
- Masterfully written story
AGAINST
- Slow down the pace in the central part of the adventure.
