Rain World is a gorgeous and well-developed fight for survival in a post-apocalyptic world. You are the endearing part-slug and part-cat hero of the story. You’ve just fallen to the depths after attempting to escape the flood with your friends and family. Now you need to defy the odds and find a way back to your family.

Developed by Vigeocult. It is an intense platformer, that’s available on Steam, Playstation and Nintendo Switch. It seems like a beautiful addition to the Nintendo Switch library of games and will keep you well entertained on the go.

Gameplay

You’ll need to decide if you want to play the role of Monk, Survivor or Hunter (although this isn’t available from the beginning). Each role acts as a different level of difficulty, so starting out as a Monk is a good place to begin, as this will allow you to learn the game before falling victim to your predators.

You’ll start your adventure in the gloomy depths of the world, supported by a guide on how to play the game. It can be frustrating at times, as the guide isn’t as user-friendly as it could be, however, once you get the grips of it, it will become second nature.

The aim is to ascend the level as quickly as possible while maintaining enough sustenance to hibernate once the floods are incoming. You can manage this by devouring food during your journey. This could be fruit, bats or even predators that you manage to take down when you’re playing as a Hunter – unfortunately, you cannot eat corpses if you’re playing as either the Monk or Survivor, however, it’s much required if playing as the Hunter, as standard food sources only provide reduced nutrition.

Once the rain arrives you have a period of time to find shelter, alternatively, it will get progressively stronger and, if no shelter is found, with enough food to hibernate, you will die. Your goal is to survive, so take every opportunity possible to sustain food supply and keeping a close eye out for shelter – you should hibernate, ideally, before the rain ever arrives. Don’t wait too long during a rain cycle to hibernate, as it will get ever harder to climb as it progresses!

As you progress in the game you’ll either gain karma (successful hibernation) or lose karma (dying). Karma is what allows you to reach areas of the game that was previously inaccessible – so try to hibernate rather than die, otherwise, you may be stuck in purgatory longer than you’d hoped!

A handy tip for you: If you’re unarmed and are being chased by a predator, you can lure them into another predator to cause them to fight against each other, buying you enough time to escape, victorious.

Graphics

I played in both handled (720p) and docked (1080p) modes, which both played beautifully. The pixelated art-style fits perfectly with the post-apocalyptic feel of the game. There are weird and wonderful creatures for you to encounter, but don’t get too close, as they may bite!

The world is a masterpiece, where at times, you’ll feel like you’re trapped in a maze, but as you progress the environment becomes even more glorious, however ever more sinister at the same time.

Audio

The audio in Rain World is incredible. It’s both mesmerising and intense! You have a beautiful soundtrack echoing in your ears while exploring the world, however, when the rain comes you’ll surely feel how important it is to move swiftly to safety, especially when the screen begins to shake because you’ve left it too long to find shelter.

Definitely take headphones with you to appreciate the full 360-degree experience of Rain World while on your travels. It will not disappoint!

Longevity

If you enjoy survival games you’ll be enthralled by Rain World. It will draw you in as you’ve never felt before – striving for the progression from Monk through to the challenging Hunter. If you get bored of the campaign, you can instead step into the arena to face off against local competition, either in the sandbox or competitive modes.

Conclusion

I’ve really enjoyed my time with Rain World. It’s completely captivated me, with it’s intense audio and beautiful gameplay, a vast variety of creatures to fend off, as well as the complexities of the environment to overcome. The game developers deserve a standing ovation for creating such a compelling survival environment.

I would strongly recommend Rain World if you’re looking for a game to fill the time while providing a challenging experience, that will surely bring you back for more.

Disclaimer: We received a digital code to carry out this review

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