The Weekly: Simogo’s Year Walk

Sure, Crysis 3 and Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance shipped this week but that doesn’t make them the most interesting, or memorable, experience by default. This week’s Weekly finds a home on iOS, and was the kind of experience that surpassed all my expectations -- and quite frankly, blew me away.

Year Walk is a game that puts the player in the shoes of a man partaking in a pagan ritual, called Year Walking.  To Year Walk, is to travel through a frigid, snow-covered forest alone, while facing the realities of: hunger, direction, placement, and objective. You are in search of a church, tucked away in the forest, which will reveal visions of the future.

Year Walk is a first-person horror-adventure game. Much like Myst, it drops the player into its world with little explanation to what, who, or why. You explore this forest hoping to keep from getting lost; hoping to keep from the nightmares that lurk within; hoping that none of it is real.

Year Walk is a great example of iOS games made perfectly for the platform. Much like Sword & Sworcery, it allows puzzles to be solved through non-traditional, tactile-functions that constantly satisfy through “ah-ha!” moments of clarity. It’s a 2 hour experience that scares, engages, and surprises flawlessly throughout.

It’s one of my Top 3 Games of 2013, so far, it’s that good.

Till next Weekly…