MO:Astray

Genre: Platformer

Players: 1

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Review:

MO:Astray is a Platformer where players control a little blue blob in a futuristic research facility that has befallen a horrific disaster. As players work their way through the facility, evade its dangers, and confront the monsters that now stalk the area, they gradually piece together the events that transpired here, the identity of the friendly voice calling to them, as well as just exactly who or what they are. This game was released on PC in 2019 and ported to the Nintendo Switch in 2020.

MO:Astray’s 2D visuals are a bit tough to describe. I might almost call them pixel art graphics, except they’re not as clearly-defined as pixel art tends to be, instead looking blotchy and a bit vague. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing though – it gives much of the game a slightly-abstract look, prompting players to visualize the horrors these visuals represent. These visuals are backed by a subdued, dramatic soundtrack that does a good job of highlighting both the tragedy that has clearly befallen the places you explore, as well as the inherent danger that threatens you as you proceed.

While the visuals are intriguing in and of themselves, the gameplay is similarly inventive. Jumping as the blob is not done with a simple button press, but by aiming and flinging your blob in a direction using the right control stick. This requires some degree of thoughtfulness as you proceed through a level, as you need to consider your trajectory carefully. The game continues to add more clever mechanics as you progress as well, such as an ability to essentially possess the minds of the monsters stalking the corridors, both to use them to assist in solving puzzles, as well as to gain greater insights into what happened by scanning their memories for when they were once human.

One of the more compelling elements of this game is piecing together exactly what happened in the game’s backstory. It’s clear pretty early on that not only did some terrible disaster befall this place, but that the sort of research being done was highly questionable (to put it mildly). What exactly happened here? What were these people trying to accomplish? Was their fate perhaps deserved? Even more than the clever gameplay, these questions drive the player to continue forward.

When it comes to complaints, I suppose my main point of contention is that there are often points in the game where it’s unclear just what you’re supposed to do next. Thankfully you’re usually limited in the area you can navigate before you move onward, but it can be a bit frustrating to flail around for a bit before stumbling on the correct solution. Also, while the way you move in this game is clever and original, it did make for more than a few frustrating moments where it took multiple attempts to try to properly judge the trajectory of a tricky jump.

Still, overall MO:Astray is a fantastic Platformer with unique gameplay and a compelling story. If you enjoy a Platformer that takes a more thoughtful approach to the genre, this is a game you’ll definitely want to try out.

tl;dr – MO:Astray is a Platformer that has you flinging a little blue blob around a destroyed research facility. The gameplay here is clever and original, and the compelling story does a good job propelling you to keep moving forward. There are a few small frustrations here, but overall this is an excellent, thoughful Platformer well worth playing.

Grade: B+

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This game has been nominated for one or more of eShopperReviews 2020 Game Awards:

Runner-Up: Best Platformer

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