Wind Peaks (2020)

I picked this up for ultra-cheap on the eShop about a week ago, and have strictly played it for just a little bit before bed each night (minus the weekend). I've got to double-check how many levels there were, but it was around 12. I typically got through one and a half before getting sleepy, so it was a good way to wind down each night.

There is a very slight story, in which a group of young campers is going from area to area after you solve each map. Between maps, a little animated comic strip pops up to show what's going on with the campers during their journey. There really isn't any text, but it's not exactly complicated.

This functions a little differently from the typical hidden object games that I've played, in that you have a much larger map to scan over in each level, rather than one single unmoving screen. You scan over a pretty large forest-y area looking for the required items and interacting with some other objects. Most of the interactive items don't really do anything; you can shake certain tree types, click on a tractor to turn it on, open windows of cottages, etc. More often than not, this won't do anything, but occasionally an item might be inside of a window or in a tree. Other times, you'll have to find a few different switches hidden around the map and hit them all before a certain item will show. Sometimes, the first item in your required list will interact with another item, like a bone that you need to hold in order to get a dog that will otherwise run from your cursor.

There were also a couple of ongoing "challenges" which were easy enough to complete. Three of the levels had a totem that was broken into pieces, and you just had to stack it before finding the last item and ending the level. There were also several levels with glass bottles throughout the map, and a couple of recycling bins to throw them in. Once you got 25 across the levels, that challenge was met.

In short, this game is very simple, but some of the items were tough to find because of the rather sprawling map and the fact that many of the items blended well with the landscape that is primarily green/brown/beige. It was a good daily wind-down, presented some tougher objects to find, and had some interactive elements. I do wish there had been more variety in the areas, other than a few structures and water features.

NOTE: This review is part of my steam curator review and is the extended version. Check my steam curator page at https://store.steampowered.com/curator/39607348-Random-Game-Reviews-by-Labprofess/ . Follow appreciated!
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Wind peaks is a different game than those I typically review on my curator page. But that's the fun of running a random game curator where you aren't constrained to a specific genre but instead can try out games from all kinds of genres and see what you like and what you don't. This might as well be my first ever puzzle game. I cant recon ever having played one. Now to the game, Wind peaks is a puzzle game, with new puzzles every map and a short but hilarious story to it. The type of puzzle this game focuses on is finding the hidden objects, but occasionally there's an extra easter egg puzzle. Nice to switch it up a bit. You are part of a group of children camping out in the wild exploring whatever your next quest brings you too. Without spoiling too much let's continue

Wind peaks has beautiful graphics. The graphics of the game are amazingly clear. I love the bright use of color - not to bright but enough to look like a child friendly game. The art style is also amazing with its cube kindoff shapes. How the world maps are basically oval shaped is awesome as well. It would be neater however if when you zoom in the game looks a bit more crisp. You do see the edges at that point but it's not too bad. This game also features beautiful and calm background sound. While many games have loud background sound that's distractive making you want to turn down the volume, this game doesn't. The background sound is just enough to not be too repetitive and distracting, but also soothing and perfectly fitting the scenery. What I also noticed is that the game pauses automatically if you open the steam overlay or switch windows. A small but nice feature which is missing from a lot of games. However, regarding this genre I personally dont think its very needed as there aren't any background processes running in the game which if left unattended change the gameplay.

Having now looked at what this game is about and its performance, now comes the question on if this game is for you. It depends. Yes, the game runs perfectly without issues. Any potato could run it. So that's not the issue. (btw, it will release on Xbox and playstation October 27th if you still doubt you can run it). The issue is whether you are into puzzle games or not. Obviously they require patience (which I have learned) and focus, both not for everyone. While I personally enjoyed it, I can imagine some wouldn't. Especially those into fast paced games. However, if you're into slower games such as building games or that require focus and skill such as strategy games, then I could see you enjoying this game as well. However, that doesn't mean those into fast paced games shouldnt give this a go: It's always a nice change to try out something new and maybe you enjoy it. I would recommend giving this game a try and see for yourself. Have fun!