The world is full of terrific games, but if I could only bring two types of games to a deserted island with my gal, I would choose narrative games and co-op games. There are very few games that fit both of those, but Degrees of Separation does a terrific job of it.
Degrees of Separation released on Valentine’s Day 2019, which was a perfectly fitting day for it since it’s an amazing co-op game. The game features two very different characters who come from different worlds. The two meet but are unable to touch; a barrier separates not only the two of them but also their worlds. Ember comes from a warm, vibrant world, whereas Rime’s world is cold and desolate, and a very real divide literally keeps them apart. This divide alters all kinds of things – it causes water to freeze or melt, powers or deactivates machinery, and does all other sorts of things.
It’s a good thing that it worked out this way, though, because you’ll need to use both characters to solve dozens of puzzles! Degrees of Separation walks one or two players (local only for now, but online is coming eventually) through several separate areas. Each of these areas is full of puzzles, and you’ll need to use your respective worlds to solve them. Each world also adds a unique twist on the barrier between the worlds, and the narrator uses these changes as brilliant metaphors for the two protagonists and their relationship. One area causes the rift between you two to explode when you get near each other, for example, and the narrative expertly blends this in with the story of the two former strangers who are experiencing each other’s worlds for the first time.
Because each area messes with the game’s original formula so much, the puzzles all seem unique. I never felt like I was just doing the exact same thing again, even though there are a good dozen or so puzzles in each area. Opening up a new area requires a number of collectibles, and even though we barely got any of them in the explosive area (it’s very reliant on accurate jumping, something neither of us was great at), we only had to go back and earn one more of them the entire playthrough.
All of this comes together to create a rather magical amalgamation of co-op glory. The puzzles easily could’ve been broken up into sublevels like many puzzle games, but putting them all together into separate areas gives the game a much better, smoother flow. Making all of the puzzles optional until the final area means that if you’re stuck, you can merely come back later with fresh eyes. And the narrative between puzzles brings the world to life and really makes this a beautiful journey.
I loved that these new abilities in each area aren’t carried over. If you complete the first area and go back after completing several more, you won’t have any new tools to solve puzzles. I also loved that each character has their own separate world and changes things in their own way. This meant that each of us had to do different parts of things, but we were both able to explain what we thought needed to be done. This may not have always been the most peaceful experience, but solving puzzles is a passionate experience! The art is beautiful, the narration and story are both excellent and touching, and the music is excellent (although I recommend lowering it a bit in the settings to make the narrative easier to hear).
Both my gal and I had a terrific time with Degrees of Separation, and I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for future games from Moondrop (the developers) and Modus Games (the publisher) now!
Degrees of Separation is available on Nintendo Switch (reviewed), Xbox One, PS4, and Steam (Windows only).
A review code was provided for this review.
