Ary and the Secret of Seasons

Clearly a labor of love, Ary unites puzzles, platforming and exploration into one round package. Although its technical issues are a bit off-putting at first, if you can look past them, there’s much fun to be had.

56%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

stability, optimization

83% User Score Based on 118 reviews

Critic Score 57%Based on 24 reviews

Platforms

Buy Nowfrom $3.69

Buy NowGet on Steam$5.99

About

In "Ary and the Secret of Seasons," players control a young girl named Aryelle, or Ary, who has the ability to control the seasons. She uses this power to explore, solve puzzles, and battle enemies in a vast, open world. The game features a compelling story, bright and colorful graphics, and a unique season-changing mechanic that adds depth and complexity to the gameplay.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Ary and the Secret of Seasons screenshot

+16

83%

Audience ScoreBased on 142 reviews

story42 positive mentions

stability41 negative mentions

Fun game mechanics that incorporate unique season-changing puzzles.
Beautiful graphics and world-building that create an engaging atmosphere.
Charming story with a lovable protagonist and great voice acting.

The game is plagued by numerous bugs and glitches that hinder gameplay.
Frustrating parkour and puzzle mechanics that can feel tedious and unresponsive.
Unreliable saving system that can lead to lost progress and game-breaking issues.

story
101 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
52%
6%
The story of the game is generally described as charming and kid-friendly, featuring a beautiful aesthetic and interesting characters, though it suffers from predictability and clumsy execution. While some players appreciate the potential for emotional depth and the innovative mechanics tied to seasonal changes, many criticize the lack of depth in the narrative and the presence of buggy quests that hinder progression. Overall, the game offers a mix of enjoyable storytelling and frustrating gameplay elements, leaving it feeling unfinished.
- “The story is strong and interesting, and the atmosphere and gameplay are wonderful.”
- “The story and characters are charming.”
- “The story is a cross between absolutely wholesome and an absolute 'wtf.' The soundtrack is absolutely solid.”
- “There is also storytelling through infodumps, which are boring and hard to care about.”
- “The few NPC quests are incredibly boring go-here-then-go-there garbage.”
- “NPC lines never change, even when the story has moved on and they no longer make sense.”
gameplay
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32%
58%
10%
The gameplay of "Ary and the Secret of Seasons" features fun mechanics, particularly the innovative season manipulation for puzzles, but is marred by frustrating platforming challenges and janky controls that can lead to glitches and soft locks. While the art style and story are charming, many players feel that the game lacks polish, with unclear boss mechanics and a need for better guidance in puzzle design. Overall, the game presents a mix of engaging ideas and significant technical issues that detract from the overall experience.
- “I love the mechanics and every new puzzle required thinking.”
- “The art style was cute, the mechanics were unique and interesting, the story was predictable but still fun.”
- “A lot of the platforming and puzzle solving in the game make use of the cool season change mechanic.”
- “Parkour and puzzles in the temples get more frustrating as you progress; it often feels like I am using some speedrun mechanics to skip areas.”
- “I really wanted to play this game, but upon starting, I just pressed square and all the gameplay is dead; the left stick now controls the camera and it gets really far away.”
- “Other concerns involve extremely janky platforming where every single jump has a space just the right size for Ary to fall through, extremely jarring death/respawn scenes, very janky and unexplained combat mechanics, and a really poor assortment of items to buy that seemingly do nothing for you.”
graphics
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
42%
44%
14%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the cute art style, bright visuals, and overall aesthetic appeal. However, players also report significant issues such as bugs, freezing, and lack of polish, which detract from the experience. While some find the visuals beautiful and engaging, others criticize the graphical performance and mechanics that can lead to frustrating gameplay interruptions.
- “Very nice graphics, beautiful story, and a lovely main protagonist with great voice acting.”
- “This game has excellent presentation, a nice soundtrack, and lovely visuals.”
- “On the one hand, the visuals are beautiful and the story has the potential to be wonderfully heart-wrenching.”
- “[graphics lack texture and polish, poor, messy combat with little to no challenge, bugs and glitches during combat can lead to fatal errors]”
- “[ui needs a lot of improvement, graphics aren't the smoothest, lots of 'breaking' and pop-up, broken side quest blocked me from progressing in the story]”
- “[horrendous graphical performance, flat combat, side quests are a joke, cheesy and juvenile for adults]”
stability
41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is widely criticized for its numerous bugs and glitches, including issues with terrain, quest tracking, and character controls, which significantly detract from the overall experience. While some players found enjoyment despite these problems, the consensus is that the game requires substantial polishing and is not currently recommendable due to its instability. Many hope for future updates to address these issues, as the game's potential remains overshadowed by its current state.
- “But at the current state, I cannot really recommend this game because it needs a lot of polishing and is buggy.”
- “This game is still buggy; parts of the environment are floating in the air, and the character often won't climb certain areas she is meant to. Reloading the game from some save points can actually soft lock you, causing you to restart the game from scratch.”
- “The game has promise, but it's too buggy to recommend.”
music
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
38%
14%
The music in the game is generally praised for its excellent presentation, fitting soundtracks, and whimsical charm that enhances the overall atmosphere. However, some users report audio bugs, such as missing background music and mismatched audio, which detracts from the experience. Overall, while the soundtrack is solid and enjoyable, technical issues prevent it from reaching its full potential.
- “This game has excellent presentation, a nice soundtrack and lovely visuals.”
- “Great visuals, fun gameplay, nice music and hilarious characters!”
- “The story is a cross between absolutely wholesome and an absolute 'wtf.' The soundtrack is absolutely solid.”
- “- audio bugs (sometimes no background music, mismatching audio from NPCs who aren't there anymore, overlapping BGM)”
- “Music ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆ - 6/10”
- “While this tale of a young heroine taking on the world is punctuated by vibrant colors, whimsical music, and the sort of cutesy charm that defines the beloved classics that 'Ary and the Secret of the Seasons' is clearly inspired by, the game is held back by woeful performance issues that make it extremely difficult to recommend.”
humor
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in "Ary and the Secret of Seasons" is highlighted by its funny dialogues, charming characters, and whimsical situations, such as amusing interactions with the environment and enemies. Players appreciate the game's witty writing and the overall lighthearted tone, which enhances the magical adventure experience. The combination of excellent music and visual appeal further complements the humorous elements, making for an enjoyable gameplay experience.
- “Ary and the Secret of Seasons offers you a magical adventure which is told with lots of charm and humor.”
- “Great visuals, fun gameplay, nice music, and hilarious characters!”
- “The writing was awesome in it and made me laugh many times.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of Ary is characterized by a wholesome and kid-friendly storyline that balances heartwarming moments with surprising twists. The beautiful visuals and solid soundtrack enhance the potential for a deeply moving experience, making it both engaging and thought-provoking.
- “The story is a cross between absolutely wholesome and an absolute 'wtf.' The soundtrack is absolutely solid.”
- “On the one hand, the visuals are beautiful and the story has the potential to be wonderfully heart-wrenching.”
- “Ary has a wholesome storyline that is very kid-friendly.”
optimization
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
33%
50%
The optimization of "Ary and the Secret of Seasons" has been widely criticized, with reviewers highlighting severe performance issues such as screen tearing, long load times, and choppy framerates. Additionally, the game suffers from animation bugs and a general lack of polish, detracting from its otherwise charming visuals and gameplay ideas. Overall, these technical shortcomings significantly hinder the gaming experience.
- “Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a lovely looking game with some truly smart gameplay ideas, but all of that is plagued by screen tearing, performance issues, animation bugs, and a general lack of polish in almost every aspect.”
- “While this tale of a young heroine taking on the world is punctuated by vibrant colors, whimsical music, and the sort of cutesy charm that defines the beloved classics that 'Ary and the Secret of Seasons' is clearly inspired by, the game is held back by woeful performance issues that make it extremely difficult to recommend.”
- “Ary and the Secret of Seasons is a lovely looking game with some truly smart gameplay ideas, but all of that is plagued by screen-tearing, performance issues, animation bugs, and a general lack of polish in almost every aspect.”
- “[bugs and performance issues, reused assets, general unpolished presentation]”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be frustratingly tedious, particularly due to slow climbing mechanics and time-consuming backtracking. The lack of fast travel exacerbates the issue, making it feel more like a chore than an engaging exploration experience.
- “Climbing is so tedious and slow; it really needs fixing.”
- “[Spoiler] There are three or four of the items, and they are supposed to be inaccessible when you first get the quest, making it seem like a Metroidvania. But in reality, backtracking is tedious and extremely time-consuming. I haven't unlocked fast travel yet, so I haven't backtracked at all because screw it.”
atmosphere
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The atmosphere of the game is enhanced by its original story, innovative puzzles, and a supportive soundtrack, creating an engaging experience. However, reviewers note that there is still significant potential for improvement, particularly in the combat system and overall level atmosphere.
- “The original and charming story, innovative and varied puzzles, and nice soundtrack all support the atmosphere of the game.”
- “In addition, there is still a lot of potential to get this game to a higher level (e.g. combat system, level atmosphere).”
- “In addition, there is still a lot of potential to get this game to a higher level (e.g. combat system, level atmosphere).”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
While the game offers some replayability, particularly through side quests, players note that post-game content is limited, with issues like awkwardly cut scenery and enemies blocking loot detracting from the experience.
- “While there is some replayability in this game, there isn't much to do in the post-game other than completing side quests.”
- “Some of the trees and waterfalls are poorly designed, and certain enemies block their loot in the late game, which detracts from the overall experience.”