Semblance Reviews
Even the areas that can be bent in significant ways have serious and sometimes baffling limits that force you into one or two envisioned solutions by entirely sabotaging other approaches. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, of course, as many excellent puzzle games have specific solutions, but where Semblance fails (and does so big time) is that it gives you the impression that you’re being afforded the freedom to come up with your own approach, only to consistently snatch it away from you while the controls undermine you and the simplistic two-tone visuals give you a migraine.
Semblance lets you deform your platforms to solve puzzles how you want, but it limits your tools so severely that the promise of that idea is wasted on mediocre puzzles. It has a neat look, but like its core mechanic, it wears thin even before you get to the end of your two hour trip through the game.
The puzzles involve a host of mechanics, slowly introduced over the course of the game, mainly centering around terrain being reshaped, much like Play-Doh. The character’s dash ability allows the player to mold the environment to a certain extent in a bid to access previously inaccessible areas.
Within a sea of platformers in the indie gaming universe, Semblance attempts to offer a new twist; something that doesn’t conform to established notions, but rather conforms those notions to itself.
Two-hour logic platformer with an interesting idea of deforming environment, but there is nothing for creative players. You will not do anything what was not planned by the developer.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Semblance is a unique gaming experience about reshaping the world to solve puzzles and to reach new places, but it doesn't last for long and it left something to be desired.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Semblance is a decent puzzle game that could've been a lot better with a more varied gameplay and a lenghtier campaign.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Semblance is fun game that nails the fundamentals, but the limited scope and brevity don't allow it the opportunity to really shine. Puzzle-platform fans will enjoy what is on offer here but will be left wanting for more.
Semblance is a frequently delightful, innovative platformer that's all about breaking the rules. When it's at its best, it's devilishly clever, but it has a curiously stilted pacing and flow. Its subversive take on mouldable platforming is fun to play, but ultimately its underutilised core concepts will leave you wanting more.
Fans of puzzle-platformers will find plenty to love in this adorable indie.
Nyamakop has successfully completed the requirements for a good puzzle-platformer : a charming art direction, with part of the world made of playdough, and a creative gameplay experience that allows the player to shape the environnement. A little too short, Semblance is definitely a worthwhile game for the Nintendo Switch.
Review in French | Read full review
A level-morphing puzzle game with enough charm and ingenuity to overcome its control issues and short length.
Overall, Semblance is a decent puzzle platformer with a unique take on the platforming portion of the genre.
Although the blob looks friendly and soft in Semblance, the puzzles are sometimes tough.
Review in German | Read full review
Semblance's haunting atmosphere and clever gameplay mechanics make it a memorable and satisfying puzzle platformer.
By letting you morph the environment, Semblance is a new twist on the puzzler, asking you to creatively solve its challenges. New mechanics keep things fresh throughout, but also highlight what could have been if the game were longer and its ideas developed further.
Semblance is an original take on the plataform genre, that allows us to mold and change the enviroment around us (floor, walls...) to pick up orbs to cure the world in little one screen puzzles. A simple but brilliant idea well executed, that often feels "limited" by the own developers. It's a shame that it last so little...
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Nevertheless, even four years later, Semblance is a really good time, and the world-shaping gimmick is a whole ton of fun to mess around with. I only just wish it hadn’t taken me this long to finally get to shaping this delightful experience.
Regardless of these issues, Semblance is a breath of fresh air to the platforming genre and one that is entirely welcome. Puzzle lovers will enjoy the idea of working around a problem, casual players can find enjoyment in every aspect and speedrunners are going to have a blast working out movement tech to beat the game swiftly.
"Familiar-looking platformer, flexible physics engine."
Review in Finnish | Read full review