A Bright Shadowy Existence: A SCHiM Review

By Manuel

Players: 1
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, XBox, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PC

When I first heard that a shadow-based platformer was on its way, I assumed that it would be something akin to a game where players followed the nonsense that Peter Pan's shadow got up to before it was reunited with him. While SCHiM isn't that at all, it is a platformer that manages to use its gameplay quirks to create something that's rather unique. Instead of taking giant leaps of faith from one random object to another, your task is to exist purely within the shadows. SCHiM is on its way to all major platforms, and we're going to be taking a look at the Nintendo Switch version today. We have a lot to cover in this one, so let's jump right in!

A lovely city.

Part of the brief childhood section.

Part of me wonders if SCHiM really has a story, as it promises one early on and then seems to forget about it. You spend the first few levels getting to learn the game tutorial-style, but you're also treated to various scenes showing your human grow up. You see the main character play with friends, go to school, get a girlfriend, get a job, and even get fired from that job. He then goes through a ridiculous series of misfortunes that culminates in him getting separated from his schim. I'm not really sure what a "schim" is, but the game's description makes it seem like his soul has wandered off. While the main goal of the game is to reunite with your schim's human, there are times when it feels like the game is just a series of random, non-related chapters. Each of the game's stages usually show the human in some way early on, who seems totally fine without his "soul" by the way, but you'll rarely focus on him by the end. More often than not he'll leave long before the stage is over, or your schim will get distracted and decide to do something random like go off with a group of ducks instead. SCHiM could've gone for a deep story, full of atmospheric details that give it weight, but only gets explores that in the barest of ways. That said, I actually preferred the randomness of the stages themselves, and ultimately wish the game had just committed to going that route in the first place. Either way, I ultimately loved the way the story was told, and ended up adding in my own head canon. I'm a sucker for interpretation, and I like to think of this game as a sort of "Schim's Day Out" where they cut loose with no human to bog them down. This is all neither here nor there of course, but I did want to outline the story a bit before moving on.

When our human gets fired...

There's so much atmosphere here.

Discussing gameplay in SCHiM is both an easy and a hard task, as there's a complexity that lurks beneath its shadowy simplicity. I guess I'll start with the easy descriptions first. SCHiM is divided into several levels, with each of them having a goal to hit. These goals are usually a moving character or object that takes you to the next area, and you can always check on the current goal with a button press. Getting to the goal is a matter of platforming, with shadows being the only way to move forward. Your jump is altered by the force of the button press, and you can alter your trajectory in mid-air. If you miss a shadow, you have a few seconds to jump into one before you respawn at the last checkpoint. Besides jumping, your schim can also interact with the object whose shadow you're in. Sometimes this is necessary action as you'll have to activate machines to extend their shadows, use signs as springboards, force an animal or character to wake up and move, or even turn on additional lights. Just as often though, these actions can just be pointless actions such as making a human shuffle or sneeze, cause a trash can to spit out its contents, and make cars honk. Though your goal can sometimes be right in front of you, there will be many times where you'll have to take a roundabout path to get there. Some levels are long endurance tests of your platforming skills, and some seem to be breaks in the story where you just hop across a straight line of shadows. All sounds simple right? Well, let's move on to discussing that aforementioned complexity.

Some thin shadows mean you can only hop in them.

An example of playing blind.

While much of your platforming will take place jumping between shadows, you'll also have to hitch a ride on moving objects to get around. These moving objects can be cars, bikes, and pedestrians, but can also be the most random things imaginable. Often there will be a lot of planning and timing involved, though that can all be ruined when a car you're hitching a ride on takes an unexpected turn, or when a very aggressive bike or pedestrian drags you out of your current shadow. There are also entire sections of levels that never need to be explored at all. Sometimes these areas contain collectables, but just as often I found that you can cheese certain areas with a well-timed lucky jump. I guess these parts of the game might have been placed intentionally, but I like to think that I've discovered a big secret whenever I realize I skipped a rather difficult platforming section. It's a really neat system that I honestly didn't think was going to work all that well when I first heard of the premise. Part of the reason the game plays so smoothly is the fact that SCHiM is pretty forgiving when it comes to missing a jump. Besides the fact that most safe zones seem to pull you in if you're close, you also get at least one jump to get to safety if you miss a shadow. This bit of extra life can even be extended if a moving vehicle casts it shadow over you before you respawn. This all makes for gameplay that is not as challenging as it first looks, and is indeed very welcoming to players of all skill levels.

I'll admit that I didn't think a game about jumping from shadow to shadow would be all that fun, I found myself playing through SCHiM in a few long sessions. There's an addicting aspect to the formula that I'm not sure how to describe. The game oozes charm, and I found myself caring about these characters that are given no characterization at all in the traditional sense. There are just so many little touches that keep one invested. The existence of other schims who eye you suspiciously, the way the levels seem to be made up of people going about their daily tasks, and even the way your human ignores the fact that his schim is on a Lord of the Rings-style journey to reunite with him. Even the loading screens themselves, which are abstract drawings of the object or animal that ended the previous level, were so cool that I found myself taking screenshots of them all. SCHiM is the definition of a cozy game, even though I don't usually think of platformers when I think of that descriptor. It's a clam, chill experience, there's no timer, no fail state, and no bad vibes at all. It's just fun.

A cool eagle eye view.

Just one of many hidden items.

Even though there's a part of me that wants to keep raving about SCHiM, there's a few things about them that bring down the experience at least a little bit. Right off the bat there's the fact that the gameplay is very limited due to the very same elements that make it unique. Jumping from shadow to shadow can only be done in so many different ways before it becomes stale, and the seemingly random length of the levels don't do much to help the situation. There are some levels that I wished would end just about as soon as they started, and then there were others that I thought would finally add something new to the gameplay, only to have them to last a minute or two. Then there's the camera that seems to fight with you every step of the way. SCHiM's camera is placed at a 3/4 view, and is able to be rotated. You'll have to rotate it often to get a view of the goal, but there are many times where your view will be blocked by buildings or the crowded levels themselves. Blind leaps of faith aren't exactly rare in platformers, but I wasn't expecting to have to make them in a game that is rather tight gameplay-wise elsewhere. If it weren't for those cozy vibes I mentioned earlier, and the fact that I truly wanted to see where the story was going, I don't think I would've put up with the game as long as I did. There's a lot to love within SCHiM's gameplay loop, I just wish that loop was more consistent.

A cool transition scene.

The other schims judge so hard.

Another part of the SCHiM formula that kept me around in spite of the repetitive gameplay would have to be the game's rather abstract visuals. Everything in SCHiM takes place in a (sort of) monochrome field, with one color making up much of the area. Everything is also depicted in outlines, but not in a way that feels like the developers were cheaping out or being lazy. Rather than lack definition, the art style adds a layer of cool that has to be seen in person to truly understand. On a technical level, the lack of multiple colors also helps the shadows stand out, and that's a good thing of course. Since the game is based around shadows, that does limit the settings to mostly outdoors. You'd think this would be a limitation, but SCHiM manages to make everything always feel new, and there are some areas that I wasn't expecting to see in a game like this. Then there's the animations, which are so smooth that no picture can ever do them justice. They look like something ripped from the best animated movies, and they're everywhere. It almost feels like you're playing an FMV game, and I mean that in the best of ways. I guess there might be some out there who might not dig the game's simplistic look, but I loved it. Also, in case you're wondering, the game runs perfectly on the Switch. I really can't think of any big negative to say about the visuals, so I guess we'll move on.

Music and sound are another standout part of SCHiM, and the soundtrack is equal parts lively as it is cozy. There are some tunes that lull one into a sense of complacency, and others that feel perfect for taking a stroll down the avenue. I promise you that those two are completely different soundscapes, and SCHiM captures both perfectly. There aren't any action-packed themes, but that makes sense when you take into account the type of game this is. I might even check out this game's soundtrack when I'm done to add its music to my chill work playlist. It's not just the music though, as there are even some cool sound effects that add to the overall experience. The "ping" that comes with a level completion is particularly satisfying, but I also love the squishy sounds your schim makes while moving. I find it weird saying that a game's sound design is full of endearing moments, but I don't know what else to call it when I spend more time than necessary making a car honk or a geese honk.

The park was my favorite level.

Hopping from one car to another can be fun.

Even though SCHiM has a very simple premise, it's a surprisingly long game. It kind of fools you at times as you'll breeze through a handful of levels, only to find that the next one is downright gigantic. There's also all those collectable items that are sure to drive completionists to scan the corners of every level. I don't think I'll ever go that far, but I did manage to grab quite a few in my own run. There's a decent amount of content here, even though part of me wonders if it's enough to justify its current price. I don't like to pick on the pricing structure of indie games very often, but I find SCHiM's current $24.99 price point to be a bit high. That's about half of what a major release costs, and this isn't anywhere near that level of polish or content. I don't want to knock the game too much, or end the review on a negative note, but this was something I felt worth mentioning.

Each level looks so unique.

Oh, and I'm a duck now.

All my slight misgivings about price and longevity of the gameplay formula aside, I still give SCHiM the fullest of recommendations. It's cute, quirky, fast-moving, and there really isn't any other game like it out there. It's also challenging, but with the difficulty set at just the right level where players of all skill levels can still enjoy it. I did find myself occasionally wishing that there was more to do in-game, but maybe the developers will tackle that issue in a sequel or follow up. One can only hope. Anyway, pick it up on whatever platform you can and stay out of the current summer heat by staying in the sun with your schim. See you in the next one!

Check Out SCHiM on Nintendo Switch:
https://www.nintendo.com/us/store/products/schim-switch/

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Story: A
Gameplay: B+
Graphics: A-
Music/Sound: A
Value: B

Overall: A-

Pros:
+ Manages to pull off the near impossible by creating a platforming title that feels totally unique.
+ While the story is very much open to interpretation, it was a joy to follow and is what kept me playing to the end.
+ Owing to the lack of a fail state, as well as anything resembling a timer, SCHiM is a game for players of all skill levels.
+ The look and feel of the world is impressive, with some of the best animations I've ever seen in a video game.
+ Music and sound effects add to the game's cozy vibes in ways that have to be heard to be understood.
+ Hitching a ride on a dog, cat, or duck is always fun.

+/- Never really explains what a "schim" is. The description says this is a game about a man who loses his shadow, but it's more like a man who gets separated from the frog-like creature that lives in his shadow.

Cons:
- There is a lot of repetition in the gameplay, and some of its charm does wear off after a while.
- The controls can be a bit finicky, and there are some parts of the game where the camera seems to be fighting against you every step of the way.
- It can sometimes be confusing as to where to go next, and frantically searching for shadows is not a skill most players are familiar with.
- Feels priced a little high at $24.99

A copy of this game was provided to us free-of-charge by the publisher for the purpose of this review. This did not affect our review in any way.

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If you want to find me, I'll be out fishing!

#SCHiM