Minute of Islands: almost a graphic novel halfway between Adventure Time and Hellblade | Review (PC)

There are indies that hardly come out of the "undergrowth" of independent titles that populate the digital stores and certainly Minute of Islands is one of them. It's a shame given that such a title, so far away from the most famous games and conferences, manages to touch you deeply and leave a little bit of itself.

Minute of Islands is an adventure game in which we have to take on the role of Mo, a young girl who is an engineer by trade. Mo lives alone in a strange archipelago completely contaminated by toxic spores that force the population to hole up and go out only if equipped with anti-contamination suit. To safeguard life on earth, four giants enter the scene that work from underground to activate large antennas that keep radioactive spores away.

The only person able to repair these antennas is Mo, for a strange reason the antennas have stopped working; why is not immediately explained to the player and the whole story is introduced almost in an approximate way. Mo is the only one who knows that something is not going right and she sets out to help the four giants. She therefore arms herself with an object that is very important to her, theOmnichiave, which will help her fix the antennas that are no longer functioning and she will indulge in a journey that is both introspective and totally dedicated to others: Mo crosses the spores and jeopardizes her safety to save others and the planet.

Minute of Island is an intimate and ecological adventure, which with its silent but effective plot manages to awaken gamers to sensitize them - hopefully - on certain issues that video games usually deal with in a very marginal way.

Islands of memories

Already from the early stages of the game, what catches the eye of the gamer is certainly the collection of "memories". Parallel to his mission which mainly consists of reactivating the antennas, Mo will find along his path a series of memories that will serve as collectibles. These memories are fragments of the past, both of Mo and the archipelago. Streams of past life, sensations and stories of her family are well marked by the narrating voice that belongs - presumably - to Mo herself, silent protagonist during the puzzle and exploration phases. Collecting all the memories is not essential but they offer us an insight into her life and her feelings. Through these, Mo's journey becomes a path for her growth and in her unconscious, on her motivations and on her willingness to help others.

The game world has been finely recreated thanks to the hand-made designs that are very reminiscent of the style of another acclaimed indie game, Florence, but also the much better known animation series Adventure Time. The graphic style is certainly the one that most catches the eye of this small masterpiece, which presents backdrops and environments detailed in a deep way and layered on several levels, reachable by Mo through jumps or other movements. Studio Fizbin's illustrators have chosen recurring pastel colors, pink, yellow (of Mo's coat and spores) and dark blue of the imposing antennas. A rich level design, which pushes the gamer to move forward in Mo's adventure, between realism and dreamlike phases, in which Mo finds himself floating, for example, in water, in a metaphysical space far from times and places.

On the shoulders of giants

The gameplay of Minute of Islands is really basic with "stripped down" features. Mo, both on the surface and in the depths where giants sleep, must interact with the environment that surrounds them: climb platforms and rocks, jump, operate elevators, examine objects that the narrator will describe and, above all, restore energy to the his homeland. The gamer does not require any skills and there is no possibility to do game over, Minute of Island is a journey, as if it were a romance: for example, there are no impediments of any kind when reading a story, the narrating voice guides us towards the truth and knowledge, at times calm, at other times violent. The tones manage to enhance moods and emotions, a structure that vaguely reminded me of the omnipresent but effective voice of Hellblade: Senua's SacrificeLike Senua, Mo is also a lonely girl, putting her life on the line for someone else.

The gameplay, therefore, offers the gamer minimal interaction, collectible memories can be an added incentive to return to places and find out more about Mo's life and the world around her.
The soundtrack is another note that enriches such a title and accompanies the exploration and puzzle-solving phases between the various areas of the island.

Handyman girl

All in all, Minute of Islands, developed by Studio Fizbin, is a truly inspired title and which, thanks to its narrative, a bit vague, which oscillates between the real and not, will leave gamers pleasantly impressed despite a playful structure that does not engage the gamer who is looking for the real challenge. own. Minute of Island is a story that must be lived and that turns out to be, in its own way, truly current. The spores that decimated the population and forced Mo into his home are very familiar with the pandemic since Covid-19 that we have lived. Between loneliness and altruism is Mo, who chooses to endanger his life, as some of us did during the pandemic. The lockdown was a stage in our life that made us grow, that helped us reflect and redefine our expectations for the future; who more than Mo, at that point, who has the "key" (or rather, Omnichiave) to save the world and herself, in the shadow of the giants.

final Thoughts

Minute of Island is a beautiful game, a short but effective adventure (the main story ends in six hours). We could not help but be entranced by the game environments, real color palettes, which have masterfully recreated a world on its knees. We didn't notice any bugs whatsoever, apart from some drop in framerate in some more "intense" sessions (we tested the PC version). We recommend playing Minute of Islands with joypads and headphones to hear better, not only the soundtrack, but also the narrating voice which gradually becomes the central element of the narration.

The new title from Studio Fizbin is available on Steam, PS4, Xbox One e Nintendo Switch and also on current-gen consoles PS5 e Xbox Series S | X.