Minute of Islands | PC Review

June 19, 2021 Scott Clark

One of my least favorite things to do is write a review for a game that isn’t for me. I’ve never developed a single line of code for any game, so I have almost no idea of the the struggle it takes to put your art into a title. I’m not in the business of stomping over anyone’s hard work, but I have to be honest. Minute of Islands from Studio Fizbin isn’t a game that I would recommend for those that value enjoyable gameplay over art. That’s not to say there isn’t plenty of good buried in this indie title. But I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t relieved when I finally rolled credits after eight hours in this world.

Welcome to My World

You are a young girl by the name of Mo. Her world is on the brink of collapse. Four gargantuan brothers, forced to keep the planet alive by toiling underground for all eternity, have basically broken, all at the same time. Without their efforts, the world is slowly consumed by spores. You must guide Mo through several two-dimensional labyrinths in an attempt to jump start each of the four brothers. Along the way, you’ll run into your own estranged family members who have stayed behind amidst impending doom. This offers some additional dramatic story elements.

I quite enjoyed the overall premise at play in Minute of Islands. The fantasy element plays quite well here, even if its layered on a bit thick. The story is narrated by Megan Gay, whose soothing tones reminded me of a female Liam Neeson. Her delivery, combined with the rest of the art style, sets the tone to a high level.

Paint Me a Picture

Minute of Islands‘ character art style is very reminiscent of animated television shows like Adventure Time and Rick and Morty. This title obviously takes a much more serious approach, however. When I describe the rest of the environments to you, it’s going to sound like I’m mocking them, but I mean this in the best way possible. The world around Mo looks like an animated version of a teenager’s highly-detailed doodles in a school notebook. It works for the mentioned tone that the game is going for.

Additionally, the sound design here is exquisite. The game encourages you to use headphones, and I heartily agree. Even though the game doesn’t strive for realism visually, every step, every squawk from a seagull, and every slithering tentacle matches perfectly with its on-screen counterpart.

My issue here, however, is the primary focus on the art over the gameplay. There has been so much love and attention put on making the player look at the scenery, but they forgot to make the game “fun.” The platforming is primitive at best and merely serves as a way to make this story interactive. The game is advertised as a puzzle-platformer, but only one puzzle in the entire game asked me to do anything more than “press button(s) to activate.” Furthermore, I was forced to backtrack through levels for no other reason than to pad some extra time in the game.

I understand that the developers had a story they really wanted to tell here, but the lack of enjoyment in between really made it difficult for me to care about Mo, her family, or the world in which they inhabit. Minute of Islands constantly screams, “Look at me! I’m artsy!” I’m all for art, don’t get me wrong. But if you want me to appreciate your art, my interaction with it needs to be an enjoyable experience for me.

Minute of Islands Final Verdict

I almost feel guilty writing this review. There’s so much good to see and hear in Minute of Islands, but unfortunately the gameplay did absolutely nothing for me. I know there’s an audience for this style of game out there, it just doesn’t happen to be me personally. If presentation is paramount for you, then this might be a title worth checking out. Take a look at the trailer and see what you think. For me, I felt completely relieved when the credits finally rolled. Although I actually enjoyed how this story wraps up, the destination wasn’t worth the slog of a journey I took to get there.

To hear me talk more about Minute of Islands, be sure to listen to Episode 351 of The Gaming Outsider Podcast.

This review is based on a Steam (Mac) copy of Minute of Islands provided by Big Games Machines for coverage purposes. It is also available on PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.