Semblance is a clever puzzle-platformer with a unique gimmick that helps set it apart.
Semblance
Nyamakop
Price: $9.99
Platforms: PC, Mac, Switch (reviewed)
MonsterVine was provided with a Switch code for review.
The official description for Semblance asks you to imagine a soft world you can deform and reshape, where manipulating platforms is part of the platformer’s gameplay. In practice, Semblance doesn’t allow for quite as much freedom as that suggests, but it still applies the concept in a clever way.
You play as a small, blob-like creature whose world has been infected by dangerous crystals that you can purge by collecting scattered orbs… for some reason. The story is mainly an excuse to send you off solving puzzles.
There are three major worlds to clear, each of which has several smaller stages within it. In each stage, there are a certain number of orbs you’ll need to collect—and obstacles that range from impenetrable cliffs to deadly lasers. You can tackle these worlds, stages, and puzzles in any order you want, so if you get stuck on a puzzle, you can head off to try a different one instead. At the same time, there’s no reason you can’t simply solve one after the other if you prefer a more linear approach. Semblance uses a minimalist presentation, but still features beautiful visuals, with a different predominant color depending on the area.
You’ll find deformable platforms in the vicinity of any orb you need to collect or obstacle you must overcome, and it’s up to you to figure out how to use them. The description might make it sound like you can hammer the environment into any shape you want, but it’s not like that at all. Essentially, you can do one type of thing to a deformable area at a time. If you press part of it upward, you can’t press it downward. If you move a platform to the side, you can’t deform it. This forces you to think carefully about what you need to do with each part of the puzzle. You can easily undo your changes or reset your position if you want to start over (or if you get stuck in the environment, which happened to me a handful of times).
New mechanics are gradually introduced, and one of the cool things Semblance does is change the way you use them. For example, a beam that makes your platforms spring back to their original shapes serves as an obstacle in some puzzles, but later acts as a tool for you to fling yourself to greater heights.
Most of the puzzles are clever and really require you to think about the situation and the game’s mechanics. A few require quick timing and precision instead, but Semblance is at its best when it gives you a set of tools you need to manipulate in just the right way to overcome a seemingly impossible situation—always a satisfying feeling.
The Final Word
Semblance might not give you quite as much freedom as its description implies, but instead it uses its unique gameplay mechanics to create some truly clever puzzles. If you enjoy puzzles that make you pay close attention to the environment, Semblance is a nice puzzle-platformer that should keep you thinking.
– MonsterVine Review Score: 3.5 out of 5 – Fair
