Rise and Shines – ‘The Sun and Moon’ Review

The Sun and Moon is an action, puzzle platformer from Digerati Distribution and Kot in Action Creative Artel. The concept of the game is simple, collect three orbs then jump into the wormhole to complete the level. Each level gets progressively harder adding new obstacles that can kill your character and also new designs that require more precise timing and control. What makes the game unique is the gravity shift that occurs when players phase through the level. Controlling when you phase is key to the game, as it redirects your momentum, so a great fall could turn into a great jump. The closest thing I can think of is Portal jumping.

The Sun and Moon is fun and addicting. I easily spent 30 minutes on the game without realizing how much time had passed. The simple yet appealing visuals hide the complexity and depth these puzzles require to solve. Each level also has a timer that records how long you take to finish the level, and will rank players with 1-3 orbs depending on how long it takes them to finish. This will appeal to the competitive side of players, and adds some replay value. The game also fully compatible with gamepads, and I think is almost a requirement. The finer precision moves require a real touch to not over or under shoot things, and I personally cannot get that kind of control or connection with keys.

There are a couple of things that did not do it for me. The Steam screenshot function did not work with the game. I tried it on my laptop and tower and neither would take a screenshot. This is not really a big deal, but considering I write reviews it is kind of an important feature. Secondly, the level select is needlessly complicated. The numbering of the levels have no real rhyme or reason and force players to follow the connecting lines to choose them, which connects them out of order and in on different paths. It might be more of a personal irk, but I kind of like to follow the numbering order and I don’t like to have circle around a board to go from level 3 to 4. Lastly like most puzzle games, there’s no real cohesion of story. At least games like Angry Birds attempt some sort of over arching story, however The Sun and Moon doesn’t have one.

The game quirks do not affect the core gameplay at all. However, little quirks like that tend to annoy me and prevent me from making the effort to open up the game. Also, I am not a big fan of playing puzzle games on my PC or on consoles. I prefer to be able to pick them up and put them down at my leisure and spare time, turning on a console or PC to play a game is a process I associate with spending an hour or so. Puzzle games that take on averge a minute or less per level are great for mobile, but seem like more hassle than it’s worth on other platforms. However, once you get this game going it’s hard to stop.

The Sun and Moon is a very unique and enjoyable puzzle game, that will entertain anyone who enjoys the genre. It has it’s quirks, but does not hinder the amazing puzzle game that it is. If you enjoy puzzle games, especially ones like Portal, The Sun and Moon could easily be your next addiction.

The Sun and Moon is available on Steam.