Botanicula
PC
Developer: Amanita Design
Publisher: Amanita Design
Release Date: 19 April 2012
No Rating
There is something inherently magical about video games. They transport you to another world like no other medium, allowing you not only to watch events unfold, but to participate. They transform the sick and feeble into martial arts masters, armchair quarterbacks into Super Bowl winners, and fulfill the nerdiest fantasies of flying down the Death Star's trench and saving the galaxy with one well-timed shot.
Botanicula, the latest game from Amanita Designs, the talented group of Czech developers responsible for indie darling Machinarium, is a game that defies any genre classification save one: magic. Oh sure, people will try to pigeonhole it as a point-and-click adventure/puzzle game, but it's less of a game and more of an experience - one that absolutely must be played by both the casual and hardcore gamers who appreciate games as an art form.
Botanicula, like Amanita's previous games, doesn't give you much in the way of guidance. You learn simply by doing. You take control of a cadre of adorable botanical creatures, each with their own unique skills that you'll often have to use in concert to solve the game's many puzzles. As you click around the screen, things begin to happen - flowers sprout and grow, insect life bustles, often yielding something useful towards your current objective, and even the very leaves of the giant tree you inhabit sway with each pass of your mouse cursor. Botanicula is a game about life, not death. It's about creation, not destruction. It is the antithesis of the modern war first-person shooter, and it is a thing of absolute, stunning beauty.
With each passing minute, each new creature I encounter, each new animation or funny sound effect, my smile widens. Never in nearly thirty years of gaming has a game brought me so much pleasure, or peace. Playing Botanicula isn't about beating the game, but enjoying the experience. Your creatures can't die, and none of the puzzles are particularly difficult - though they will yield those "Eureka!" moments when you finally stumble across the solution to some of them. Many of them can be solved simply by clicking around the screen, but the point of the game isn't to stump and frustrate the player.
Instead, it draws you into its magical, mystical, utterly gorgeous world. The game's art style could be dismissed as simplistic and charming to the casual observer, but closer inspection reveals loads of minute details such as the way background elements are slightly out of focus to give the appearance of three-dimensional depth, or the aforementioned leaves reacting to your mouse. The game oozes personality, heart, and soul from every facet, and the stunning lighting is a welcome change of pace from the "gritty" real world grays and browns that dominate so many of today's big budget games.
The soundtrack is an equally impressive and complimentary thing of majesty - a combination of ambient and upbeat melodies. There were times in the game where I just let a particular scene run so I could continue to hear the accompanying music. It fits the bill perfectly with the adorable, often hilarious sound effects. Each creature speaks a unique "language" of sorts, and even though it's all gibberish, it gives everything its own distinct personality. It's comical to hear your creatures' high-pitched voices shout and watch as they flee in terror from the evil black spiders that are poisoning their tree, but it also invests you in their well-being. Even though you know they can't die, you'll still find yourself fearful whenever you encounter a spider - and triumphant whenever you best them.
The music is so organic that it brings the tree itself to life. Insects buzz and unseen birds chirp, but it's actually all just part of the soundtrack. One particularly interesting puzzle even revolves around creating an impressive multi-part harmony.
Botanicula is the type of game you will want to show your friends and family. It certainly has casual elements, but longtime gamers will appreciate the ways in which it turns typical gaming conventions on their ear. It stands out not only for its remarkable graphics and sound design, but for it's gameplay which revolves around creating rather than killing. Watching the many inhabitants of the tree flourish and spring to life brings a kind of primal joy that I have never experienced in a game before. It's a transcendant, tranquil experience. I've never felt such peace playing a game, but what's more is I could watch someone else play it and have the same reaction.
Botanicula is like my own private little corner of the universe. It's where I go to relax after a hard day at work. It's my Zen dojo. It is a masterpiece of interactive art from its visuals to its sound to its subtle themes about the beauty of life and the world around us.
