Shape of the World Reviews
To me, Shape of the World feels like Proteus injected with a shallow feeling of progression on a linear path. Removing the freedom and unbound nature without considering the ramifications, it expects you to play with no real motivation nor driving factor. If you are content with a short slow-paced walk through some undeniably interesting scenery, this might yet be for you, but don't be expecting much beyond this.
“You walk around inside a strangely colored swamp/forest/cave/mountain and touch glowing things to go to the next area.”
Promising a world where you can get lost and yet find peace is a hard sell, though when everything falls into place, Shape of the World provides some noteworthy moments.
Shape of the World does not follow the rigid tenets of most games. What Shape of the World proposes is rather a relaxation of the senses thanks to a skillfully-crafted abstract and psychedelic art style which does a very good job at immersing the player into a different state of mind. Pity that it does not propose more of that, as Shape of the World feels too short and with too little interaction, for a game that gets its sensory component right.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Despite being short, Shape of the World can easily start to feel lackluster if it fails to develop a mood altering connection with you. As such, it’s more of a hit or miss.
Shape of the World is a pretty nice meditative experience. The aesthetic is really cool and the music is excellent, but the game is rather short and lacks replayability.
I notice a lot of lost potential here, be it a potential to expand this lovely world, or a potential to add compelling gameplay elements. Shape of the World is, ultimately, a pretty shell: gorgeous on the outside, but hollow on the inside.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Yes, you can interact with some of the animals in minor ways and use trees to give yourself a burst of forward momentum. Yes, you can throw seeds down to create trees. Yes, you can create bridges and wander around a handful of different biomes while the scenery grows around you. Without a goal driving you, however, this carries the same amount of weight as being lost in a supermarket.
It is certainly a pretty game. The minimalist polygon planes are very evocative, the sound design is lovely, and the abundant bloom lighting creates a mood. There's sort of a goal (get to the next triangle) and when you achieve it, the art style shifts. But I didn't really find it relaxing, I found it boring. And I never got over feeling perplexed.
Shape of the World isn't a bad game, it just never quite hits its stride in the way a game like this needs to.
The art and music direction in Shape of the World is undeniably delightful but its gameplay lacks purpose, and the game suffers as a result.
A weird title. It's not an overwhelmingly good walking simulator, it's not an outrageously bad exploration game, it's just... there.
Truth be told, I felt my eyes hurting a bit after watching color changing a bit too much and staring too long at something trying to figure out what it is. Perhaps it’s just me, but I wanted to put my thoughts out there.
The Shape of the World is an experience so I can’t really review it as a game. But as an experience, it fails to ignite my imagination in any way. I was bored very quickly and there isn’t much on offer either with only a limited number of chapters to explore.
At its heart, Shape of the World is an exploration game that will let you leisurely explore a colorful world with rich visuals. But that's about it. It is definitely not my type of game, but it may be for you. I suggest looking for a demo so you can give it a try.