A unique indie platformer where less is more.
The premise of SCHiM is that you’re a lost shadow trying to return to your human. In translation, “schim” comes from Dutch and may refer to a ghost or spirit, and so you end up playing as this small apparition that behaves almost like a frog and hops from shadow to shadow to reunite with its person. The wordless narrative of the story provides justification enough for the platforming of each stage, but it’s the simple, pure style and gameplay that win the day for SCHiM and make it well worth the price of admission.
While It’s billed as a 3D platformer, I’d argue that SCHiM plays out more like a puzzle-platformer, with each area requiring the player to figure out the correct path towards the goal and how to utilize the elements around them to progress. Anyone with platforming experience will quickly learn to master the schim’s two-jump capacity–a long leap followed by a short hop–and this simple mechanic coupled with the satisfying flow of movement result in a smooth experience best enjoyed in short bursts. Because each level generally involves jumping from shadow to shadow until you reach your target and progress to the next area, there is the potential for a feeling of repetitiveness to set in after working your way through half a dozen levels.
In addition to solid gameplay, the simple presentation certainly contributes to SCHiM’s charm, with a shifting palette of colors to emphasize both the setting of each area and the shadows that serve as your platforms. You can even choose from a handful of shades within the options menu for every area. Each level features one or more target objects or living things that you need to reach in order to advance to the next part of the level or to the next area entirely, and these are highlighted to mark their significance. While the schim’s signature plopping and dripping sounds feature prominently as you hop from and into each puddle-like shadow, there’s also chill music from Moonsailor that fits the vibe of SCHiM perfectly. Another highlight is the balance between busy city spaces and more serene and empty interior settings (sometimes a contrast between bright sunlit areas and darker moon or streetlit ones), which does help to alleviate some of the repetition. A handful of really stand-out stages involve constantly shifting light and darkness that put your timing and decision-making to the test.
Another element that pushes SCHiM towards the puzzle genre is the way in which you can press a button to activate or trigger the object whose shadow you are floating in. At times, you’ll find gaps too large to cross with your two jumps, and so you may need to activate a bird or dog to fly or run around, or you might have to raise a pole or barrier, lengthening their shadows and extending your reach. Each of the 65 levels has one or more collectibles to find and pick up, and these come in the form of everyday objects like umbrellas or car tires; interestingly, the objects can even assist you in completing each stage as some will open up new shadows to leap to.
While the stages do vary in length, most of them have checkpoints that give you a bit of a breather as you traipse across wider cityscapes. What’s also forgiving is the way in which you generally aren’t punished for missing a jump; the game constantly establishes new shadow checkpoints as well, so the most you might be sent back is a handful of jumps. That said, there is some tricky late game platforming where a mistake will send you back far enough that you’ll need to complete a difficult sequence a few times, but this was never more than a small annoyance. For those who want more of a challenge, you can even turn off the second jump and level checkpoints (but only after finishing the story).
SCHiM is an enjoyable light and dark-based platformer that manages to hit the spot due to smooth mechanics and a simple but charming presentation. There was basically never a moment where I didn’t find the game fun to play, and choosing to make my way through its story over the course of a week rather than all in one sitting alleviated the potential repetition of its gameplay. The aesthetic of SCHiM is fully complementary to the experience, and I find myself being unable to stop thinking about the game after rolling credits. In SCHiM we have another example of how less can definitely be more, a fitting title for the summer season and all of the shadows and shade we’re sure to be seeking out.
