Black cats get a bad rap, which is why they don’t get adopted as often as other cats, and now we’ve got one leading children into psychedelic gothic dioramas. I’ll try not to hold it against Iris.Fall, however, because gosh does it look lovely.
The puzzle game’s world is a life-sized mechanical model created out of theatre scenery, seemingly transformed by magic. As Iris, players have to explore the weird, monochrome enigma by using light and shadows to solve puzzles. The developer posted a trailer last month, so give it a watch.
Light as a puzzle solution is a wee bit tired, but Iris.Fall seems rather committed to the theme, to the extent that it runs through everything, most notably the striking art. It plays with perspectives, too, with 3D and 2D juxtaposed just like light and shadow. Rather than just turning on or off some lights to reveal something hidden, Iris can use light to pass between different realities.
The story is appropriately a mystery, but Iris will apparently uncover a connection between the weird world and herself—gasp!—while progress in the game “will feel more like the player’s spiritual exploration”. Steady on.
Iris.Fall is out on Steam today, and I made a wee gallery below.
