URLate

While browsing the free section on Steam, I have been careful in discerning games I want to play, with one factor being whether it stands out for the right reasons. One such title is the recently-released URLate, the first title from solo indie dev NoSepoGames. The point-and-click gameplay and visual style intrigued me enough to play it as soon as I could, and even in its short length it showed a lot of promise from this new developer.

A bird-like creature named Berd must find a way to leave his house for mysterious reasons, as well as to find his sister, who has yet to return home. While the game is light on plot, there is a good amount of worldbuilding and setup with what’s going on while still leaving you wanting to learn more, especially since it ends on what feels like a tease for a potential follow-up. There is also a great deal of environmental storytelling that ties neatly into the gameplay in unexpected ways, rewarding the player for paying attention to their surroundings.

The gameplay is largely that of a typical point-and-click, including an inventory system that lets you use and combine objects for a given situation. There is, however, some variety in the form of puzzles, ranging from simple minigames to ones that involve observing the environment for clues. While it is intuitive, I did run into an issue where the inventory icon happened to overlap with a dialogue prompt, leading me to have to move away before accessing it, as well as some odd collision in a Rush Hour-style puzzle that resulted in me having to reset it to try again.

 

Be careful when solving this one.

Even though the game doesn’t go too far into horror, the visual style and music create a foreboding atmosphere that keeps you on the edge, even when the character interactions give you a sense of security. The hand-drawn assets manage a fine balance between this and being visually appealing, which I would want to see maintained with any future projects. While the dialogue is rendered through text boxes, I will mention that the game defaults to Spanish, but can be switched to English by clicking “Opciones” and then making a selection under the “Idioma” tab.

 

Foreboding, yet inviting visual style.

 

URLate is short, but is a promising start for an indie developer with a world begging for further exploration. Its high quality for its short length makes it worth playing for point-and-click fans, especially since it can be played for free.