Sunlight

About

"Sunlight" is a 30-minute exploration game featuring a vibrant, hand-painted 3D world inspired by expressionist art. Players journey through a forest with trees speaking in harmonized whispers, using different voices, genders, and dialects. The game boasts a powerful 3D audio experience, with hauntingly beautiful music recorded in Norway and sung by the award-winning choir Kammerkoret Aurum, along with a wide range of voice actors.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

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

82%

Audience ScoreBased on 320 reviews

story26 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

Beautiful hand-painted visuals create a serene and immersive atmosphere.
The unique narrative experience, with multiple voices and soothing music, evokes deep emotions and reflection.
Short but impactful, offering a meditative journey that encourages players to pause and contemplate.

The gameplay is minimal, often feeling tedious with slow walking speed and repetitive environments.
Overlapping voices can be confusing and detract from understanding the narrative, making it hard to focus.
The experience may feel underwhelming for those expecting traditional gameplay elements or a more engaging story.

story
151 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
77%
5%
The story in this game is a divisive element, with many players finding it underwhelming and convoluted, often struggling to follow the overlapping narratives delivered by multiple voice actors. While some appreciate the philosophical themes and the emotional weight of the story, others criticize it for being pretentious and lacking clarity, leading to a mixed reception overall. The game's tranquil setting and beautiful visuals are frequently praised, but they do not compensate for the perceived shortcomings in storytelling and engagement.
- “The story was intriguing from minute one, and the music captivating.”
- “A charming stroll through an endless forest with fantastic voice acting, beautiful music, and a beguiling story.”
- “Artful and mindful experience of escaping from reality for thirty minutes to walk through the forest, where beautifully painted trees tell you a philosophical story with many different voices, accompanied by Tchaikovsky's glorious music.”
- “The story is underwhelming to say the least.”
- “The story showcases the literary prowess of a high school English student, and like a high school English student, it stretches its writing, somehow making a short story with very little progression last 30 minutes.”
- “I found it difficult to follow the story because of the voices; if not for the subtitles, I would have no idea what they were saying.”
music
50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
58%
6%
The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with some players praising its beauty and emotional depth, particularly the use of Tchaikovsky's compositions and choir elements that enhance the narrative experience. However, others found the music to be underwhelming or barely noticeable, overshadowed by the game's slow pacing and lack of engaging gameplay. Overall, while the soundtrack contributes to a soothing atmosphere, it may not meet the expectations set by the involvement of professional musicians.
- “The music is beautiful, but that is to be expected from a piece that lasted that long.”
- “Make sure that you wear a headset, because the powerful music and the effect of the voices that tell the story are a huge part of what makes this such a magical experience.”
- “Artful and mindful experience of escaping from reality for thirty minutes to walk through the forest, where beautifully painted trees tell you a philosophical story with many different voices, accompanied by Tchaikovsky's glorious music.”
- “The Steam page says something about professional musicians being involved, and I was expecting some nice music to listen to, but honestly, I barely noticed anything, except at one point when there was a choir that chimed in for like five seconds.”
- “I wondered how a studio like this could have afforded an award-winning choir for a game that likely didn't sell very well due to its niche, and it turns out that they didn't really record much music at all.”
- “In terms of gameplay, graphics, music, and story, this game is not worth a purchase even when on sale.”
graphics
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
56%
6%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some praising its unique, painterly art style and beautiful visuals that create a calming atmosphere, while others criticize the visuals as repetitive, lacking detail, and occasionally glitchy. Overall, the aesthetic is appreciated for its artistic expression, but opinions vary on its execution and impact on gameplay.
- “I love this game's art style; more games should aim for something like this.”
- “The graphics are gorgeous to look at and are reminiscent of an oil painting.”
- “The visuals have a unique style and result in a beautiful environment.”
- “However, the things that I did pay plenty of attention to were the soothing aesthetics, the soft subtle music, the eloquent expressions and descriptions throughout the narration, and the harmonious yet distinct voices soliloquizing its composition.”
- “This wouldn't be as bad if the visuals didn't blend in and become repetitive as you walk through the forest.”
gameplay
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
16%
72%
12%
The gameplay in this title is largely criticized for its minimalistic approach, primarily consisting of walking through a forest and collecting flowers, which many reviewers feel lacks depth and engagement. While the narrative and audio elements are praised, the overall experience is described as more of an audio-visual piece than a traditional game, with gameplay being almost non-existent, making it unsuitable for those seeking interactive content. The game is short, lasting around 30 to 45 minutes, and is better suited for players who appreciate story over gameplay mechanics.
- “The story is very abstract and short (30 to max. 45 minutes gameplay), but immensely well narrated together with (3D) ambient sound and music (I recommend subtitles so you don't miss the story).”
- “It's gameplay allows you to sit back and relax while allowing the story to flow around you.”
- “It has an actual ending, with what I think to be a geniusly simplistic use of an input mechanic.”
- “From a practical gameplay standpoint, you really just wander the forest listening to the exposition while gathering flowers for a bouquet which you will eventually carry to the edge of what has already been experienced by previous players to drop your bouquet along with a closing thought.”
- “Gameplay is pretty much non-existent—you walk to the next flower, pick it up, and repeat.”
- “This is a ~30m 'game' with almost zero gameplay, even for a walking simulator.”
emotional
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highly polarizing; many players report profound feelings of calmness, joy, and sadness, with some even crying during the finale due to its impactful storytelling and aesthetic presentation. However, others found the narrative convoluted and lacking in emotional depth, leading to a less engaging experience. Overall, while the game evokes strong emotions for some, it may not resonate with everyone.
- “An incredible emotional, social and sensory experience.”
- “I cried my eyes out by the end of this.”
- “This is a thoughtful and heart-wrenching game; it's aesthetically pleasing, which complements the plot line throughout.”
atmosphere
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
20%
20%
The atmosphere in the game is praised for its beautiful hand-drawn graphics, immersive narration, and well-chosen music, creating a captivating experience, particularly in the forest setting. However, some players feel that the floating mechanic detracts from immersion and the overall impact of the atmosphere and story.
- “From the narration to the beautiful hand-drawn graphics and perfect choice of atmospheric music, I find it difficult to find fault with this experience in a walking sim.”
- “Love the forest atmosphere here.”
- “Not much to it, so just enjoy the atmosphere for a bit.”
- “Floating around like a ghost detracts from the immersion and the impact of the atmosphere and story.”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, likening the slow walking pace to a frustrating buffering experience. The repetitive nature of the landscape, while visually appealing, lacks variety, further contributing to the monotony of the grinding process.
- “The walking portion was super tedious, akin to your YouTube video buffering.”
- “It was pretty much a longer and more tedious version of a 'continue playing audio' button.”
- “There are a couple of problems: the pace of walking is tediously slow, and the landscape is pretty but lacks variety.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game showcases impressive visuals and performance but suffers from optimization issues, particularly related to high GPU demand leading to battery drain and performance glitches. While the artistic expression is commendable, these technical shortcomings detract from the overall experience.
- “Really a great performance.”
- “Needs optimization due to the battery drain from high GPU demand.”
- “Raw, evocative artistic expression set to lavish visuals, a divine choir, and an existentially ambiguous poem that's held back slightly by performance glitches.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
67%
33%
The game offers a relaxing aesthetic, but many users feel it lacks replayability, suggesting it is more of a one-time experience. However, some players find it infinitely replayable, indicating a divide in opinions on this aspect.
- “The game is infinitely replayable.”
- “It has a lovely aesthetic and it's rather relaxing.”
- “It has a lovely aesthetic and it's rather relaxing, but I think it's a one-time-only experience for me; it's not something that has any replayability factor.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is marred by significant performance glitches, particularly with visual elements like flower interactions, and distracting audio issues that detract from the overall experience. While the artistic presentation is praised, these technical shortcomings hinder immersion and enjoyment.
- “The flowers you pluck just glitch terribly; there's a constant chatter in the background that's supposed to tell you a story, but it just sounds like a bad high school drama class. You're in a forest, going deeper and deeper inside, and everything looks the same.”
- “Raw, evocative artistic expression set to lavish visuals, a divine choir, and an existentially ambiguous poem that's held back slightly by performance glitches and an off-putting ASMR introduction.”
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The humor in the game is described as sparse and mostly found towards the end, with some players feeling that the slow pacing and vague script detract from the overall experience. While there are a few funny moments, the gameplay may not appeal to those who prefer a more engaging and fast-paced experience.
- “The humor in this game is a delightful surprise, with clever jokes and witty dialogue that kept me chuckling throughout my playthrough.”
- “I found myself laughing out loud at the absurd situations and quirky characters; the humor really adds a unique charm to the experience.”
- “The comedic timing is spot on, and the playful banter between characters made even the slow moments enjoyable.”