Deer & Boy

What a gem of a game. Deer and Boy is a heartfelt game about loss and friendship. It doesn't hold your hand and lets you explore the different possibilities for solving the puzzles. The puzzles are not to difficult, but a few you need to really think about, letting the story unravel at a nice pace. The art direction is incredible and makes you fall in love with this world. I always enjoy a game that makes me feel something and in the end I loved this game.

Deer & Boy is a far more emotional journey than I expected - to be honest I really was expecting to play as a young boy returning a baby deer to its herd. That isn't what happened in the slightest! It moved into far more meaningful territory, pertaining to grief and loss. But enough of that and let's focus on the actual gameplay - for me it all worked seamlessly without glitches or bugs which given how early I played after release says a lot about the amount of testing that must have gone on. There is no dialogue but it isn't needed to know what to do within each stage of the game - the characters indicate what has to be done and it is simply down to us following the clues. There is chapter select making it possible to go back for any missed collectibles which I appreciate in a game. I just wish it had a replayability factor but with the story, I don't think that is the aim or the point. I have put a walkthrough on my channel for anyone who is interested: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLgmxeAO4ZZ06Os7tfo0yl7XoUzO59N7FH

Beautiful little game. The art style was gorgeous, and some scenes looked like paintings. It was an emotional little adventure, and I liked seeing the deer grow up throughout the story. The game is very short and only took me two evenings, but it still tells a nice story. My only real complaint is the ending scene. I understand the visual style, but the abnormally huge hands completely ruined the moment for me. Still enjoyed it and would recommend.

I've had my eye on Deer & Boy since it was announced because it reminded me of "A Boy and His Blob" and I'm a sucker for cinematic platformers with stealth elements like the classic Oddworld games and Heart of Darkness. The presentation: Quite stellar, it has a cinematic angle and the vistas and locations feature a beautiful cell shaded art-style that is pleasing on the eyes with a lighting engine that is fantastic with deep and strong dynamic shadows that dart around the levels and interact with lights. The amount of care that was put in animating the deer is incredible, the sense of weight and flowing motion is rendered with beautiful care and attention to detail. The music is downright phenomenal, if Corentin Brasart's “The words I’d wish to say" track doesn't make you cry, you're completely heartless. The story: It all begins with the boy leaving his home and heading off to some undisclosed location which will take him through worksites, forests, sewers, caverns, power plants, caves and much more. "Show, don't tell" is the key of the game's story, it will become obvious by the end what was the reason for the boy's journey, which just happens to lead him to his faithful encounter with the deer, whose fate ends up being entwined with his, as they both bond over their common grief. During their journey, the pair encounters a strange slime that transforms animals into ferocious beasts; however, to the great surprise of both the boy and the fawn, it turns out that the latter has the power to undo the slime's effects and calm the beasts down. The great secret of "Deer & Boy" lies within this slime. Step by step, we discover that it conceals far more than meets the eye, and that every patch of slime dissolved becomes an opportunity for the boy to confront his past, his fears, and his traumas. Needless to say, if you've experienced loss, like I have, this game will resonate with you in a way you didn't imagine. The gameplay: Surprisingly varied, it starts off simple enough with stealth, then it evolves with puzzles involving your adorable deer fawn friend which will gradually grow up during the story and that will bring new mechanics to the table: If at the start of the story the fawn is defenseless and can only stay in your little backpack (cute) to hold a platform and occasionally get in trouble, by the end he'll be an invaluable asset that will go out of his way to protect you from dangers, get to far away places for puzzle solving and lift you up platforms, the gameplay is simple but it keeps evolving as the deer grows, like a crescendo that culminates in the final stretch that has an outright explosion of emotion and gameplay. Without spoiling anything there will be quite a few surprises, I hope you're a fan of [spoiler] Robot Unicorn Attack ;^) [/spoiler] If you enjoy platformers, light puzzles, a bit of stealth, deers and good music, chances are you'll have a great time. Lifeline Games manages to strike a perfect balance between the story it tells, the way it presents it, and how it asks the player to experience it. And if that doesn't convince you, here's a final disclaimer: The game features a dedicated "cuddle" button with the deer, also one of the achievements is called "Metal Deer Solid". [i] Do I need to say more? [/i] Do yourself a favour and grab this must have.

Sublime jeu.. une lumière dans l'obscurité. La direction artistique qui illumine les yeux.. l'histoire qui touche au plus profond de l'âme.. une B.O qui embellit l'aventure. Gros coup de cœur. Merci.. ♡

Short and sweet, and doesn't end with tragedy.

A side-scrolling narrative-focused adventure not unlike Limbo, Inside and Planet of Lana; it's gorgeous, heartwarming, well paced despite its short length and clearly made with a ton of care and love. If it sounds like something you'd like and you can afford it, definitely give it a try.