SCHiM Review (PS5) – Hello Darkness, My Squishy Friend
Sometimes it’s nice to remind ourselves that through all the doom and gloom, there are some games that add some sparkle of joy by existing. Cutesy visuals, often hiding some sinister puzzling as time goes on, make us remember why we got into gaming in the first place. Enter SCHiM, a new cutesy-yet-occasionally-frustrating puzzler.
Told through the art of minimalist storytelling and audio cues, SCHiM puts us in the goopy presence of a shadow-hopping blob on a journey of reconnection. Utilising the darkness of everyday objects, this little hopper is on a mission.
Does the cute outweigh the frustration? Is it just me not using enough logical thinking? Let’s find out.
A Boy And His Blob
SCHiM being one of those minimalistic artsy games, there’s no text or story crawl. There’s no narrative, or even any dialogue outside the occasional Sims-like exclamation from someone. So, this plot is going to be based on what I’ve extrapolated through gameplay. I’m sure if I’m wrong, someone will be hot on the comments to tell us.
The story, such as it is, starts off in the shadow of a young boy. Well, in a SCHiM, in the shadow of a young boy. A small, frog-like blob-like thing, we play as the titular Schim as we follow this young lad through childhood and beyond. It all starts of cosy, hopping through the years of the little fellow’s life from boyhood to adulthood. Like that Richard Linklater film via the medium of a Flobots music video.
But then a bad thing happens and our little SCHiM becomes detached, and it’s up to the player to reunite a man and his sentient shadow… thing. Which isn’t as easy as it sounds, surprisingly enough.
Hide and Leap
In terms of gameplay, SCHiM is quite easy in concept. Our little blobby friend lives in shadow, and fortunately, everything casts one. But whilst shadows are confined to the object that casts them, we are not. What this means is hopping between shadows as a means of progression, both static and moving.
The picture above is a fine example: that level requires hopping between static items, before crossing the road, Frogger-style, via the medium of passing traffic. Further on, players will need to activate a light junction box to light the way… and subsequently, reveal more shadows.
Can’t see where to go? Whilst the vertical camera is static, the horizontal can be rotated to reveal new ways. But that’s not all, in terms of progression. As mentioned with the lightbox, certain items can be manipulated to open pathways. Hiding in the shadows of a duck will let players make it quack, startling a cat that acts as another pathway. A forklift truck can have its forks extended, thus extending the length of the shadow it casts. Think Echochrome via the medium of Untitled Goose Game, if you want some diverse comparisons.
The Darkness Is Bright
Conversely, for a game about living in the shadows, SCHiM is actually rather colourful and vibrant. Each level has its only colour palette, usually a mellow pairing of one, maybe two colours. There’s no dialogue, just some very pleasant music and the occasional audio cue when players activate something.
Again, in a world of cutting edge graphics and overladen UI screen, that SCHiM can set a living world in such a minimal aesthetic and colour scheme is actually lovely. Character and vehicle models may look like unpainted figure kits, but it doesn’t detract, rather makes us focus on our little boggle-eyed blob.
To also use the Untitled Goose Game comparison again, it’s also lovely seeing what items can be interacted with. Some are necessary, like finding a missing teddy bear for the parents to be able to move their pushchair (and let you leave the level). Others are just for fun, like chucking litter out of bins (don’t do that in real life, obviously), or symbiotically latching onto animals. There’s also other SCHiMs out there to interact with, which is as cute as it sounds.
Life In The Shadows
If this were to be the normal bit of the review where the criticism goes in, then on SCHiM I have no notes. At time of writing I haven’t finished the game, but I am some near twenty levels in. So I can’t comment on “appropriate length for the cost” or anything buzzword-y like that.
Nor can I whinge about the difficulty, because it is a puzzle game. It’s meant to make players think laterally, otherwise it’d be… I dunno, a blob-hopping simulator. I’ll admit to getting stumped a few times on levels, only to have an epiphany (read: bloody obvious thought) and see where to go.
If the game offered hints or did it for you, it’d take away the magic of our little SCHiM’s adventure. Maybe a little camera pan in the right direction if one idles long enough, perhaps, but I can’t say that ever happened to me. You just have to think of it against the likes of FEZ and Braid: cute exterior, some right little noggin-scratchers in there if you’re not careful.
I Know The Pieces Fit…
Yes, that’s a Tool reference. I can’t help but think of Schism when I hear SCHiM, and now you will too. Anyway, that aside, that was just filler to pad out the conclusion. It’s a short review because, and perhaps fittingly, the minimalism doesn’t stretch into an essay of a review.
SCHiM is, in conclusion, rather lovely. I wouldn’t say puzzle games are my forte, nor am I Mensa-candidate levels of smart to 100% these things. I do hope to finish SCHiM, because it is that enjoyable. From what I can see in the trophies in terms of replayability, there are some changeable parameters presumably on completion. Limiting the SCHiM’s hops to just one instead of two, for example.
Will I get round to that? Who knows, but I can say that SCHiM will stick around a little longer on my PlayStation. It’s a tiny game, a fun little slice of something different if you want a pleasant little brain-scratcher. It’s cute, it’s endearing, it can catch you out if you’re not careful, and it’ll make you check shadows next time you pass a lamppost.
SCHiM is the perfect example of pick-up-and-play puzzlers. A neat concept of shadow hopping, paired with the minimal style of Echochrome and Untitled Goose Game, SCHiM fits that genre for those after something cute and progressively challenging.
SCHiM is available from July 18th on PlayStation 4 & 5 (reviewed on latter), Xbox One and Series S|X, Nintendo Switch and PC via Steam.
Developer: Ewoud van der Werf
Publisher: Extra Nice
Disclaimer: In order to complete this review, we were provided with a promotional copy of the game. For our full review policy, please go here.
If you enjoyed this article or any more of our content, please consider our Patreon.
Make sure to follow Finger Guns on our social channels –Twitter, Facebook, Twitch, Spotify or Apple Podcasts – to keep up to date on our news, reviews and features.
