Happy about: Herdling

With how many times I’ve seen games going for a moody games about a journey that feature no words over the decades, all I want from them is to just know what they want to do and when to stop. Starting from cinematic platformers of the early 90s and evolving through Ico and Journey, we’ve seen this approach taken so many times. All of the games like this are pretty and atmospheric, but they might focus on different aspects and mechanics. In case of Herdling – it’s about herding cute wooly cattle-like creatures on a journey from a city into the mountains and helping them avoid dangers. It lacks traditional puzzles, doesn’t really have a lot of “challenge”, has some optional exploration at times, but is mostly about moving forward. And it knows what it wants to do and when to stop.

There’s not much to be described about this relatively short game apart from what I’ve written above, really. The title took me around 3 hours to complete, though I have missed a few things, as it turns out. It is very pretty, the soundtrack wonderfully fits what’s going on and dynamically adjusts to the action on the screen. The herding mechanic has some tricks to learn and adjust to, but is otherwise not that complicated. The pathfinding of the herd is occasionally glitchy, but mostly works fine. There is some challenge during tougher moments, but the game isn’t really difficult or even something that can be considered a puzzle game, even if there are a few problems that will require some thinking.

While the way I’m describing Herdling doesn’t sound enthusiastic or excited, the reality is – too often do I see similar types of games shoot themselves in the foot. I’ve played too many of these games, these… “3D cinematic platformers” I suppose, to expect that the game will turn out to be too long, or too complicated, or too up its own arse in terms of the story or the message to remain fun throughout. Even when they are short, these types of games manage to feel longer than they should be. Papo & Yo, for example, was very charming, but outstayed its welcome to be fondly remembered. RiME was straight up boring. The Girl and the Robot – an unfinished mess…

But Herdling? It lasts as long as it should. Does what it wanted to do. And then ends, leaving you with nice warm feelings inside. Yes, it might not be a very memorable game, but it is a very well made and pleasant game that I can easily recommend if what it is interests you.