Papo & Yo is one of those rather confusing games that like to mess around with the idea of a review “code”. Taken on a purely mechanical level, Papo & Yo is disappointing simply due to simplicity of the puzzles and incredibly awkward jumping controls however, and this is what makes this review process so awkward, it hides a fantastic, dark story that sticks with you far beyond the actual gameplay ever could.
PSLS: "Five years ago indie studio Minority Media released Papo & Yo on the PlayStation Store. The 3D puzzle-platformer features contrasting settings of a fantasy world where monsters exist and the broken down favelas of Brazil. As the player continues solving block puzzles and attempting to keep their friendly beast of a partner away from the frogs that enrage him, they start to learn that this isn’t a story of fantasy, but of a young boy trying to find an escape from an alcoholic and abusive father."
This game and it's meaning are very deep. If you know the developers story and depending on your own childhood playing this game can be a healing or scar opening experience.
It's great that this excellent game helped you grow. I never had to deal with the things this game portrays in my home, but one a dead on analogy for one of my friends and his Dad. It was scary when he'd come home drunk at 1 or so in the morning. The guy I talked to at dinner with the nice smile and kind eyes was gone replaced by a beast of a man who was willing to scream at and hit his family for apparently no reason.
I find it odd that videogames as a medium are so disregarded as an art form/medium that can convey powerful messages. I almost feel like movies lately have lost that touch because they are just being churned out to be churned out. Meanwhile, there seems to be more videogames that have made made me go through a broad range of emotions and sometimes connect with in game characters on a more personal level. I also love how music and sounds in videogames has come so far to become very effective for setting moods and eliciting feelings as well.
How often can you pick up a good game for less than R50? How about eight great games for R47? The new Indie Legends 5 bundle from Bundle Stars packs eight of the best Indie titles of the year (valued at over R1400) into one great bundle, and it only costs $3.49 (R47.22)!
While dementia and Alzheimer’s impact the lives of millions, it’s a relatively rare subject in the escapist fantasy worlds of video games. Not surprising. Who wants to be reminded of a disease that has no known cure and that robs people of their memories and identities?
"Parable: Papa & Yo Review"
Ahem.
...This was one of my most anticipated games, for it's shear emotional punch that it was packing, and what kills me is that the execution isn't (at least from the sound of it) nearly as polished as it should be, which detracts from an otherwise honest game in an industry saturated with impersonal, distant, cold videogame heroes with only killing on their mind.
I loved it a lot. I played post-1.01, and I'm assuming that fixed all the crap that lead IGN to give it a 4/10.
Actually, it was the first game to make me tear up a bit.