FAR: Lone Sails Review

FAR: Lone Sails is a 2D vehicle adventure/puzzle game developed by Okomotive and published by Mixtvision. The game is now available on Steam and thus, I am lucky enough to lay my hands and eyes on this title, and share my first impressions with you.

FAR: Lone Sails was one the games I was watching very closely starting from the very beginning because of its atmosphere. It was clear that the game is kind of depressing with beautiful visual art. I thought it was similar to Playdead’s Inside when it comes to the feeling it provides, and I was not wrong.

The game tells the story of a red hooded protagonist while he drives one of the most badass vehicles of all times. During our journey, we travel across a dried-out ocean and this is how the story is told. The road is the story and everything you see during your journey helps you uncover it slowly. The atmosphere of the game reflects the truth of a ruined civilization and you will be only living thing on the screen, mostly.

FAR: Lone Sails is an atmospheric game and seizing the atmosphere is the only way to see the true colors of it. We are lonely and in order to complete our journey, we must keep our vehicle going. Controlling this vehicle is easy, but the apocalyptic world of the game will not go easy on you. The road is blocked, the weather is brutal and the vehicle needs nonstop attention.

Fuel is the most important thing in the game since until the moment you get your sails, your vehicle will only move by burning materials. You need to collect items, burn them and provide fuel for the vehicle. You always need to keep an eye on the steam indicator and release it when it is full. Other than that, you need to repair the vehicle when it is damaged. Good thing is that the game applies pressure off again, on again so you won’t feel stressed while using the vehicle.

The atmosphere is just brilliant and tells you everything you need to know about the game. The world is now a wreck and you need to keep going no matter what. This vehicle is the only thing you have and when you reach to the radio tower, the game becomes something much more beautiful. Once you get the little radio and hang it one of the hooks of your vehicle, the most charming soundtracks will accompany you. Don’t you burn it, I say. Don’t you dare.

The scenes you witness during your journey are just marvelous. The clouds, the ruins, the weather, the sunset, the rain, the hail, everything combines together and creates a view to adore. Colors of the game change depending upon the atmosphere and provide a unique gameplay experience. FAR: Lone Sails is a screenshot material and I took advantage of that very often.

You need to know that during your journey, you will not encounter with aliens, zombies, weird creatures, soldiers or anything like that. The only enemy is the weather, and sometimes road-blocks. But, with necessary upgrades, your vehicle is strong enough to overcome anything. Along with that, it is easy to get attached to this vehicle since it is your home and only hope. Hope for what, we don’t really know. Like they say, it’s not about the destination; it’s about the journey.

Yes, FAR: Lone Sails somehow creates the same feeling with Inside, yet it is a very different gameplay experience. Both of them are dark and depressing, yet FAR: Lone Sails will not let you die every minute. There are puzzles you must solve and items to carry here and there, but you always know where to go and where to push.

The only thing I can criticise is that the game is a little bit short. You can not help but want to spend more hours on it, yet it took me less than 3 hours to complete. Other than that, with no doubt, I can easily say that FAR: Lone Sails is a fantastic experience and a great pleasure for the ones who enjoy management games with glorious visual art.

FAR: Lone Sails is now available on Steam and if you want to delve deep into a wrecked civilization with one of the most badass vehicles of all times, visit here.

FAR: Lone Sails was reviewed using a Steam key provided by the publisher.