going deep down
synopsis
Sono is a project born as a Alt-Ctrl little game, then expanded and upgraded to be more modern and compatible with keybord and controller.
You play as Sono, a little stingray-like character, gliding around strange plans of existence as they were strange seas, searching for fragments to collect.
Technicalities
Graphics
Ok!
There isn't much to say here. Sono is a 2D game with smooth graphics, vivid colors and animations as simple as hypnotizing.
Settings and backgrounds are hypnotizing and it's easy to be tempted to just gliding around without doing anything at all!
Game Mechanics
Ok!
It's all quite simple, it can be played either with a keyboard or a controller. I played it with the latter.
Sono is a little stingray-like alien creature with a giant eye, always oriented in the direction of one of the fragments you need to collect. Your goal is to find and retrieve them all.
You can't stop, Sono will always be in motion and you only have two base movements: going straightforward or in circles.
In the beginning you take some time to get used to going around and master the little precision you need to take the fragments.
I can't say with a keyboard because I still haven't tried, but if you play with a controller you need to use both sticks and this can take you some time to understand how to get the "circles" right, since you can't stop. It can be a little demanding on your thumbs!
Duration
Ok!
As I always say: keep in mind this is a free game.
The first time I played knowing nothing but the title, I was yet to understand what I was supposed to do after 30 minutes. Big part of the guilt was mine because I was finding it so chilling, so I was drifting around without doing anything.
When I got the basic mechanics and goals, I completed the game in about 20-25 very relaxed minutes. Gliding around was too soothing!
Developers specified about 10-15~ minutes and it was the right time for my 3rd round, following the game without loafing about.
It must be said that this can be the perfect game to decompress mindlessly at the end of a tough day.
Soundtrack
Ok!
In my humble opinion the music here is half of the experience, in a letteral way.
Every level has a specific track and the more a specific level progresses, the more it becomes complex or its rhythm change.
It's relaxing and calming but not always cheery. After all we shouldn't forget that this is an adventure.
All the tracks help so much the player to understand what the feeling linked to every level should be.
Performances
Ok!
None - Black Screen
None - Crashes
So-So - Frame rate
None - Freezes
None - Glitches
None - Lag
None - Loading Problems
There were only a couple of hiccups in the frame rate, that slowed down a bit the flow. Anyway nothing longer than few seconds and nothing that interfered with the gameplay.
If this happens to you, don't worry!
in pills
Sono is a charming casual adventure and -I must say-, it's its "casual" part the best one, allowing the game to be a wonderful stress-reliever.
The soundtrack, the surreal settings and backgrounds, the lack of "hard goals" to reach, make it perfect to waste some time "flying" around while the mind empties and all the worries go down the flush.
In a world that wants us always "living on the edge" [a Cyberpunk 2020 quote was needed!], in a neverending rush, learning to take our time and enjoy spending some time sandboxing just for the sake of it, it's a right and nice rebellion!