Already tested in our columns in 2020, the title cloud gardens is entitled, like many independent games, to a port on Nintendo Switch, in the hope of capturing a new audience and benefiting players who are patiently waiting for the arrival of Switch games to play them everywhere. That's good, because that's exactly my case, so I gladly accepted the key and saw to it that nature regained its rights in a world as peaceful as it was bewitching, depopulated of all human life.
cloud gardens is a puzzle-game in its purest form. No protagonist to embody here, except - if you like the image - that of a divine being who will have to ensure that plants are placed in the right place so that Nature can quietly cover all human civilization. We link levels of increasing difficulty with one objective in mind, to vegetate the Old World. To do this, we have a fairly wide control of the camera where we can turn around the scenery, adjust the zoom/zoom, collect the seeds via the Y key, and use certain elements of the scenery so that the growth of the plant can last and cover a sufficient % of the level to be able to move on to the next puzzle.
Because yes, each time you place a plant, you will have to wait a few seconds for it to expand, and take the opportunity to see the counter grow until you pass the level... Although the world theme " sorry" remains the same from beginning to end, we will wander in different urban settings, increasingly vast and complex, with always the same objective. Let nature rule again. For example, to cover a lamp post or a metal structure, we will install some rusty directional signs to provide a "path" for the plant which will be able to make the connection and grow in abundance. As we progress, we will also have new tools to modulate the course of the plant at our convenience.
On paper, everything seems extremely simple, the objective varies only slightly, we will always know what to do. In practice however, it will at times be necessary to exercise his brains, the game not helping the player outside of the tutorial. We will also complain quite often about the approximate placement of various objects to prolong the growth of seeds... On several occasions I had to rewind or start a level again until I succeeded. Worse still, tired of restarting a level, I randomly placed decorations and plants... and it was over! So, of course, the "random" success is not systematic, but I still succeeded 2-3 times.
From a technical point of view, although I always find the Nintendo Switch perfect for this style of play, I had several times problems with readability which greatly diminishes when you switch to a large screen. . Zooming in/out isn't always practical, so I tended to do a lot of the adventure in docked mode. Artistically, I really liked the "3D pixel art" side that I found quite delicate and adapted to these post-apo settings. The soundtrack on his side is... agreed. As often in puzzle-games, the loop becomes repetitive too quickly, and even if I happen to listen to some out-of-game tracks (notably Dissolve and Mycelium), I was quick to return to my personalized playlists afterwards. a few levels.
Noio Studio's game has captivated me, and will still scratch a few hours of my life until I see the end of it. By its nature, it allows you to complete one or more puzzles modulo the time we have at our disposal, and succeeds in being as relaxing as it is demanding. A very satisfying game, therefore, at a relatively low price, since you will be asked for 14.99€ on Nintendo Switch and on Steam.
