Review for Illusion: A Tale of the Mind. Game for PC, PlayStation 4, Steam and Xbox One, the video game was released on 01/06/2018
Our mind is complex, based on past time, our emotions and other circumstances, reality and memories can be altered by it: it can therefore be deduced that reality is faint and personal, twisted and sometimes disturbing. With this idea Illusion: A Tale of the Mind introduces itself to the player, together with its young protagonists: the title developed by Frima Studio is a puzzle game based on environmental and non-environmental puzzles, with particular emphasis placed on exploration and narrative.
Like all self-respecting puzzle games, the fantasy and complexity of the puzzles is the basis of the game's structure, but Illusion: A Tale of the Mind manages to offer so much more, although I sin in some unhappy stylistic choices.
The context in which Illusion: A Tale of the Mind takes place is fascinating. We are in a French circus, at the beginning of 1900, following the story of the strong man. The tones of setting, history and music vary from nostalgic to sad. After all, Illusion is a story about depression, and it manages to convey the desired feelings through its artistic side. In fact the the greatest merit of the title is undoubtedly the aesthetics that perfectly accompany the adventure and manages to create very beautiful views, albeit with technically very backward graphics.
The low-resolution textures, however, do not hinder the spectacle that the title manages to create with its designs. The sound design is also good, especially in the second episode, where, apart from the excellent musical accompaniment, the story helps a lot to give its best. Too bad, however, that the game gradually gets lost in its latest chapter. The settings suffer a sharp decline in their originality and variety but still remain sufficient. However, the same cannot be said of the sound sector, which is almost absent or anonymous throughout the final chapter.
The narrative, on the other hand, manages to hold a good interest throughout the course of the adventure, although it sins in some details. In fact, the title will try to create a twist on which it focuses a lot, but which is trivial and obvious. Furthermore, between the second and third act there is a change of focus that confuses the cards on the table a bit without really clarifying the problems it has created. Summing up, most of the problems that Illusion brings with it derive from the last third of the game, where the decline is evident in almost every sector.
To save is the gameplay, which remains intriguing to the last. The puzzles are not particularly varied, but given the short duration of the title, they manage not to bore or frustrate. They also have an enormous value, they are intuitive but never trivial, to solve certain sections it will be necessary to think or try different combinations, but we have never found an obstacle that was exaggeratedly cryptic. The only flaw under the gameplay side are the not very precise hitboxes, which can lead to death in some excited phases of the game. The essential requirement to appreciate Illusion's play style, however, is the desire to explore, in addition to patience in solving some puzzles. Methodical exploration will be required to complete a chapter, including spontaneous backtracking.
The title performs well on the standard PlayStation 4, on which we have never experienced noticeable frame rate drops or overly verbose uploads.
Illusion: A Tale of the Mind is an interesting title, with a well-made and exceptionally atmospheric aesthetic. Too bad, however, that it gets lost with the continuation of the chapters. A good narrative but with some ingenuity manages to keep the attention high, but leaves nothing once the title is finished. Despite its problems and the final decline, Illusion is a title that convinced us, recommended for lovers of puzzle games or anyone who appreciates the aesthetics of the title.
► Illusion: A Tale of the Mind is an Adventure-indie game developed by Frima Studio and published by Ravenscourt for PC, PlayStation 4, Steam and Xbox One, the game was released on 01/06/2018
