Fe Review – The Pace of Nature

cre: Fe Review – The Pace of Nature

Jhere’s something utterly seductive about ambiguity, especially in video games. I’m not talking about games where the solution or story isn’t entirely obvious, but ones that force you to uncover the mystery of something deeper. Maybe that deeper meaning exists and maybe it’s something you do for yourself. Ambiguity can be used to varying degrees, and it has created some of the best story and gameplay experiences in recent years. However, dealing with ambiguity is not easy. Whether you use small pinches or whole spoonfuls, the process can backfire, leaving someone confused for confusion’s sake. The effect isn’t entirely ugly – it’s just there, slipping into its own bizarre universe with little regard for engrossing playtime.

“Fe doesn’t care entirely about explaining everything, taking a minimalist approach to its storytelling and a silent approach to dialogue.”

Zoink’s Fe is an interesting game, which flirts with ambiguity without fully committing to it. The atmosphere of the game is a mix of “conservation of nature and appreciation of artistic beauty” and sort of goes with that in its lifespan. The story is clear in that your role as Fe, a small fox-like being who can sing and communicate with animals asking for help. The forest is threatened fairly quickly by the Silent Ones who capture animals and take them on an unknown mission. Gathering crystals, helping animals, and fighting the Silent Ones when you’re not gathering information about their purpose through astral projection forms the main plot. Fe doesn’t really care about explaining everything, taking a minimalist approach to its storytelling and a quiet approach to dialogue.

Instead, feelings, thoughts, and emotions are conveyed through sound. Fe has the ability to sing to animals, matching the wavelength of their songs for different purposes. Silencers’ voices are more distorted, even cacophonous, whenever they are on the hunt. Whether you encounter little critters, a mischievous deer (which is then captured, which made me angry because we barely had time to solve any puzzles…I mean, a bond) or a protective mother bird , Fe conveys a lot of personality with its sound. The background music, combining heavy fiddle tunes and slow orchestral pieces adds beautifully to the tone. It feels like it might overpower animal sounds, but there’s a good balance throughout.

The different plants with which it is possible to interact are even more related to the theme of “nature”. A creature can give access to a plant that bounces you up. There may be a plant that allows you to float with a gentle breeze. Larger birds may be able to transport you to different locations and there is a helpful little hummingbird-like creature that will guide you to the next objective. It even doubles as a source of unlocking small seeds that can disrupt the Silent Ones’ cages. Fe also likes to throw in some stealth. You can’t fight the Silent Ones head-on, and if they spot you, they crawl on all fours with decent speed, giving you a few seconds at best to escape. It all adds up to the platform like Fe acquires different movements like climbing trees and jumping from them to reach other places by sliding.

“The ambiguous atmosphere blends into the aesthetic. In terms of art direction, Fe looks very unique.”

Not all plants and animals are willing to listen Fe. Sometimes you have to “learn” their song so to speak. Other times, areas will be closed unless you unlock specific moves. This is a good reason to explore areas you’ve already cleared, perhaps to collect some missed crystals, before moving on. I’m hesitant to bring this into the Metroidvania genre though – there are slight aspects of it here but nothing too crazy, especially given how the levels themselves are laid out.

Overall however, FeThe gameplay of should be much more engrossing than it actually is. The system of tricking plants into leading the way, making trees fly and slide from one to another, weaving, etc. should be much more striking. At times – especially an epic sequence later in the game – it certainly is. This is when I feel the experience peak. However, Fe just don’t hit that chord all the way through. Its level design is pretty rote. Other than a few hidden nooks and crannies, the overall platform won’t really leverage your ingenuity like Super Mario Odyssey Where Celestial would have. Sometimes I’ve been caught thinking about Growing up and how its concept felt like it could have needed a lot more work to go along with its massive levels and epic scale. Fe has that little bit of hidden intelligence but it’s been slow from the start.

The ambiguous atmosphere blends into the aesthetic. In terms of artistic direction, Fe looks very unique. Some animals appear as sharp silhouettes more than fleshed out figures (although their markings prevent them from being too dark). The environments are a mix of minimal geometry and intricate hues, with the plants obviously appearing to be very intricate and luminescent. I could appreciate the screen hue changing dramatically as the Silent Ones got overbearing, simulating a crushing feel but not really pushing the envelope. The playfulness of different animals in their animations is also a nice touch – when a game is so nature-centric like this, the developer deserves credit for imbuing so much personality into their creatures while still maintaining a plot. quite indescribable.

“Whether FeThe ambiguity of was the setup of compelling, tight gameplay throughout its playtime, I probably would have been more interested in that.”

Don’t get me wrong – aside from the ambiguous nature of the story mixing with the gameplay, which sometimes makes it hard to tell exactly what needs to be done next, Fe is not a bad game to play. The controls are pretty tight, roaming the world is quite soothing, and apart from a few frame rate stutters here and there (old school Xbox One for the win), its performance is also good. You’ll sink a good few hours into the story and maybe come back to find the things you missed. Don’t be surprised if you don’t, even though the game can be fun at a certain point.

Unfortunately, despite the personality of its inhabitants, I never wanted Fe beckoned me to really get lost in her world, let alone fully appreciate her makeup. The stone tablets that depict various hieroglyphs of the unfolding events somehow reinforced my detachment rather than strengthening it.

Whether FeThe ambiguity of was the setup for compelling and tight gameplay throughout its playtime, I probably would have been more interested in that. For as relaxing as the world can be to walk around, if it was just a bit darker, maybe a bit more lived-in and organic (which is odd to say given all the flora and fauna inside ), I would have had a stronger urge to see what the next corner held. As it is, Fe is a whimsical experience that leaves a brief but forgotten impression when you’re done playing. Unfortunately, it’s better to be dreamy and airy than to capture all of your awareness during its short playtime.

This game has been tested on Xbox One.

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