Rime (computer game)

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Rime
Studio Tequila Works
Publisher Gray Box
Six Foot
Senior Developer Kevin Sardà Pérez
composer David García Díaz
Erstveröffent-
lichung
Windows, Xbox One, PlayStation 4: May 26, 2017 Nintendo Switch: November 14, 2017 November 17, 2017
world

North AmericaNorth America
EuropeEurope
platform Microsoft Windows , Xbox One , PlayStation 4 , Nintendo Switch
Game engine Unreal Engine 4
genre Adventure , jump 'n' run
Game mode Single player
control Gamepad , mouse , keyboard
system advantages
preconditions
  • Windows 7 or newer (64-bit)
  • Intel Core i5 2310 2.9 GHz or AMD FX-6300
  • 4 GB of RAM
  • NVIDIA GeForce GTX 550 Ti or AMD Radeon 6950
  • 11 DirectX
  • 7700 MB storage space
medium Download , Blu-ray Disc
Age rating
USK released from 6
PEGI recommended for ages 7 and up

Rime (also RIME ) is a puzzle-heavy platformers Run and adventure video game that the Spanish development studio Tequila Works develops and 2017 for Xbox One , Windows and PlayStation 4 as well as for Nintendo switch has been released.

action

Rime begins with a young boy who washes ashore on a mysterious island after a storm. There are many ruins and a huge tower in the middle. When the boy explores the island with a spiritual companion, a fox , he meets a mysterious man in a red cloak several times, but he can never reach him.

When the boy climbs the big tower, the first level ends and he comes to the four other game levels. The individual levels of play, each representing the five phases of mourning and dying according to Elisabeth Kübler-Ross , are:

  1. Deny
  2. Anger
  3. Negotiate
  4. depression
  5. acceptance

After each completion of a level, the boy experiences a dream sequence that reveals the memories of the shipwreck more and more. After completing the third level (“negotiating”), the boy now knows how he got stranded on the island: He and a man were on the high seas when a storm came up and the man fell overboard. The boy had tried to save him but could only grab part of the red cloak before the sea took him; the boy is now wearing this scrap of cloth as a cloth to remember him.

The boy finally reaches the uppermost plateau of a temple ruin and explores the area that represents "Depression" and, after successfully solving the puzzles, is forced to let go of the fox while it dissolves in front of him. The boy is transformed into a statue, but can break it open from the inside. Its appearance has now changed significantly. Like the mysterious man at the beginning of the game, he is now shown completely in black except for the red cloth. He climbs to the top of the temple and loosens several chains there, whereupon the temple is filled with light. When he pushes a switch, he is teleported inside the great tower; the boy returns to his normal form and reaches the top of the tower. At this point, another look back shows that the story is really from the father's perspective; the mysterious man represents his father. It was his child who was lost on the high seas. The island and the tower were all part of his own mind to deal with his loss.

The boy wakes up in the last level ("acceptance") as a ghost in his nursery and goes to his father at the other end of the house. Once there, the scene dissolves and the boy is now on the top of the tower. Together with other mysterious spirits, he jumps from the tower and turns into a starry sky . When the father notices that his son has come back to him, the father goes into the boy's room and examines his various toys. As soon as he tries to leave the room, a vision of his child appears. He hugs his son, the vision disappears, leaving the red cloth of the son in his hands. The father goes to the window, lets go of the cloth and accepts the loss of his son.

Game principle and technology

The game world is shown in 3D and the little boy , who was washed ashore on a deserted island, is controlled from a third-person perspective . The game world is largely freely accessible; areas not intended for exploration are blocked by barriers such as rocks, hedges, walls or doors that cannot be opened. Rime is a so-called adventure or puzzle platformer, i. H. The game is characterized on the one hand by climbing, running and jumping with the game figure, on the other hand the puzzles must be solved in the form of necessary environmental manipulations to unlock further play areas in order to move forward. The player can run with the boys, climb, swim, jump, carry objects and push or pull larger objects through the game world. The player can also call or sing the boy, which can trigger certain events, such as yelling at a magical statue to open a door. Other puzzles are based on light and shadow, while others are based on perspective to open doors or allow objects to merge. In addition, a fox helps, who accompanies the player through the entire game world and gives helpful hints.

Production notes

The conceptual design of the game began during the development of Deadlight . The first version of Rime was conceived as an action role-playing game under the working title "Echoes of Siren" and included a day-night cycle: the player should make weapons, hunt animals and collect supplies during the day; During the night it was supposed to assert itself against the enemies in tower defense style. Other elements of the game included researching, developing and personalizing the character. The game was offered to Microsoft as an exclusive title for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One or Xbox Live Arcade (XBLA) and Windows PC. Although Microsoft initially gave the project the green light, it was later withdrawn due to XBLA's editorial line that emphasized online gaming and social features.

A short time later, Sony became interested in the game and the development studio sold the rights to Sony; the game was initially announced as an exclusive title for the PlayStation 4 at Gamescom 2013 in Cologne in August 2013 . The day-night cycle, which influences both the gameplay and the visual appearance in Rime , has been retained. While the other game elements that were included or planned in "Echoes of Siren" were discarded in the further development.

However, the development studio announced on March 16, 2016 via Twitter that they had bought back the rights from Sony. Tequila Softworks has since taken over the entire development itself and the game was developed for other platforms.

The game was released on May 26, 2017 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. A version for the Nintendo Switch that was ported by Tantalus Media was released in November 2017.

Influences

Creative Director Raúl Rubio Munárriz drew the influences for the game mainly from Ray Harryhausen's stop-motion films, films by Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki (e.g. Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away ) as well as works of art by Spanish painter Joaquín Sorolla and Italian painter Giorgio de Chirico and the surrealist Salvador Dalí . In addition, the developers were inspired by their homeland, the Mediterranean coast of Spain.

reception

Meta-ratings
publication Rating
PS4 Nintendo Switch Windows Xbox One
GameRankings 80.09% 63.30% 75.57% 80%
Metacritic 80 63 78 82

Rime received mostly positive reviews. Metacritic aggregated a total of 121 reviews with an average of 78 for Windows PCs, 80 for PlayStation 4, 82 for Xbox One and 63 for Nintendo Switch. The GameStar formulates as a synopsis : "A fairytale beautiful and emotionally gripping journey full of creative puzzle mechanics in surreal dream worlds". Sandro Kreitlow from GIGA summarized the game as follows: “RiME is part of the history of very special video games. The design of the game world combined with the stylized graphics is outstanding. [...] The mysterious story offers a lot of space for interpretation, before it only pulls the ground from under your feet when it is dissolved. Developer Tequila Works doesn't just get by without a combat and level system, but also without words. A masterpiece. ”Marty Sliva from IGN praises the game as“ a wonderful, melancholy adventure of a lonely wanderer ”, but at the same time criticizes:“ But especially beneath this layer of fine art, mysterious places and wonderful music, it is a game with a lot few new ideas ”. Almost all puzzles are relatively simple and not challenging for the player.

The game was already compared by the press with games like Journey , The Last Guardian , Ico , Shadow of the Colossus or The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker when the first trailer was released . According to the creative director, however, this was never on purpose and he admitted that the comparison with the games mentioned was felt as pressure for the small development studio.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. Matthew Humphries: PS4 game Rime was rejected by Microsoft as an Xbox One exclusive. In: geek.com. February 19, 2014, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  2. Rime Preview. In: games.ch. April 24, 2017, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  3. ^ Colin Campbell: Tequila Works' Rime shown at Gamescom. In: polygon.com. August 20, 2013, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  4. Michael Bonke: Rime: Rights no longer with Sony, release on PC and Xbox One possible. In: pcgames.de. March 17, 2016, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  5. Rime - Tequila Works. In: tequilaworks.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  6. ^ A b Colin Campbell: The reason for Rime: a near fatal accident. In: polygon.com. July 7, 2014, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  7. Matt Peckham: Review: 'Rime' Builds a Beguiling World Over Mediocre Puzzles. In: time.com. May 25, 2017, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  8. RiME - PS4. In: gamerankings.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  9. TRiME - Nintendo Switch. In: gamerankings.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  10. RiME - PC. In: gamerankings.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  11. RiME - XBox One. In: gamerankings.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  12. a b RiME - PS4. In: metacritic.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  13. a b RiME - Nintendo Switch. In: metacritic.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  14. a b RiME - PC. In: metacritic.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  15. a b RiME - XBox One. In: metacritic.com. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  16. RiME test. Accessed March 31, 2018 .
  17. Sandro Kreitlow: RiME in the test: The high art of melancholy. In: giga.de. May 25, 2017, accessed March 31, 2018 .
  18. Marty Sliva: RiME Review. In: ign.com. May 26, 2017, accessed March 31, 2018 .