Minute of Islands is a 2021 puzzle-platform game developed by Studio Fizbin and published by Mixtvision for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

Minute of Islands
Developer(s)Studio Fizbin
Publisher(s)Mixtvision
Platform(s)
Release
  • Windows, Switch, PS4
  • June 13, 2021
  • Xbox One
  • June 15, 2021
Genre(s)Puzzle-platform
Mode(s)Single-player

Gameplay

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Mo interacting with an object in the game.

The player plays as Mo, a mechanic who is tasked with saving the world by restoring engines on an archipelago. The player moves around the 2D world, and can climb and jump up objects. The player can use a tool, the Omni Switch, which allows Mo to use mechanisms and solve puzzles. The tool also can show the player the direction they need to go to next. The game also has collectibles hidden around the islands, which reveal more about the world and story.[1][2]

Reception

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In a positive review for Rock Paper Shotgun, Alice Bell praised the themes of the story, "But for all its narrative bluntness, Minute Of Islands is an incredibly elegant game. Much more so than the most other indie games that are about death and grief and sadness and responsibility."[2] Malindy Hetfeld, writing for Eurogamer, criticized Minute of Islands' gameplay, writing "Unfortunately, it feels just as unexciting to play... overall these sequences are so simple and so short that there isn't anything remotely rousing to the exercise."[8]

Pocket Tactics liked the soundtrack of the game, feeling it gave it an foreboding atmosphere, "Consisting mostly of eerie mechanical noises offset against the echoing sounds of the ocean and scavenger birds that inhabit the islands, it creates a unique, almost anti-music backdrop".[9] Polygon enjoyed how the game's cartoon-insipred artstyle conflicted with its darker tone, "The darkness of Minute of Islands is punctuated by its light and airy art style; it’s a colorful, cartoon world that, from afar, looks like a place I’d love to live in... But examining the details uncovers a darker truth, from those bloodied birds and violent-yet-beautiful fungus".[10]

References

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  1. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (June 13, 2021). "In Minute of Islands, it's hard to be the chosen one". Polygon. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "Minute Of Islands review: a grim world drawn in a wonderful, elegant way". Rock Paper Shotgun. June 14, 2021. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 14, 2021.
  3. ^ "Minute of Islands for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  4. ^ "Minute of Islands for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Archived from the original on August 10, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  5. ^ Will, Aickman (July 16, 2021). "Minute of Islands review". Adventure Gamers. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  6. ^ Helm, Jordan (July 5, 2021). "Review: Minute of Islands". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  7. ^ Tailby, Stephen (June 13, 2021). "Mini Review: Minute of Islands (PS4) - A Short But Beautiful Island Trip". Push Square. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  8. ^ Hetfeld, Malindy (June 14, 2021). "Minute of Islands review - intriguing puzzler hampered by simplistic gameplay". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 15, 2021.
  9. ^ "Minute of Islands Switch review – beauty in decay". Pocket Tactics. June 25, 2021. Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  10. ^ Carpenter, Nicole (June 13, 2021). "In Minute of Islands, it's hard to be the chosen one". Polygon. Archived from the original on June 14, 2021. Retrieved June 24, 2023.

Further reading

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