Over The Moonlight

Exploration is a common theme in modern video games, especially since graphics engines allow developers to create engaging landscapes. However, most games integrate the exploration bit as an extra activity for the players, because truth be told, it’s very difficult to keep playing something without a story or some kind of intrigue to keep you invested.

Over The Moonlight is a walking simulator that allows you to gaze at calming landscapes and put your creative skills to the test as well, given the fact that you can also use colorful balls in order to draw. In truth, the whole experience feels a bit too lackluster and short to be memorable, but it can still provide you with a bit of peace and quiet if you need it.

To begin with, you start on a very small island, and there’s not much exploration that can be done before you have to leave. In order to do so, you have to use the nearby boat, although it’s pretty difficult to spot it at first. The controls are also a mystery and they require some trial & error, but then again this is not a complex RPG, so there are only a handful of keys to find anyway.

You can use the boat to travel to a few other locations, but most are very dull and lacking in interesting things to see. Granted, you can draw on special boards using the colorful balls you find all over the environment, but that’s way less engaging in practice than it actually sounds. Thus, you soon find yourself with nothing to do and a serious shortage of places to explore.

This is obviously not good news in an exploration game, but then again it’s a free-to-play title that is more of a prototype than anything else. In terms of graphics, there’s nothing too impressive in this regard either, especially since everything is pretty dark most of the time. The music is not bad either, but it’s pretty dull and forgettable as well.

There are far more complex exploration games than Over The Moonlight out there, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad title. Hence, it can still be the perfect way to relax for a few minutes, even if you don’t come back to the game ever again.