Sable (2021)

When I say 'open-world game', what comes to mind for most of us is a busy world - one that's represented by a minimap chock full of icons, each one indicating a task or quest that needs to be completed. But what if it was a sparsely populated desert of a world? One that's scattered with crashed spaceships from the pages of science fiction, fantastical towers that rise perpetually into the sky, ruins of old that hint at long-forgotten history, and mysterious structures that beg for exploration? That's the world that Sable presents.

With such an exploration-oriented backdrop, Sable is a journey of exploration and discovery, and through it, the formation of the protagonist's identity. Sable's (the protagonist and the game share the same name) coming-of-age journey is what we experience in the game, and each player would experience it differently. You can hunt down every quest and complete them, or you can simply go climbing up the tallest ruins, you can go looking for the various creatures of the world, or more realistically, you would do a little bit of everything.

Because the exploration is driven by a sense of curiosity and a desire to find a sense of purpose, the game decides to forgo combat entirely. Nothing in this world is going to hurt Sable. An item called the Gliding stone allows Sable to glide safely at any point, protecting her from falling. You - and Sable - are encouraged to try things and make mistakes, and the game absolutely forgives you for it.

It's been a while since I've had a gaming experience that lingered in my mind, and Sable is absolutely one of them. Every player will experience it differently, and maybe not all players would like it. But then, our lives, backgrounds, experiences and perspectives are different, and the game simply reflects that. If you're in the mood for something calm and contemplative, please give Sable a try.

Sable is an artsy game. It’s designed to be the antithesis of a typical “video game ass” video game; there is no high score to reach, heads to shoot off or levels to gain. Sable encourages players to wander out into the dunes and discover their own fun, instead of telling players what to do and where to go. Unfortunately the game suffers from a litany of technical issues including frame stuttering and a glitchy camera. Bugs aside, I found Sable to be an enlightening open world experience.

You play as Sable, a member of a nomadic tribe known as the Ibexii. She is about to embark on a rite of passage known as The Gliding. Sable must leave her tribe to learn about the world and return wearing a new mask that symbolizes her growth. In this fantasy world, the identity of a person is based on the mask they wear. People such as the Machinists, Scrappers and Merchants each have their own unique masks. By exploring the world and doing quests, Sable earns badges which she can exchange for masks. Once Sable obtains a new mask, she can end the game at any time by returning to her tribe.

Sable’s open ended nature is refreshingly liberating compared to padded games that long overstay their welcome. Sable can either be finished in a single sitting or extend to a dozen hours. The game reminds me of an indie game called Her Story, where players can choose to end it whenever they want. Sable does not demand players to tick all the checkboxes. In fact, I didn’t even explore every single biome when I finished the game. As far as I know, there is no secret ending or bonus content for doing every single quest or getting all the masks.

Sable plays almost identically to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. There is a stamina bar that drains when running or climbing environments. Sable can use the Gliding Stone to traverse great distances from a high point. She can set navigation waypoints based on her point of view. There are cartographers located in high points in each region who can fill out the map. There are also puzzle rooms, albeit not as complex as Zelda, that often involve transferring batteries to power on and off machinery. Instead of a horse, there is a hover bike that Sable can ride which can be upgraded with new parts with scrap earned exploring the world and completing quests. The only noticeable feature that Sable does not copy is the combat, because there is no combat at all. In a sense, it’s a bit disappointing coming from someone who also enjoys traditional video games because there is no danger or conflict. Sable can fall for thousands of feet and come out unharmed. You cannot lose in Sable.

The game has a unique stop-motion comic book aesthetic set in an imaginative desert world. It is artistically striking, but not technically impressive. There is very little fauna outside of towns making traveling from point to point very bleak. Outside of the fantastic opening title theme “Glider” by Japanese Breakfast, the rest of the music is forgettable. On paper, hopping on a hoverbike and traveling across the landscape sounds thrilling but in practice it is very boring. In fact, riding the hoverbike was my least favorite part due to the game’s technical issues.

You don’t need to read just my review to know about it, but Sable is technically incompetent. The game suffers from horrendous frame stuttering when riding the hoverbike. I was experiencing frame stutters even while using an Adaptive Sync Display with the lowest possible settings. My PC rig doesn’t have the beefiest CPU and GPU out there, but can play AAA games like the Witcher 3 at 1440p with medium settings at a steady 60 FPS. Playing Sable in the meantime was a nightmare, my framerate would constantly fluctuate between 40 and 120 FPS. Sable isn’t exactly a technical masterpiece so there should be no reason for these frame stutters. Outside of frame stutters, the camera would occasionally glitch out. There are numerous times when I would talk to an NPC and the camera would be obscured by the environment. The camera would also clip through the floor or ceiling in narrow rooms that involve stairs. Other annoying bugs include an NPC that I could not buy from and texture glitches where the lighting on it would strobe intermittently.

Sable is a low-stakes, chill adventure game about discovering yourself and who you want to be. The rite of passage that Sable goes on can be perceived as a metaphor for working or studying abroad. It’s about exploring a foreign land to figure out what clicks and what doesn’t. And when the adventure is over and Sable returns to her tribe, it is enlightening to see how much she has changed. I enjoyed exploring the world, but due to the numerous frame stuttering issues I ended the journey earlier than preferred. I don’t know when these technical issues will be resolved, but I cannot wholeheartedly recommend Sable at this state.

I played Sable on an Xbox Series S, and here is a list of some of the technical issues I ran into throughout my playthrough:

• Frame drops so severe they sometimes dipped into the single digits
• Choppy, distorted audio sometimes lasting several seconds
• Camera that would zoom in erratically in confined environments or during conversations, making it absolutely impossible to see what I was doing until it decided to zoom back out again
• UI icons intermittently not showing up so I wouldn't know which NPCs I could talk to or which objects in the environment I could interact with
• Physics glitches where my bike would seemingly run into an invisible object and spiral out of control
• Speaking of the bike, calling it to me worked only about half the time
• Achievements randomly not showing up when I acquired them, so I had to keep checking manually to see if they popped or not
• The dialogue selection box disappearing mid-conversation, forcing me to restart the game as there was no way to continue
• Auto-saving ceasing to function, followed by the game freezing upon a fast travel, forcing me to restart the game and lose about 20 minutes of progress
• Map moving around on its own and showing icons in the incorrect locations
• Shops displaying the wrong names for items when purchasing stuff
• Loot notifications permanently displaying on screen instead of fading away
• Tutorial prompts from the beginning of the game nonsensically showing up 10+ hours in
• Graphical clipping out the wazoo

And those are just the ones I can remember off the top of my head! Horribly programmed is an understatement; the game is practically one big threading issue. Which is why the single biggest compliment I can think of to pay Sable is that despite all of the above -- and also its shallow and somewhat boring mechanics -- I still found it to be an artistic triumph.

At its core, Sable takes the experiential structure of Breath of the Wild and uses it to effectively evoke more personal and standardly relatable themes: namely, the transition from adolescence into adulthood and the general pursuit of a meaningful life that goes along with that. This is a coming of age story that you feel through interactions instead of are told, and its final choice challenges you to role-play in a unique way that I can't really think of any other game doing. While contemplating it, I created an entire post-game life in my head for my Sable without even realizing what I was doing. That's pretty cool.

And let's not forget about the art style. Man. A ceaseless barrage of images you just wanna freeze frame and hang on your wall. My first time seeing some of the game's locations gave me those inexplicable awe feelings you can't quite describe but wanna try to anyway. Throw in a charming script, nostalgic animation style, otherworldly sound design, and a soundtrack with maximum chill, and you got the kinda fictional world you just wanna cozy up inside and live for a while. The simplistic platforming, samey fetch quests, and easy puzzles -- none of that bothered me because it was all sold to me so convincingly by the game world and my character's role in it. Even the game's lack of fail states is explained both mechanically and thematically by Sable's temporary possession of a powerful artifact which essentially renders her impervious to physical damage, as it brings to mind our own transitionary period when we still had the room to experiment and fail. That's also pretty cool.

It's a crying shame that Sable is such a technical travesty. This is the kind of game you want as little player friction in as possible so they can soak up every little atmospheric detail and audio flourish with relish as they bliss out and explore the world. The designers clearly intended for that to be the case, but they just didn't have the programming chops to pull it off. I think that alone is going to put a HUGE dent in the number of players that decide to stick the game through to the end, which is highly unfortunate (though I can't blame them -- it really is that bad). Nevertheless, I personally found Sable's artistic vision to be exceptionally strong and communicated with such sincerity and clarity that despite my immersion being almost constantly interrupted it still struck a very pleasant and resonant chord with me.

the good:

• the exploration is a joy and always "rewarding". you'll naturally and smoothly progress from one location to another, because there is always a point of interest on the horizon. there are tons of interesting spots to find and explore, often providing a unique and spectacular view or a special atmosphere. of course there are some treasures to be found as well, but don't expect to find some huge riches out there.
• gorgeous graphics and one of the most unique artstyles i've ever seen. artistic appealing from start to finish. there are spectacular views and atmospheric moments all over the place, it's a pleasure.
• the story is vague and let's be real, kinda non existent, but sable is one of those rare games, where you don't actually need a complex plot and intriguing story telling to keep you hooked. it's more of a build your own adventure kind of game, since there isn't such thing like an evil threat to fend off, no huge quest to save to world and no wonder to achieve. it's a meditative and philosophical ride, all about what you're doing with your time while being out there exploring the vast and mysterious world full of interesting people and abandoned temples, crashed space ships and other fancy locations. what did you learn from all those impressions and what's your final decision, shaping your future?
• calm and abstract soundtrack, just like the games atmosphere. quite impressive stuff from japanese breakfast.
• decent amount of collectibles and stuff to find. pretty much nothing is marked on your map, except the chum eggs, when you found it. i kinda liked this concept, since it kept the exploration fresh, but made backtracking for 100% bearable. the chum eggs are placed very well, so it is quite easy to find enough for the achievement. keep in mind there are a lot more out there and those are hidden a lot better.
• which brings us directly to the next positive, i quite liked the map progression. its pretty much all empty at first. you have travel the dessert without any clue and have to obtain the map parts from cartographers in the different regions. if you've found a place of interest, it will be marked on your map and those spots will turn into quick travel locations as well.
• decent amount of quests to be found and they're pretty diverse as well. the game got some interesting characters, so i've enjoyed most of the dialogues as well. there were quite some gems, like elissabets quest line, the philosophical llhor quest and the hilarious shade quest, to name a couple of examples.
• i'm usually a huge fan of movement abilities and climbing. of course sable isn't an exception to this, so i've quite enjoyed the gliding ability and the ability to climb on almost any surface, except some of the metal ones to secure some puzzles and platforming, just being limited by the stamina "bar" for climbing and gliding doesn't even use stamina at all. expanding the amount of stamina over the course of the game makes the climbing part even better.
• despite all of the zones are desserts, they are looking still different and unique. all zones definitely have their own flavor and atmosphere, loved it.
• the game has some fun and laid back puzzle and platforming.
• different outfits for sable and customization for simoon (the bike).
• dune flair

the debatable:

~ there is no combat or any threat at all, so keep that in mind before buying the game or you could get disappointed.

~ the cutscene when obtaining a mask should be skipable since it's the same for any of the masks and takes like forever.

the bad:

• the flavor text of the collectibles (chum eggs and scrap metal for example) is always the same. instead of some plain item description, it could be used for lore and world building. definitely lost some potential there.
• unfortunately the games optimization is a bummer. frames ranging from around 30 to 120+ on certain occasions. frames droping like wild for no reason and a couple of other fps issues. at least my average frames were decent enough to keep playing.
• some smaller bugs and glitches here and there. npcs stuck on obstacles, obstacles floating in the air or glitching with other ones, sable switching the mask after restarting the game and many more. nothing major gamebreaking tho, but if you're bothered easily by smaller issues, probably waiting for some fixes and updates would be better.

10/10

Critic's Score

Metacritic (PC): 77/100

GameSpot: 90/100

Game Informer: 8.75/10

IGN: 7/10

Review

Sable, the indie game debut from Shedworks. A game that establishes exploration and player freedom as its maxim, cannot shed its superfluous nature and derivative design. There are games that have already explored the correlation of journey and personal growth, some of them accomplish to allow the player with the characters themselves. Journey, is a game that comes to mind. It's starting point is quite similar, as you play as an unnamed being, dressed in a bright red tunic, faceless, enough for the player to project themselves into the bipedal being and create bonds with the other players joining and aiding on the trek through the dunes. The self-discovery throughout the gameplay, which is even more minimal in its design that Sable's, happens as much in the player themselves that in the avatar they are embodying. Hideo Kojima's Death Stranding, also comes to mind, a game where the journey the player makes, it's always an adventure filled with peril, beauty and bonding with other unseen players. The setting is quite similar, and the focus on traversal is also there. Yet, what those games accomplish that Sable does not, is creating early on a bond with the character and the journey they begin.

Its cel-shaded glossy art-style, doesn't do wonders for it either. Again, it feels like a very surface and superficial take on Jean Giraud/Moebius' art; the artist who invented and pushed the boundaries of the form's medium he worked on with brilliant works such as the western Blueberry, the minimal Arzach and the seminal works of sci-fi of The Long Tomorrow and The Incal. Yet, Sable, which is eager to show the admiration it has for the artist, only takes in the most superficial elements such as the minimal line and the expressive use of color. And even then, Shedworks execution is mediocre at best. The colors are ugly, so are the shadows and the night's are dreary, as it gives the game a grey-smudged tone, which is honestly hideous. To make matters worse visually, the horrendous animation is sore for the eyes. The purposeful low-frame animation, which doesn't work in the game medium, clashes with the 60 fps fluidity of the camera; making the game a jarring experience to observe and play. Not to mention, that the animations themselves, walking and such, are sub-standard at best.

Then we have the terrible design. The game has an aura of mysticism, of wonders, underneath its just a boring half-baked game, with overwrought mawkish writing. Because the game, wants to set itself as a walk in the park, kind of experience. With no adversaries or obstacles, a world where everything seems to be an utopian happy-go-lucky; the game becomes tediously repetitive and boring. Again, games can't abject of such elements, such as Journey, but they countered such by having an enticing and emotional impactful journey. Which Sable, due to its terrible unnatural writing, does not have; the world of itself, isn't too enticing either and does not invite to further exploration. The gliding was finished before it began.

I am not one that likes to use to adjective 'over-rated', but I cannot think of anything else to describe Sable. A game that despite seemingly having its fair share of emotional impact in a few players, it has failed miserably with me. The refund has been processed, and I am sure I won't revisit the dunes and the Ibexii camp in a while, if ever.

Score: 10/100