Never Alone Reviews
Never Alone: Arctic Collection is an endearing attempt to blend a learning experience about the Iñupiaq culture and its folklore, and bring that to a video game.
Never Alone tells an impactful tale of native culture, delivering an experience that is both unique and influential. Though a lack of stark puzzles and technical bugs does hinder the experience as a game, the alluring narrative is well worth the price of admission alone.
While the game has its negatives, I have enjoyed it, and I hope others will too. My experience was mostly positive, and it was definitively easier with a second person on the controls.
Never Alone is a welcome addition to the Nintendo Switch library. A casual platformer that I highly recommend playing through in co-op with a loved one. You’ll laugh at the odd glitch, possibly cry at the emotional moments but also learn a lot about Alaskan native culture. If somehow you have yet to play this game, this is a great time to jump on. It’s a cold adventure but the warm fuzzy feelings will leave an impact for years to come.
Documentaries aren't known for being the most exciting experiences in the world, and, therefore, it should come as no surprise that a documentary-esque "game" is only mildly engaging. That being said, compared to the mental illness emulation of Depression Quest, or the political surrealism of The Cat and the Coup, Never Alone is a highly accessible version of the form.
The lack of dialogue and narration is a good connotation of how words simply do not do feelings justice. It allows us to be swallowed up by the emotions of what we are seeing without having to process words
Never Alone offers an average experience as a platformer with puzzles to solve but it's the game's narrative and tribute to the Inupiat people that makes it stand out as a unique experience. A perfect choice of artwork and use of cultural traits contribute to make Never Alone an insightful work which can also be enjoyed as a game.
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Never Alone's shortcomings are counterbalanced by it's huge amount of charm. This is a great escapist device because it is successful at taking you somewhere else for a while. Sure, the place it takes you may seem like a cold and barren wasteland at first glance, but once you spend some more time there you will realize that this land is full of warm-hearted people that have made full lives for themselves in the most unlikely of places.
Never Alone is close to being an OK game. It has a lot going for it with its gorgeous aesthetics and authentic presentation. It even has a couch co-op mode, and the few times the game does have things to do in it, there is some legitimate involvement. Too bad these moments are too far apart, and the more vulgar qualities of Never Alone are the most apparent, such as the buggy AI, barren level design and lacking gameplay.
Despite the game's AI issues, Never Alone is definitely worth playing—maybe with another person. It's a very short game and can be finished in two or three sessions. But it's the educational aspect that I appreciated most, and I imagine you will, too.
So, should you buy Never Alone? It depends. I can't recommend it to everyone: the game is short, and it doesn't really include much challenge in either puzzles nor platforming. But if you can look past that, you'll find a stunning, unique game that uses the medium to deliver a beautiful story and an incredible world – and that's worth experiencing.
If you've got enough patience you'll probably be able to mine for the diamonds in the rough - but the easily frustrated should steer far clear.
If you're inclined to rage-quitting or you aren't a platforming fan, Never Alone probably isn't for you. But if you're willing or able to overlook frustration—or you have a friend to ease up some of the AI issues through co-op—Never Alone is an experience worth having and sharing.
This is far from your average puzzle platformer, as its main audience is not the die-hard old-school fanbase of the genre. Never Alone is first and foremost an educational experience, and this is the standard to which you have to judge it in order to fully appreciate it.
Never Alone is a mediocre first entry in what I hope will branch into a kind of informative gaming genre. I certainly see a promising future if they can improve on what they have. For this game though, if you want to know more about the Iñupiat people and don't have anything else to play, the story of Nuna and her arctic fox isn't bad - just don't expect it to light your world on fire.
Measured solely as a puzzle-platformer, "Never Alone" has nothing on games such as "Braid" or "Portal," which offer far more intricate challenges. However, this is a game that transcends its gameplay. The bio of one of the game's scriptwriters, Ishmael Angaluuk Hope, mentions that in his younger days he was ashamed of his Native Alaskan heritage.
Never Alone is the first project of a unique studio from Alaska, and tells a traditional Alaskan Native story of a girl, a fox and their hunt through the arctic for the source of a blizzard. Beautiful graphics, an amazing sense of location and amazing storytelling combine to make an unforgettable experienc
Play it for the documentary, and play it in co-op
If I had to describe Never Alone succinctly – I’d say that its intentions are pure but that it falls flat in its execution.
Never Alone tells a deeply personal story of an Inupiaq girl on an adventure to survive the elements. This is a spellbinding experience that not only introduces players to the real stories and culture so important to the native Alaskan community, but goes one step further by creating two dozen informative videos featuring interviews with tribe elders, storytellers and artists. It's a dazzling adventure that is not to be missed.