Introduction
Inkle published and developed Highland Song. The game released on December 5, 2023. You can purchase A Highland Song on the Nintendo eShop. On behalf of the Handheld Gaming Community I would like to thank Inkle for the review code.
Overview
In A Highland Song you play as Moira who lives with her mother. You decide that today is the day you are going to run away to see your Uncle Hamish who lives and works at a lighthouse. Moira thinks that her mother is holding her back. That encourages her to run away. Moira has some hand drawn maps that may help show her the way.
Gameplay
A Highland Song is a mix of different play styles. Mostly, it is an adventure game where you move Moira around look for different places and items as you play through the game. It also has rhythm elements during various times. Chasing a deer triggers the event. You hit the corresponding buttons as they come up. If you fail to keep up with the beat, you will take some damage, and can start from where you left off.
Throughout the game you have a goal of arriving to your Uncle Hamish’s lighthouse by Beltane. Beltane is a Scottish, Irish, etc celebration of May Day. It marks the halfway point between spring and summer. If you don’t meet your goal by May Day, you don’t get a game over. Moira does get a bit disappointed, and I am sure there are story elements that you will miss out on.
If you don’t consistently match up the peaks with ones you had on your hand drawn map, you will be doomed to wander the hills and that will cost you days and your goal of arriving by Beltane.
A Highland Song doesn’t hold your hand. The game automatically saves at various times. You can’t go back if you miss something. If you miss a critical point in your journey, you may have to restart from the beginning. Luckily, for each playthrough of the game you will remember certain things that you missed last time.
Graphics/Performance
A Highland Song is a beautiful game. It looks like it was painted with watercolors. Moira, your character, looks hand drawn as well. As for performance, it seems that the game maintains a stable frame rate throughout the game. No noticeable frame drops anyways.
Story
The story is very interesting. The story is told over the course of the game. Moira will tell you different things about her uncle, her mom, and even herself. Hamish will tell you about various factoids about the environment, and history of the Highlands. The commentary makes your exploration of the Highlands interesting even when you are lost. (And you will get lost)
Sound
The sound design is another way this game shines. The voice acting sounds very authentic. The music is very enjoyable. Especially when you enter the rhythm sections of the game as that is when you get to hear the folk music. Two different Scottish folk bands performed the soundtrack. They are TALISK and Fourth Moon. If you enjoy the music in the game you can find them on Spotify ( Talisk, Fourth Moon ).
Value
According to “How Long to Beat” the game only takes a few hours to complete. If you play the game like I did it will take you much longer. you can spend several hours exploring the different places in the game, often times restarting after you realize that you had missed something early on. At the time of this review you can buy Highland Song on the Nintendo eShop for 17.99. I think that for that price you will get your monies worth.
Conclusion
Highland Song is an adventure/rhythm game for the Nintendo Switch. The game’s story is based on Scottish lore. Two Scottish folk artists performed the soundtrack. The game does a really nice job of telling the story over the course of your exploration of the Scottish highlands. It makes exploring new places very interesting. Certainly the game is frustrating at times. You can get lost or stuck extremely easily. In this way game encourages leaving no stone unturned as each clue will help you navigate the highlands. The graphical style of the game also makes exploring the highlands a beautiful, fun experience. You can purchase A Highland Song on the Nintendo eShop for $17.99. I would like to thank the publisher, Inkle, for the review code on behalf of the Handheld Gaming Community.
