The Solus project it is a game to which, personally, I have to apologize. I have to apologize because, after the introduction and the first stages of the game, I was ready to slaughter him without mercy, badly closing the application and forever erasing all traces of its passage on my PS4. I must apologize to him because, if I had let myself be tempted by the sensations of the first approach, I would have probably lost the chance to measure myself against one of the most interesting indie titles of recent times.
In fact, the introduction is not the best in terms of originality. We are well beyond the 2100 and humanity, having lost its dear land, was forced to send some expeditions into space in search of new worlds to live in. So far nothing new under the sun, that of the search for a new home is one of the most frequent themes in modern science fiction, and the fear of destroying our world is comparable to that of the atomic war experienced in the 50s.
STRONG CINEMATOGRAPHIC INFLUENCES
In the very first images of the title we will find ourselves witnessing theexplosion of one of these ships from exploration, suddenly finding ourselves inside an escape pod intent on crashing into an alien world. A scene that cannot fail to bring to mind the film "Gravity“, In what we can in effect consider a well constructed quote. The first impact with the world on which we landed will in effect be very hard.
In fact, once on the ground it will take little to understand that we are in front of a desolate and hostile world, surrounded only by debris and without precise indications on what to do. To always stay in the field of cinema, I felt a bit like Matt Damon in "The Martian“, A lonely man, who must find a way to build the tools he needs to survive and above all to try to ask for help. To make everything more immersive and realistic, there are a series of physical parameters to always keep an eye on.
Thanks to a fundamental handheld device, in fact, we will have to keep an eye on ours body temperature, avoiding burns or going into hypothermia, our need forwater, and the calories in our body, to be fed through the intake of food and our need for rest. A very interesting mechanic, which probably, in the presence of less abundant resources, would have created a very serious and intriguing level of challenge, even for very experienced players.
ONE MOVE KANSAS CITY
Up to now, The Solus project, turns out to be a game similar to many others, with not particularly attractive graphics, a level of challenge in the norm and not particularly deep crafting. A mix of walking simulator e survival like others, without infamy and without praise. Instead, with a real "Kansas City move" (for those who do not know what advice is to ask Bruce Willis in “Slevin”) the authors of the game manage to shift the focus from us to the planet we ended up on.
Suddenly, in fact, we will realize that we are not alone as we thought, but that we have ended up in the center of a living world, with mysteries, settings, engravings and hieroglyphs. A place that wants to be explored and discovered, which seems to have a lot to tell us, about itself and about us. The tones take on more disturbing, almost horror contours, and as if by magic the reference films seem to become the prequels of Alien, with their load of questions about who we are and where we come from.
Move, seek shelter, sleep, warm up, eat, explore. The Solus project gives us aall-round experience, supported and made unique by a truly compelling and profound plot.
GAMEPLAY AND COMMANDS
The rest, with the over ten hours of gameplay (which can easily become twenty by exploring everything scrupulously), the mysteries, the twists, the philosophical implications, I gladly leave them to those who decide to try the title, without running the risk of spoiling anything else on a plot that is the true strength of this title. Wanting to spend a word on the controls and gameplay instead.
The version for PS4 can be played with either the VR, giving a game experience definitely worth trying, with one motion sickness altalenante and the mandatory use of controllers Move. Unfortunately, the control system is quite complicated and by making certain combinations of movements the nausea increases exponentially. If, on the other hand, we decide to play the title in the traditional version, we will be able to look around us with the analog sticks of the joypad, using the triggers to interact with the objects around us.
Il sonoro it is limited to a few background noises and some music oriented above all to emphasize some moments of history. The levels are built in such a way guide us in a fairly linear way through the path that the authors have designed for us, even if the use of teleportation, gives the feeling of being able to move with a certain freedom. An interesting trick that certainly increases the depth of the title.
THE FINAL JUDGMENT
The Solus project is an unsettling title. It is confusing because at the beginning it may seem like the usual soup of things seen and reviewed and instead it proves to be a product that, even with limits, succeeds in its intent. The story is the fulcrum of a narrative that wants to involve us in the first person within a very simple concept: the exploration of the universe and alien worlds as a metaphor for life itself. A “cinematic” title that deserves a chance, despite a graphics and sound sector that is not of the highest level.
