Sumeru Demo

It’s not enough to provide gamers with puzzles and challenge them to come up with solutions, because the whole point is to have fun while doing so. Thus, video games must present the audience with something worth seeing, such as an exquisite world, or an intriguing story that keeps the pace constant and makes the players want to find out more.

Sumeru is a 2D puzzle game in which the goal is for you to make it to the end of each level by overcoming the obstacles that block your way. In order to do so, you have to draw shapes using various materials and combine them in such a way as to make it across. The gameplay mechanics are very similar to those from Crayon Physics, except that you have to guide a living creature.

Speaking of which, the story puts you in the role of a traveler called Yuri, who one day stumbles onto a fascinating gem on his way home. Unfortunately for him, this gem teleports him to Sumeria, where he must overcome a variety of nasty obstacles in order to survive and make it out of there. It’s not much of a story, but at least it explains some of the landscapes.

The gameplay mechanics are intuitive and pretty straightforward, because your only goal is to draw shapes and try to put them together in such a way as to get over various obstacles. Whether you create bridges or stairs, the experience is always fresh, especially when you have to combine different materials in order to obtain the proper weight required for a certain object.

As for the graphics, most of the artwork is quite striking, especially as an overall picture of Sumeria, albeit not at all historically accurate. The colors and the mood are great, on the other hand, so it doesn’t really matter whether anything is inspired by the actual Sumerian heritage. Moreover, the soundtrack is decent as well, although it doesn’t seem to have that spark required to become a classic.

In the end, Sumeru can be a bit too slow and annoying at times, especially since there’s not much of a story to keep you engaged. On the other hand, things are better if you focus on the puzzles, because they allow you to get creative in a variety of ways.