Chicory: A Colorful Tale Review (ayay)
This is it. This is the one.
I'm not one for most games. I much prefer playing indie titles, and especially ones that are going to move me; to evoke as much of an emotional response as possible. And Chicory does that like no other indie has. The dialogue writing in this game is a level of touching I have not seen in any video game to date. It explores so many difficult topics with such grace. There's also not an ounce of negativity in what characters can say that I've come across, which makes it all the more able to fit the description of "a warm hug in video game form". I teared up at quite a few exchanges between characters. Every single NPC in this game has enough to say to you that you'll be emotionally attached to each one in some way. There's plenty of comedic relief as well and I loved all of the quirky exchanges just as much as the hard-hitting ones.
The music was something I was excited to hear because Lena Raine did such a phenomenal job on Celeste. I can just say that the music of this game breathes so much life into it, I'll be listening to tracks from the OST for a long, long time to come. It's one of, if not the best game soundtrack I've had the pleasure of listening to. It complements the beauty of every other aspect of this game in a way that completely immerses you. So many live instruments to give it a wonderful, organic feel. Fight music in particular does away with most of the comfortable instrumentation in favour of a more intense sound that is really reminiscent of Celeste, which I think fits those sections perfectly.
Pacing is on point so that you never feel tired of a section, but that’s not at all to say there’s very little content as a result. Side quests are all over the place and absolutely none of them are too boring to take on. If those aren’t your thing, there’s still a solid 5-10 hours of raw story content. There are plenty of fast travel benches so you can really make a choice between taking the world in on the way to an objective, or getting right to the meat of the story.
Puzzles are difficult enough to make you feel totally clever every time you finish one, without being brain-melting. The hint system is something I've never really seen in another game, where your parents can either push you in the right direction, or tell you exactly how to do something if you feel totally lost. There's phone booths thoughtfully dotted around the map in exactly the right locations so that you're always in a few screens' reach of assistance on difficult areas.
Boss fights are super unique, and if you're not very good at dodging attacks, the game just kinda helps you out and puts you back on your feet not too far from where you wiped out. If it notices you're having a particularly hard time with a fight, it'll tell you how you can make it easier. It's such a great way of holding your hand when you need it, which this game does a lot of without ever feeling obtrusive to your experience. It’s perfect.
In that same vein, it’s worth mentioning the amount of nice accessibility options, like turning off the foley sounds for painting that might offend some ears, tinting the screen a bit yellow so it’s easier on the eyes, optional content warnings, removing some of the text flair… Really almost anybody can get into this.
The core mechanic of painting is so fleshed out, adds so much depth, it's really essential to the experience and does not at all feel gimmicky. You don't need to be a creative to enjoy this game; you don't even need to be able to draw very well. If you make a bad drawing and submit it (there aren't too many instances where it's mandatory), your critiques will never have anything bad to say about it, only words of encouragement.
I cannot get over how well-crafted every aspect of this game is; from the fantastic story, to the sheer volume of simple yet effective puzzle mechanics, to the beautiful soundtrack. Of course, replayability is at the very top of the list of pros… Because the whole game is a colouring book, not to mention there’s tons of post-game dialogue to go and experience, and all of those fun side-quests to finish.
I have nothing bad to say about Chicory. It's probably my game of the decade. I'm excited to see if anything can possibly top the way it's made me feel, and I'm excited to keep colouring in this map.
If you’re wondering if this game is for you; if you are even considering this game to play for yourself: you should. No question.