Video Game Review: Mosaic

Mosaic

Studio: Krillbite Studio

Genre: Adventure

Platform: Nintendo Switch, PC

“Haunting” is perhaps the best word to describe Mosaic. The game paints a surprisingly relatable, albeit bleak, picture of the life of a struggling office worker. Our protagonist has no name, is pretty much featureless, and in this sense, he could be any one of us. The game takes us few a couple of days of his life, charting the mind-numbing routine and dullness of his experience. Small patches of colour and light offer respite to this depressing monotony, offering the hope for another path.  Thanks to a talking goldfish (yes, really) we’re offered another route and a chance to escape from the protagonist’s existence of just being another cog in the corporate machine.

Mosaic is a Norwegian produced game, with a very strong visual style that makes it stand out from some of the other indie games on offer. Clocking in at a relatively short 3-4 hours in length time, it doesn’t overstay its welcome. Honestly, much longer and the repetition of the protagonist’s days may have gotten frustrating. Even so, the game plays annoyingly slow at times – the protagonist’s movements and actions are often slow, hindered by the passing of his fellow workers. It feels realistic and adds to the social commentary the game is creating, but it’s also irritating from a gameplay perspective. This is not a game to be played fast – this is a game that invites thoughtful introspection and examination of the world’s environment.

There are a few noticeable lags throughout which can make the slow progress, even more, a struggle, which is a shame as on the Nintendo Switch it feels like this shouldn’t be an issue. There’s also a genuine sense and feeling of being lost and having no real purpose which pervades the game. There is no tutorial at the beginning and only minimal commands on offer – essentially Mosaic is a point and click game with you moving the protagonist from one location to another, occasionally interacting with things. Many of these appear banal such as straightening your tie every morning, lining up for the subway and checking the incessant notifications your phone beeps at you. They reinforce the rigidity and repetition of the protagonist’s routine and often you’re tempted to just ignore them altogether. You’re neither rewarded for punished for completing these actions which make it feel somewhat trivial ultimately. And, perhaps that’s the point.

Visually, is where this game really shines – much of the protagonist’s world is seen in monotones and dull colours but there’s an impressive range of light and shade conveyed despite this. Of course, such a dull colour palette just serves to make the moments of colour (usually from the character interacting with musicians or the environment) all the more magical and it feels like a real escape and relief. Interspersed with the protagonist’s own daydreams or fantasies, often featuring him swimming in a vast ocean it adds a surreal, almost mythical sense to the game. The minigame the protagonist performs each day at work can be frustrating at times but offers perhaps the only real puzzle for the players, though it can still be completed without any real issue. This game is more of an experience for the player than a difficult game to get through.

Weirdly, the game reminded me somewhat of Alice: Madness Returns with it’s strong emphasis on imagery and symbolism and the ambiguous nature of the characters. At times, the setting grew extremely nightmarish such as workers all being moved down a conveyer belt or numerous suited arms grasping at the protagonist as he ventures down an alleyway. It’s extremely odd and you’re left with the sense that you’re the only really ‘human’ person in a world populated mainly by robots. Ultimately, this is a game about seeing the beauty in the world, despite the ugliness and escaping from a life that has no meaning – and finding your own joy in the world. The game is intriguing, if not incredibly enjoyable and is a nice little thought experiment in between all the other loud and noisy games out there.