Late Bird
- January 20, 2022
- Vladimir Slav
Get on Steam"Late Bird" is a challenging precision platformer where players control a bird navigating through treacherous environments with precise movements and well-timed jumps. Collect feathers to unlock new levels and characters, while avoiding numerous obstacles and enemies. The game features simple controls, but requires quick reflexes and strategic thinking to master.
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Reviews
- The game offers a heartfelt and introspective experience, touching on serious mental health themes that resonate with players.
- Many players appreciate the game's ability to provide comfort and a sense of connection during difficult times, making it a valuable short experience.
- The simplistic art style and narrative approach are seen as fitting for the game's themes, creating a unique and engaging atmosphere.
- The gameplay is overly simplistic, consisting mainly of clicking through poorly written visual novel-style cutscenes, which detracts from the gaming experience.
- The game is very short, with some players feeling it lacks sufficient content to justify its existence as a paid product, especially when compared to free alternatives.
- Technical issues, such as poor graphics quality and lack of basic audio controls, contribute to a subpar experience that does not meet modern gaming standards.
- story15 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 20 % negative mentions
The game's story offers a unique and emotional perspective, intertwining the life of a goose with deep themes of mental illness and personal struggles. While some players appreciated the heartfelt and relatable narrative, others found the abrupt shift from a lighthearted tale to heavy topics like suicidal thoughts jarring. Overall, the storytelling is engaging and resonates with many, making it a poignant experience despite its brevity.
“This game tells the story of a goose and its perspective on life, transitioning suddenly with raw emotions and experiences when humans have dark, brutal thoughts.”
“The developer's story is one that many people will be able to relate to, and I'm sure it has helped many realize they're not alone, which is something the developer should be extremely proud of.”
“I hated how quickly the game went from this story about a goose to a raw dive into someone's personal thoughts and experiences about suicidal thoughts and the struggle that went through.”
“It tells a little story about trying to process suicidal thoughts and negotiating what you want with what you're capable of doing.”
“It's pretty obvious the game is heavily influenced by Florence, and I would very much recommend that game instead, if you're okay with a story that doesn't focus on mental illness.”
- graphics5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews; while some players appreciate the art style and overall visual presentation, many criticize it as amateurish and lacking professional quality, suggesting either budget constraints or a lack of talent in asset creation. Additionally, the absence of resolution options and graphics tweaks further detracts from the visual experience.
“Great graphics, music, and story.”
“I like the art style a lot too.”
“The artwork here is terrible; it's all just amateurish 'my first Wacom tablet' style drawings used instead of professional-looking game assets.”
“It's unclear if this is due to a lack of budget to hire someone who can create graphical assets properly, or a lack of talent. Regardless, the overall visual quality of the game is extremely low, enough on its own to deter gamers.”
“There's no option to change the resolution and no useful graphics tweaks.”
- emotional5 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its emotional depth, with players highlighting its heartfelt and touching narrative that evokes strong feelings, including tears. The initial chapters are described as heartwarming, while the latter chapters introduce a melancholic tone, creating a well-rounded emotional experience.
“I cried.”
“Cute and heartfelt little game.”
“A short, touching experience.”
- music4 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The game's music has received mixed feedback; while some players find it lovely and moving, others are frustrated by the lack of audio controls, making it difficult to manage the sound. Additionally, the absence of music in certain moments effectively underscores the narrative's emotional depth. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's atmosphere, despite some technical shortcomings.
“And the music in this chapter was so lovely and moving.”
“Great graphics, music, and story.”
“Bewilderingly, the game doesn't include proper audio controls, so you can't turn off the annoying sound and background music. You'll need to alt+tab out and stop it using the Windows sound mixer.”
“And there was no music at all, highlighting the narrator's (and author's) tragic state of mind.”
- gameplay3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- -33 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Late Bird" is criticized for being overly simplistic and more akin to an interactive art experience than a traditional game, with players primarily engaging in rudimentary clicking rather than meaningful interaction. Reviewers note that the game relies heavily on poorly written visual novel text cutscenes, detracting from the overall experience and failing to effectively integrate narrative with gameplay mechanics. Overall, the gameplay is deemed lacking, with many feeling it does not meet fundamental game design standards.
“20 min gameplay, worth it.”
“Late Bird is only barely a game; in terms of gameplay, it's just rudimentary clicking around. This isn't really intended to be a game; it's intended to be an interactive art experience. That's a problem, as we're here for games, not 'art-not-game' stuff.”
“The developers failed one of the most basic, fundamental requirements of game design: 'show, don't tell.' You'll spend a huge amount of time not playing the game, but clicking through endless lines of poorly written visual novel text cutscenes because the developers couldn't figure out how to relate their narrative through the game mechanics. Instead, they decided it would be better to compete with reading a book for your time.”
“20 minutes of gameplay, not worth it.”
