Pine Hearts is a story journey sport developed by Hyper Luminal Video games and printed by Little Nook. You play as Tyke on an journey to hike a mountain whereas piecing collectively his motives for this climb. Carry the tissues for this one!
I sometimes start a evaluate by explaining the story. Nevertheless, on condition that Pine Hearts is narrative-based, most of what I might say could be spoilers. As the sport description says, “It tells a narrative of the lack of a member of the family with tenderness and care.” It takes you on an emotional trip with quirky characters and comfortable aesthetics. The principle objective is to rise up the mountain, however the park ranger received’t allow you to by till you’re effectively ready. Thus, your journey begins.
As you play by Pine Hearts, you’ll piece the story collectively your self by rediscovering reminiscences. Tyke has been right here earlier than, he simply wants some assist reminiscing. To unlock these reminiscences, you’ll discover tear drops throughout the open world map. You’ll want a complete of 1,300 drops to unlock all 5 reminiscences. Evidently, it’s a brief journey. I obtained by the sport inside a handful of hours, however it was value each second.
However how do you get the tear drops? That’s the place the gameplay is available in. First, tear drops are scattered about generously. All it’s good to do is discover the world and also you’ll discover them ready for you. You’ll additionally earn drops by finishing quests for NPCs. A few of these quests will get you exploring the world and easily offer you 50-100 tears. Different quests will help you additional discover the world by getting the instruments you want.
For instance, you’ll want a hammer and a shovel, simply to call a pair. You’ll discover the shovel as a part of a quest and get to maintain it, which can assist you to with different quests down the highway. Regardless of its cozy vibes, Pine Hearts will preserve the quests coming, so there’s by no means a boring second. Generally, you’ll have a number of quests without delay, particularly for those who discuss to everybody you go.
The world is open with a handful of main areas to discover, every with subareas. You’ll discover a few caves, seashores, and even a citadel. There are not any ranges, sport modes, timers, or the like; you possibly can undergo the sport at your individual tempo. Some quests will contain a mini-game (similar to garden mowing) or a puzzle (similar to connecting gears collectively to set off a gate mechanism), however none of it’s too troublesome or head-scratching.
The controls are easy, too. To interrupt a rock or leap over a cliff, you merely press A. Generally, you’ll want to maneuver the L-stick in a sure course. The default choice is to make use of timed button presses, however I turned that off. It was high-quality and labored effectively, however I most well-liked to play by the sport as merely as attainable.
After getting sufficient tears, you’ll unlock a reminiscence and get to look at it. You’ll have some management over Tyke throughout these quick sequences, however there’s minimal gameplay. Once more, I received’t go into element due to spoilers. Nevertheless, unlocking these reminiscences may also remind Tyke of a talent he used to have, similar to leaping over chasms or creating bridges by pushing a tree over. These abilities will permit entry to different components of the map and create shortcuts.
By the point I had unlocked the ultimate talent, I nonetheless wanted about 75 extra tears to get the ultimate reminiscence, thus getting access to the mountain. I used to be capable of backtrack by the map and undergo the areas once more with out the strain of quests. I might take within the surroundings whereas holding an eye fixed out for locations I missed or couldn’t entry earlier than.
When the ultimate reminiscence was unlocked, I had entry to go up the mountain. I cried. Quite a bit. I feel Tyke saved it collectively higher than I did. I received’t say a lot else; you’ll should expertise this sport for your self.
The one draw back to Pine Hearts was that there have been a couple of glitches. At one level, Tyke obtained caught strolling in place, and the one manner for me to repair it was to exit to the Change homepage. Additionally (and that is extra of a private choice), I might have appreciated to avoid wasting the sport at any time when I needed. It autosaved usually sufficient, however I might have appreciated extra management over when and the place it saved, particularly for the reason that sport would freeze or lag at every autosave. In any other case, my whole expertise was easy and stress-free, with lullaby-like music enjoying within the background.
Total, Pine Hearts is a brief and (bitter)candy title. For those who’re on the lookout for a brand new cozy journey that tells a tremendous story in a delicate method, then definitely give this one a go. You received’t be disillusioned. (And sure, you possibly can pet the canine!)