The great thing about today’s technology is that wherever we go we now have a means to capture and share any moment we deem beautiful with anybody who wants to join in on the joy. We have phones with cameras and social media to facilitate the sharing of our lives with friends, family and even strangers as we see fit, and that can be a pretty amazing thing when you think about it. What’s even more amazing is that you just never know what that photo will do for someone. Maybe it’ll inspire them to write the next bit of their book, or remind them of something important, or maybe it will just put a smile on their face for a few seconds. Our sharing methods may not always garner such cheerful responses, but fortunately in the game TOEM from Something We Made you can feel confident that your picture sharing adventure will always come up wholesome and satisfying.
In this game our young protagonist is about to set off on a familial right of passage of sorts to see for themselves the phenomenon known as TOEM. It’s a long journey to that mountain top with lots of interesting stops along the way and if you can gather enough stamps in your notebook you can get a free bus ride to each and every one of them. To get those much coveted stamps though you’ll need to lend a hand, or more often a photo, to someone in need. So with a heart full of gumption and a camera full of blank film let’s shake it like a Polaroid picture and see where this adventure takes us.
I only just discovered TOEM earlier this year, but I think it’s safe to say that I’ve been obsessed ever since then. I often have the soundtrack on rotation while writing and the game’s pleasant aesthetic has always caught my eye whenever I see gameplay footage or screenshots floating around. Unfortunately, I can’t buy every game that catches my eye the moment I see it, so up until recently I had to hold off on playing it for myself. However, we just snagged ourselves a PS5 and low and behold what was waiting in the recesses of our PS Plus subscription but that monochromatic maven itself, TOEM. Most excellent! It was the first game we played on our fancy new system and what a way to start if you ask me.
TOEM at it’s core is just a good ole fashioned adventure game with some light puzzle aspects mixed in. I say light puzzle aspects because they come off as simple fetch quests, but the quest givers won’t always outright say what it is they need and you’ll need to figure that out for yourself, puzzle-style. I was worried at first that the black and white art style would make it difficult to distinguish important things in the environment but everything was perfectly readable and if there were ever any doubt you could just look through your camera lens to know what is considered important or not. Also, while you weren’t always told exactly what you needed to complete a quest, usually a little exploration would lend you some hints or even the answer. Very few quests stumped us enough that we had to move on or look up the answer and honestly, that is part of TOEM’s nice clean charm.
Another part would be the deluge of silly characters you encounter, their adorable little fluttery voices, and the equally silly dialogue they would then regale you with. An adventure game requires plenty of exploration and in TOEM it’s no problem as you’ll want to meet each and every one of the world’s unique inhabitants and add their photograph to your collection. Not to mention all the little critters and fanciful landmarks you’re going to want to snap pictures of as well. This is a game all about letting your brain sink into that warm pool of simplicity more than anything and I was absolutely here for it!
I’m being completely candid here when I say I can’t think of a thing wrong with TOEM. Everything was just smooth as butter. No bugs, no glitches, crisp art, and fluid gameplay. Color me impressed! There isn’t anything I’d have wanted to be different, other than perhaps more game, of course, but that was another great thing about TOEM as well. It didn’t overstay its welcome. The end gave a nice clean culmination of events and if you happened to be feeling crestfallen at its ending then there was a little slice of DLC for you to console yourself with if you wished. It’s a game I’ll think of often and would absolutely jump on immediately were there ever to be a sequel.
I think my recommendation at this point may be pretty obvious but for those who want it clean and clear, TOEM gets two picture perfect thumbs up. If you’re looking for a game to sit back and relax with then this is the one. It’s a sweet and simple experience that will soften the stressed out fibers of your brain and warm cockles of your heart with just a snap of that shutter button.
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