Harold Halibut Reviews
Ultimately, Harold Halibut’s abundance of charm doesn’t translate to the game being charming, and in the end, while there’s plenty to see here, there’s just nothing to do.
Harold Halibut's handmade world has bags of charm, but its sedentary pace and largely uneventful narrative might not be to everyone's tastes. Great stories stay with you, but, sadly, I'm not sure Harold's will.
One thing’s for certain: you’ve never played a game like Harold Halibut before. You may have played cinematic narrative adventure titles before, but none offer up such a striking stop-motion style and thought-provoking narrative, especially when paired with a winning combination of mystery, heartfelt character relationships, and quirky artistic flair. You will question your own path in life and whether you’re truly happy, then leave you wondering how to find your own bluglglgl.
Harold Halibut looks beautiful on the outside, and it is even more beautiful once you dive into it. The visuals are an undeniable technical achievement. Its gameplay is undemanding, making the game accessible for many people, even those who are not familiar with the medium of video games. The story and narrative are easy to follow, and depict a modern fable about finding your own home, connecting with others, sharing your perspective, and finding what you want from life.
It may take place at the bottom of the ocean on a distant alien planet, but Harold Halibut’s story is an entirely human one, both in terms of its carefully handmade environments and its strong emphasis on empathy towards its eccentric cast of characters. While I wish that there was a little more interactivity to be found throughout its subaquatic setting, and Harold’s shuffling run could have been boosted to a sprint to reduce the time spent repeatedly schlepping from one end of its levels to the other, I nonetheless remained captivated by his whimsical quest to unite his community and explore the spectacular surroundings of his sunken home. Consistently funny and full of surprises, Harold Halibut is a wholesome, handcrafted adventure with plenty of heart.
With engaging puzzles in the mix, I truly believe Harold Halibut could have joined the pantheon of great classic-style adventure games. As is, it’s a title that consistently kept me hooked over the course of its 7-to-8-hour story but didn’t fully reel me in like the very best of the genre.
A VERY special adventure, both in aesthetic and narrative terms. The story starts slowly and with very few explanations, but as the game progresses it becomes more and more interesting and does not disdain to touch important chords. The mechanics are the classic ones of a graphic adventure but the gameplay has a few too many angularities due to a bit of "dirt" in the code. Finally, the total lack of localization in Italian could be a significant obstacle given that the tone of the dialogues is well above the classic school English.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Harold Halibut gives shape to an attractive story led by a protagonist who manages to surprise the player. The magnificent handcrafted art section accompanies this good script, but at times its approach becomes somewhat heavy in terms of gameplay. Here's a good narrative adventure that could have aspired to be so much more.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
With a development that lasted twelve years, it is legitimate to wonder if Harold Halibut is a fully successful operation: what we can tell you is that the work of the German studio has convinced us, thanks to a mature and engaging narrative capable of dealing with themes that are anything but obvious.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Harold Halibut is an artistic achievement that I've not quite experienced in gaming before. Every game is handcrafted in some way, but Harold Halibut takes that concept and cranks it up to 11. And while its world and story are made up of inorganic materials, Harold Halibut's clay, wood, and paint communicated humanity even more than some games that aim to directly replicate it through photorealism or otherwise. With its occasional dryness and true depictions of life's ordinariness, it steps a little too far in that direction at times. But, if anything, the fact that it isn't perfect makes it even more human.
Harold Halibut is bound to elicit strong reactions from players, falling squarely into the love-it or leave-it camp.
Despite some occasional bugs, problems with the plot's rhythm and lack of more engaging gameplay, Harold Halibut does not lose its shine as a work that uses its form well to bring visual charm, without forgetting to work on its content a story with strong text, interesting characters and issues so prominent in human nature.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
"Harold Halibut" is an atmospheric adventure game with a lot of heart and a unique style. It just needs to be shortened in the right places, then the pacing would also be right. But even so, I'm glad I stuck with it to the end and I can recommend it to you too.
Review in German | Read full review
For most of its runtime, Harold Halibut is an exciting and captivating game. You can tell how much the authors loved the videogame medium. There's some minor issues, but nevertheless, if you like adventure games, it's simply a must play.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Harold Halibut looks great, like one of Aardman's finest, only as a video game. Unfortunately, it's the game part that underwhelms, offering a distinctly tedious narrative adventure that is a chore to play.
Harold Halibut is an interesting adventure that, despite some flaws, shines for its uniqueness.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Harold Halibut is a triumph in its characters and visuals but struggles to stay afloat under its own scope and ambitions.
Harold Halibut is a special video game. Not only the incredibly elaborate style and how it was realized contribute to this, but also the fresh setting filled with lots of love and crazy nonsense. The basic gameplay does lag behind quite a bit, but for an adventure game you can easily cope with that.
Review in German | Read full review
Harold Halibut offers a captivating journey into a retro-futuristic world brimming with charm and intrigue. While its gameplay mechanics may not appeal to all tastes, those who appreciate rich storytelling and immersive atmospheres will find much to love in this heartfelt exploration of friendship and the quest for meaning.
Harold Halibut may not be the most innovative game in terms of intervention mechanics in the world, apart from making some slips in the rhythm of the narrative, but it is undeniable that the sum of its powerful story and its spectacular art style make this one of the most irresistible games of recent times.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review