Played on PlayStation 5 | Original Release Date 9 May 2024 | Review Date 20 February 2025

OVERVIEW

Spoiler alert: Animal Well was my favourite game of 2024. That’s not to say it’s a perfect trip down the well, but it’s a trip I was very happy to make and one that I still think about after completing it.

Animal Well, from Billy Blasso and team, is a Metroidvania, or Metroidbrania as I recently heard this genre referred to as. It’s a game that is stripped back to only the absolute essentials in all aspects, but one that provides multiple levels of challenge, puzzle solving, finger-cramp inducing platforming, and so many moments where I shouted obscenities in frustration while at the same time having a big smile full of game play joy across my face.

STORY

There really isn’t one. Nor does it need one. You fire up the game and within moments you find yourself emerging from some sort of flower. You’re a cute little blob, that, for some reason unbeknownst to the player, must dive into a well full of animals - some friendly, some not so friendly, ghosts, amorphous creepy creatures and various world and elemental challenges that challenge our little cute blob along the way. You will, very early on, discover a Statue Room with four statues of the animals that you need to ‘defeat’ to unlock their flame. This is really your only clue as to what you might be looking for. This lack of story was actually refreshing and it fit the world of the game to not have one. I’m not sure what purpose it would serve to the gameplay experience to know why this deep, maze-like well, full of all sorts, existed. And why our little flower born blob must journey through the various challenges. This lack of overt story telling was a non-issue for me because of the atmospheric art style and graphic choices the team made.

GAMEPLAY

Keeping with the simple yet profound theme of this review, the gameplay for Animal Well is equal parts simple and deviously challenging at the same time. You don’t have a lot of mechanics to master. You can move left and right and jump up from the start of the game and you discover tools to help you along your journey. Again the tools you discover are simple to use, but can be tricky to truly master. I won’t cover all the tools in this review, because I really loved discovering them for myself, but the two that I used the most were the Yo-Yo and the Bubble Wand. I’m still not sure if I really understand what the hell the Yo-Yo does or how to use it effectively. When you launch the yo-yo it’s automatically drawn to something near it. That could be a switch that is out of reach, an enemy that you need to attack or even a hidden element in the room that you might be searching for. And while it was one of the items I used a lot, I found it frustrating and obtuse. It’s probably just me, but this is an example of how the minimalist approach to the game’s world or instructions on how to play let it down from time to time. I’m not knocking the design behind this, but simply that it wasn’t completely to my liking. This is discovery aspect of the game is a core part of it’s fun and it’s frustration. The tool that I used the most and loved mastering was the Bubble Wand. It does exactly what you think it does - creates a bubble. You can use the bubble to help you get to out or reach places by creating one, jumping on top of it and then jumping off it to the platform you’re trying to reach. Simple yes, but challenging - oh, hell yes. What makes this tool so challenging to master is when you try to jump from bubble to bubble to reach secrets or navigate areas that are all spikes with no where to land - the bubble your currently on pops. You can only create one bubble at a time. So you have to master the right button sequence to create the bubble and jump, pretty much at the same time. Using this tool to get around the space was so much fun and once I got the rhythm of jumping from bubble to bubble I felt like I broke the game. I know I didn’t, and I’m sure that’s what the development team wanted you to feel like, but boy oh boy it feels great!

As you collect your tools you start to open up areas of the game with each room, providing some sort of puzzle. It could simply be that you need to get from one side of the room to the next without getting ravished by a flock of ravens or it could using your tools to activate switches located behind barriers in different parts of the room at the same time. This mix of tense sections of platforming, followed by calm puzzle solving conundrums make for a satisfying flow to the gameplay experience. I know a game is really well made when, after I’ve been playing for quite some time and my brain can’t unlock it’s thinking pattern, and I find myself not able to solve a puzzle - I simply need to put the controller down and come back to it with fresh eyes. Animal Well had many moments like this and it was so satisfying when I figured out what the game was asking me to do. And as you learn the games ‘language’ you’ll most likely find the answers are staring you right in the face or hinted at via the soundscape or lighting or other nods to nudge you along your journey. Not all aspects of the puzzling was well handled and there are a few that were really unclear to me. I did look up a guide a couple of times and when I did I thought ‘how the hell would I have figured that out?’ Again, maybe it’s just me, but no shame in looking things up I say!

In terms of action there are a few sequences where you have to avoid being caught by the animal or ghost guarding the flame in each area. These can be super challenging or very straightforward. These require precision platforming skills while using the tools you’ve discovered along the way. One particular sequence involving the cat ghost is particularly hard and made my palms sweat! But once you figure it out or master the run, you’re rewarded with the flame associated with that animal and you simply need to take it back to the Statue Room and put it in it’s rightful place. You then move on to the next one you find until you’ve completed all four, unlocking one final area. I won’t mention anything about this area, as it’s my favorite and I want you to discover it for yourself.

One other thing to say about the gameplay is the world layout. The team on this game have done an amazing job at creating a world and the associated map to help you along traverse it. The joy of discovering how the world is connected and then seeing it show up on the map kept pulling me back into the game. I would think about the map when I wasn’t playing the game, trying to figure out how to reach the area I was yet to discover. It’s a great layout that asks you to do a lot of back-and-forth, but the team do a wonderful job of opening up short cuts and allowing you to discover hidden paths along the way. Your map will be your friend in this game, so please don’t miss it.

GRAPHICS

I was instantly drawn to the art style and graphical choices of Animal Well. I’m not always a fan of retro style graphics because they mostly play on nostalgia rather than serve the overall purpose of the game experience. Sure it’s great for an older gamer like me to be remind of the 8 and 16-bit experiences of my youth, but most of those games feel like they’re a superficial coat of paint over mismatched mechanics. Animal Well, however, seems to have taken all aspects of the game and created an art style that only uses ‘what’s needed’ in each space. I can imagine a hard part of developing this game was to edit out design elements that didn’t serve a purpose. And what we’re left with is a style that pays homage to 2D platformers of the 8-bit era, but with clever use of modern technology to help create the most haunting atmosphere that subtly guides you along your game play experience. The game asks you to do a lot of re-traversal and studying of rooms to find secrets and make progression, but I didn’t mind it at all during my 10 hours of game play, because each room was a feast for the eyes and evoked my curiosity to see what was in the next room. I’m not a game developer, and know nothing of the tech behind games (beyond my vary basic C++ high school course), but I suspect that what looks really simple on screen, is actually a lot of technical wizardry happening in the background. I won’t spoil all the graphical effects that are used throughout the game, however - do yourself a favour and light as many fireworks as your can if you’re playing on an OLED or equivalent screen, so cool and beautiful to watch each time

MUSIC / SOUND

This is a game where the sound plays a very important part to the gameplay experience. Sure that statement should be true of all games, but with Animal Well the soundscape helps set an uneasy, unnerving tone from the start. It creates vibes that are perfectly matched to the visuals. It’s a true marriage of both great on their own, but together they are a powerhouse. There is very little in terms of a soundtrack. There are swells of musical moments that become familiar to their location within the map. There are some rooms that have no sound at all except the chipping of a bird or the squeaking of a hidden mouse. Other rooms are the sound of a running water or gears of a machine turning. Like the environments the sound and music are paired back to their essentials - nothing more nothing less. Like the set design of some elements the sound also indicates that there may be a secret in the room or a hidden object that you need to discover. Part of the joy of playing the game is learning to identify these sounds and then recognize them as you journey throughout the game. One of my favorite things about the sound in the game are the various sounds the animals, ghosts and creatures you encounter make. They are truly out of this world and I love that the sound designer made them so familiar and haunting at the same time. Truly a standout aspect of that needs to be heard by everyone!

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS

As a I said at the start of this review, this turned out to be my favorite game of 2024. Animal Well plonks you in a creepy and haunting environment and asks you to discover its secrets without holding your hand. As you discover the secrets of the well and find new areas to explore you confidence grows as do the challenges. It’s a game that ask you to simply study it’s mechanics, listen to it’s clues, look for the stuff hidden in plan site and don’t give up. It’s by no means a perfect game. Some of the challenges are so unclear you’ll likely give up in frustration or check a guide - both of which I did and still loved it. In the roughly 12 hours I played, I kept wanting to come back and see what else lurks within the next room or master the perfect platforming that was being demanded of me. In the end, I did those things and I feel like a bad ass for it. Go on, jump in the well and discover a brilliant video game that you won’t be able to put down.

OUT OF SYNC GAMING REVIEW SCORE | 9 out of 10

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Animal Well Review