Isles of Sea and Sky
- November 21, 2019
- Cicada Games
- 16h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Isles of Sea and Sky " is a fantasy open-world puzzle adventure game, where players solve block-pushing puzzles, uncover a mysterious narrative, befriend charming characters, and collect items while unlocking extraordinary powers. The game is created by Jason Newman, with music by Craig Collver and QA/Producer Dan Collver. Players who enjoy the game are encouraged to join the game's Discord for updates and announcements.
Mac OS
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Windows
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Reviews
- Great variety of puzzles that gradually increase in difficulty, providing a satisfying challenge.
- Charming retro graphics and enjoyable music that enhance the overall experience.
- Open-world design allows for exploration and non-linear progression, giving players the freedom to tackle puzzles in their own order.
- Many puzzles are unsolvable on first encounter, leading to potential frustration and wasted time.
- Lack of clear indicators for which puzzles can be solved with current abilities, making it hard to know when to move on.
- Some areas and puzzles feel incomplete or unimplemented, which can detract from the overall experience.
- gameplay188 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Isles of Sea and Sky" is characterized by its intricate sokoban-style puzzles that gradually introduce new mechanics, creating a satisfying learning curve. While the game offers a variety of unique and engaging puzzles across different biomes, some players find the later mechanics less polished and the open-world design can lead to confusion about puzzle solvability. Overall, the game is praised for its clever design and depth, though it may present challenges for newcomers due to its non-linear progression and occasional lack of guidance.
“Great puzzle design, very pleasing mechanics.”
“The puzzles are well designed and have creative mechanics that stretch the limits of sokoban-style block pushing.”
“Simply phenomenal puzzle game, the mechanics work with each other as they're presented in such interesting and intuitive ways, it feels like there's never a break between a cool new thing being presented and you then going to spend a couple good minutes thinking about a harder puzzle.”
“The game doesn't explain its mechanics other than the ability to undo a step, or reset the room.”
“A big however—I honestly hated the fact that through its non-linearity, some puzzles look very much possible to solve but aren't yet, as some mechanic necessary to solve it found much later in the game hasn't been unlocked yet.”
“Don't be fooled by the graphics and music, the gameplay has glaring flaws that make this game extremely hostile for newbies to the genre.”
- music160 mentions
- 63 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received widespread praise for its enjoyable and atmospheric qualities, enhancing the overall experience with a relaxing and immersive soundtrack. While many players find the music to be catchy and well-suited to the game's themes, some have noted that it can become repetitive over time, suggesting a desire for more variety. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature that complements the vibrant art style and engaging puzzles.
“The art and music really elevate the experience, and there's plenty to discover across the map.”
“The music is superb, giving just the right ambience to the different islands.”
“The atmosphere is impeccable, soothing music with charming art.”
“The music can be a little too repetitive; some variety in each zone wouldn't hurt.”
“Another thing that is unacceptable is the music.”
“The high-definition music completely mismatches the pixelated rendering.”
- graphics96 mentions
- 48 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming retro aesthetic, vibrant colors, and engaging animations, which enhance the overall exploration and puzzle-solving experience. While many players appreciate the nostalgic pixel art style, some critique the "fake" pixel graphics that feel inconsistent. Overall, the visuals are described as captivating and well-integrated with the game's music, contributing to a delightful atmosphere.
“The visuals and soundtrack are both extremely lovely, and despite often being on the same island for hours, I never got to the point of either of them being tiresome.”
“The graphics are simple, yet full of character with art and animations for any action you can think of.”
“All-in-all, it's an extremely well-thought-out game wrapped in a consistent and endearing art style.”
“It has 'pixel' graphics, but they're not actual pixel graphics. The pixels are fake and behave in impossible ways. It always feels chintzy and sloppy to me.”
“The menu visuals and cutscenes look pretty bad, but otherwise I really like the art.”
“Those were good games for their time, but I have no interest in playing a Zelda game with a small world and bad graphics when better ones exist.”
- story38 mentions
- 32 % positive mentions
- 61 % neutral mentions
- 8 % negative mentions
The game features a unique, dialogue-free storytelling approach that allows players to uncover the narrative through visual cutscenes and exploration, creating an engaging and immersive experience. While the story is minimal and can be completed relatively quickly, it is described as mythological and compelling, with intriguing details that encourage further exploration. Players appreciate the balance between puzzle-solving and story discovery, although some express a desire for more backstory to enhance character motivation and context.
“Isles of Sea and Sky is one of the closest experiences I've had while playing a video game to being told the story of a myth, and without a word of dialogue or narration, I'm swept away into a captivating world.”
“Every piece of story that the player receives feels as intriguing as the game's puzzles, and while this game would be great as an aimless puzzle game, having a greater overall mystery to uncover through the progress the individual puzzles grant you makes it all the more difficult to put this game down.”
“The narrative storytelling is top-notch.”
“The story is dialogue-free, and I didn't fully understand it or look into it too deeply.”
“And finishing the story is possible way too soon, when having collected just half of the collectibles, before gaining all the abilities, and an entire big island doesn't even need to be visited.”
“As for the story of this game, there are no words outside of the title screen and save file select (that I have encountered so far), with little pieces of what I assume to be a backstory granted as you progress through the islands.”
- grinding12 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the game's effort to reduce confusion and tedium through updates, noting excellent difficulty scaling and a sense of progression from solving puzzles. However, some find the need to revisit areas after upgrades tedious, as new interactable tiles can blend in with the environment, leading to frustrating searches for breakable walls. Overall, while most puzzles are engaging, a few are considered tedious or obscure.
“Eventually you figure out that the secret walls and tiles have an indication to let you know they are near, but it can be frustrating when you have to tediously search for breakable walls like in the bad old days.”
“It can be tedious having to revisit old areas after you get an upgrade, because most of the tiles that you can newly interact with are subtle and blend in well with the un-interactable tiles.”
“The puzzles in this game are mostly phenomenal (a few here and there that feel tedious or obscure).”
- atmosphere12 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 42 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is consistently praised for its impeccable quality, featuring soothing music and charming art that create a captivating and distinct ambiance in every area. Reviewers highlight how this strong atmosphere enhances the game's character, making each screen feel rich and engaging, reminiscent of classic puzzle games. Overall, the combination of visual and auditory elements contributes to a peaceful and immersive experience that appeals to fans of the genre.
“The atmosphere is impeccable, with soothing music and charming art.”
“It results in every area having a distinct atmosphere, which truly builds the character of the game and makes every screen feel full of character.”
“The atmosphere is impeccable, soothing music with charming art.”
“Really strong atmosphere that pulls you in from the start.”
“It results in every area having a distinct atmosphere which truly builds the character of the game and makes every screen worth of space feel full of character.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has been reported to have several bugs, but the presence of instant undo and reset options mitigates the impact of these issues, making them less problematic for players.
“The game is buggy.”
“Sometimes some of the elements felt a little buggy, but considering the instant undo and reset options, this didn't feel like a problem at all.”
- humor2 mentions
- 150 % positive mentions
- -50 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is highlighted by its cool graphics, complemented by amusing little animations that enhance the overall experience.
“The game features cool graphics with funny little animations that always make me smile.”
“The humor in the game is enhanced by its cool graphics and amusing animations.”
“I love the combination of cool graphics and funny little animations that add a lighthearted touch to the gameplay.”
- replayability2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Players note that the game offers replayability, particularly after allowing some time for puzzle solutions to be forgotten, which enhances the experience upon revisiting.
“There is replay value, in my opinion, once you let enough time pass for the puzzle solutions to fade a bit.”
- optimization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
Players report that once they understand the puzzle mechanics, the optimization of solving the puzzles is efficient, typically taking no more than thirty seconds to complete. This suggests a well-designed system that allows for quick execution after the initial learning phase.
“Once a player knows what to do, the actual performance of solving the puzzle should never be more than about thirty seconds, tops.”
