It has been a while since I played an oddly satisfying game that doesn’t overachieve in what it’s trying to do. Sometimes that is all you’re really asking for when trying to briefly get away from reality that holds so much stress, doubt, and uncertainty. The game Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley delivers that satisfying escape without much effort.
Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley from developer Hyper Games takes a hand-drawn innocent adventure and simply asks the gamer to accomplish story-driven tasks. Packed with adorable characters and enjoyable humor, and fantastic musical instruments, there’s not much to dislike about the main character Snufkin, and their journey to restore Moominvalley to the way it once was – a lush and beautiful woodsy area brimming with life.
So, pack your instruments up, get that wheat tumbling through your teeth, and let’s talk about the relaxing game that is Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley.
Charm in its journey
Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley is a story about friendship and restoring a broken land to the way it was before ill intentions broke it. You play as Snufkin, a keeper of the woods, who comes back to Moominvalley to visit his best friend after the pair had to depart for the cold season. When Snufkin returns, he finds that his friend is missing and that the police have moved in to try to control Moominvalley and its residents for their own good. Armed with musical instruments and the need to get his best friend out of the custody of the police, Snufkin sets off on a long journey to make everything right.
The story of Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley isn’t anything we haven’t seen before in a game or a film. It contains the right amount of complication with its setup and a sprinkle of urgency with its crisis. The character of Snufkin is beautifully driven and the urgency that pushes him throughout his journey is more than justified and valid. Who wouldn’t want to upend evildoers and stand up for the land, and a friend that is in need? It’s not at all that serious but it’s serious enough to motivate the player to keep going.
Of course, since this is geared towards a younger audience, as well as adults looking for a less-than-call-of-duty experience, the story never gets too heavy-handed with its intensity. Rather, it just gives enough to make you feel like you’re accomplishing something and helping Snufkin without feeling as if there is ever real danger present. It’s a tough sweet spot to hit when telling a story to a wider audience, but Hyper Games gets there. They manage to keep the story engaging and interesting without pressing too hard on the player or their emotion.
I can dig a story like this and sometimes we just need a story such as this to give us a break from the real-world grind. It’s easy, it’s fun, and more importantly, it’s positively enjoyable. Seriously, it’s positive in its message.
Play that funky music
Okay, it’s not funky, but it is fun. The main weapon, for lack of a better word, in Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley is a bevy of instruments. The instruments come in the form of a harmonica, flute, and drum. Each serves a purpose to get through obstacles, control animals, and act as just dumb fun on occasion. The obstacles and animals can be as complicated as dancing crabs, singing birds, or maybe even just large piles of sand. Depending on the obstacle and animal, each instrument serves a particular purpose to interact with said things. For example, the previously mentioned dancing crabs, if I use the flute on the crabs, they dance to the music and eventually get tired and scurry away. The crabs block a cave entrance, and by using the flute to shoo them away, Snufkin can access that entrance and progress the overall story. That is about as hardcore as the instrument/enemies get with each other.
Having instruments as your main weapon in the game is fun. I can’t tell you how many times I went nuts on the drum just to enjoy its presence in the game. I’m not sure why using the drum was pleasing to the ear, but it was, and the ease of use in the game (using the R2 to pound it) was just delightful. Instruments instead of actual weapons just made the game a bit more entertaining, and a lot more appropriate for a younger crowd.
The instruments are upgradable, but only in numerical value. The instruments can be leveled up by collecting fireflies that come out of bushes and trees. The more fireflies collected, the quicker you level up instruments, and the more areas you can access with the instruments. Sure, it’s not the most complicated leveling system on the planet, but within Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley, it’s a steady motivation through leveling that keeps you pushing forward through enemies. You always want to give your players a reason to keep playing your game. And leveling your instruments to gain access to areas and defeat more powerful enemies is the way to do it. It’s a good way to get the player engaged with the journey.
As for the enemies you use these items on, none were particularly tough to get through, even by younger gamer standards. From pesky spiders preventing characters from their day-to-day lives to a character named Stinky who steals clothes from invisible children, there is a variety of personalities on the enemy side, none truly threatening. The lack of threat includes the lack of bosses and the lack of gradual difficulty. Even when the enemies are supposed to be menacing, they’re more cuter than curdled. Their patterns and personalities match perfectly with their demeanors, but all are easy to overcome, which again, is just right for a younger audience, and those looking for easy fun.
To add to that enemy ease, Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley does its best to avoid making the player feel like they are impending danger, as enemies generally are patterned in their movement and never really a threat to Snufkin. The only real threats in the game are the police, but if you are captured by them, the game just pushes you back a little and allows you to quickly try again. This curves the difficulty of the game significantly and keeps the experience positive, even when it is perceived not to be. I like this type of structure as it is welcoming to both younger and older players and those of us who simply need a break from AAA gaming.
These enemies do serve a greater purpose, though, and more than just targets to use instruments on. The enemies help to push the narrative along, as they help fill the world with imbalance and mild destruction. They add a layer of concern to a hurting world and tend to support the story that Snufkin is needed to restore balance. They’re just not thrown in so they can make the game interesting. They serve a story purpose and help to build out a healthy and developed world. It’s nice to see that there aren’t throwaway enemies that are ‘just’ there to be there.
Quests
While the main story is going to take you around 3-4 hours to complete, there are side quests that extend the gameplay just a tad. The side quests are essentially Snufkin helping other Moominvalley residents with a problem. For example, you will run into a character who had their gold anklet stolen by a thieving bird. You must locate the bird and retrieve it to get that character back to happiness. The task has no bearing on the overall storyline, but it’s simple side quests like this that add a sprinkle of extra charm to the game. In addition, and much like what you would find in Stardew Valley, just simply achieving a small quest makes the game a bit more player-positive.
There are a lot of these quests in the game. But, as stated earlier, they won’t add a tremendous amount of time to overall gameplay. Maybe that will be a turn-off for older gamers, but honestly, the total time with this game is probably just right for the younger crowd. If you can get a younger kid to sit and play a game for a total of five hours, then you are a candidate for parent of the year.
I think the time is adequate, as are the quests and their length.
Gorgeous art
When we first received this game, we were told it was hand-drawn. And truth be told, it is. It’s gorgeous art with a tinge of watercolor and a heaping helping of creativity. It’s a gorgeous game that has the right amount of cuteness and a large slice of adorable. The art is nice, and it plays directly to a younger crowd needing something innocent, cute, and humorous.
To complement the art, the music and sound effects are outstanding. I think I enjoyed the sound design way more than I thought I would. Whoever worked on that portion of the game deserves a raise. It sounded great and helped to audibly sell the world. The music from the instruments was second best in the audio category, as the music was charming, relaxing, and somewhat playful. Audio doesn’t get enough love in games, and games like Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley prove that it should.
On that note, let’s wrap up this review.
Conclusion
Snufkin: Melody of Moominvalley from developer Hyper Games is an adorable adventure led by a driven main character who is trying to protect his friend while keeping the environment around him free from nefarious control. While the gameplay only lasts about five hours total, the game is an easy treat to fall into and garnish a healthy amount of positivity from. It isn’t for everyone but younger gamers will enjoy the experience.
