Californium

In Californium, you play as Elvin Green, a writer who’s going through a period of writer’s block. Things, in fact, aren’t that exceptional for him in general, given the substance addiction he’s got and it’s in this moment of stagnation and failing when the strange things that propel the narrative happen. It’s difficult to go into any of them without stealing from the experience, so I’ll try my best to skirt around them while giving a general idea of what it is you’ll find. Over the course of the game’s three hours you’ll visit a number of possible worlds, each with its own aesthetic, political structure and characters or variations of previously met characters.

You advance the game by finding televisions which tell you how many symbols in the environment you need to discover and click on, this, prompting a change in certain segments of the level. This change often foreshadows the type of world you’ll be part of in the next chapter. To put it simply, the entire gameplay is a hidden object fest. The symbols are often hidden or small and show up only when you’re sitting in a particular spot, or looking at a particular thing which could be anything in the environment. Needless to say, despite the game’s short length, the pixel hunting is marked by a large amount of tedium. Add to that the occasional frustration of having one last symbol left to find but being unable to get to it and you’ve got a good idea of how Californium’s gameplay feels. Sure, it lets you wander around freely most of the time, but for three quarters of the game you’ll see variations of the same patch of neighborhood which, even with the game’s great art direction, still begins to feel too similar after a while.

Californium’s visuals capture the magic of sci-fi and dystopian worlds in a very nice fashion. They play around with chromatics and shapes so well that it always manages to immerse you in the world, at least until the pixel hunting starts. Over the course of the game you’ll encounter characters that will talk at you (yes, at you, your character never says anything). Their role is solely to help paint the picture of the world you’re currently in. None of them ever stand out in any way, fact which can, arguably, be justified by taking a look at the overall context of the story. The aesthetic choice when it comes to the NPCs is a bit strange. Where the rest of the game is smooth and shiny, the characters are all made to look like cardboard cut-outs with a really simple, cartoonish design that may end up feeling out of place to some. I know it did so to me. Their voice acting ranges from mediocre to good, which, again, doesn’t rise to the quality of the soundtrack complementing the world design with spacey synths, outworldly psychedelia and calm jazzy bits, depending on where you are.

The narrative itself keeps you going, however, there’s a constant sense of plummeting through these worlds without ever getting to their essence. One could attribute this to Elvin’s drug problem, however, while the outlines of these places are drawn well enough you’re left with a sense that you’re not getting enough apart from a couple of outlines, bit-sized portions of these worlds and nothing more past that. You’re left wishing there was more, which, in this case is not so good a thing. Arguably, the main focus isn’t on the worlds themselves as much as on Elvin’s situation. The trek through these possible worlds is an attempt at healing oneself, the work of the artist taking a therapeutic role in all this. As you find objects, there’s a voice analyzing what it is you’re doing, voice which does remind, maybe a bit too much, of a certain fellow called Stanley’s adventures.

In saying this, I should also point out that to me Californium felt like one of those games who to some won’t seem to be games at all. It feels more like an attempt at mashing together greatly rendered digital art and Philip K. Dick-inspired worlds, (which on their own have references to issues humans have faced, some universal, other more localized) while also dealing with a recurrent problem that’s found in the world’s great literary works: that of the effect literature has on its creator. In this respect the game does a good job while also having an ending that provides a conclusion that’s satisfying enough.

Californium is not a game that will appeal to everyone. In fact, I’d go as far as saying that it will only appeal to those who are into all things experimental. The individual struggles of characters never stand out and, in fact, even Elvin Green, who’s supposed to be the protagonist, ends up feeling simply like a vessel that moves the player through these really beautiful galleries at times. The visuals and the soundtrack are clearly the game’s strongest points. Thus, Californium is first and foremost a delight for the eyes and the ears. Then, it’s an analysis on the effects of Elvin’s writing upon him, done in a quasi-interactive manner. If that catches your interest, chances are you’ll enjoy at least bits of what Californium has to offer. Anyone with a different focus will end up questioning the worth of investing time in the game.

MateÈ™ Bogdan Robert, NoobFeed
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