Creaks – Nindie Spotlight – An Eerie Game of Puzzles and Solutions
Creaks is an excellently made puzzle game from the brilliant minds at Amanita Design. Everything about it works in perfect unison. The creepy music, the sketchy hand drawn art style, even the lighting just fits. I’ve played Creaks multiple times, and if all my progress was deleted, I’d be more than happy to play it again. So, “why do you love this game so much?”, you may or may not be asking. Well, now it’s time to find out!
I go by The Never Yak, and this is your Nindie Spotlight on the indie masterpiece, Creaks.
The game begins with a normal human kid sitting in his room, doing homework. That’s you! Suddenly, the lights begin to flicker and your wallpaper starts peeling off. As you go to investigate, a secret passageway is revealed, giving way to a stunning labyrinth-like mansion where the game will take place. It’s an extraordinary introduction to say the very least.
I’ve played almost every Amanita Design game, and I have to say that Creaks is definitely my favourite. I was so excited to know what happened next, and as I took my little character deeper into this underground building, I found so much joy in meetings the many bird-like inhabitants and creepy enemies.
On the topic of said enemies, this is where the very best part of Creaks comes in. The vicious dwellers of the house, also known as creaks, each have their own unique way of moving and interacting with the player character. They’ll take you out if you get too close, but all of them are scared of the light. If you can trap them in a beam of it, they’ll be turned into furniture and other simple, everyday objects. How cool is that?
As I’m sure you can imagine that makes for some very unique and painfully challenging problem-solving. Although Creaks is undeniably a hard game, I didn’t find any sudden difficulty spikes, so everything is paced nicely. Even when I was stuck on a puzzle, I enjoyed examining the crazily intricate backgrounds and listening to the incredible soundtrack by Hidden Orchestra, so being stuck really didn’t stop my enjoyment of the overall experience.
Creaks has a great story to tell too. As you make your way through the many layers of the house, a gigantic beast shakes the walls and attacks the residents of the building. I love how each of the characters have a different reaction to the beast, and it’s fascinating to learn the backstory and reasoning behind each of these encounters. Although there’s no speaking or any dialogue at all, the characters still have so much life, and you can always understand what’s going on. The gibberish ramblings and exaggerated movements of each creature gives you enough knowledge to enjoy everything that’s happening. I think that’s a really excellent show of how well done the art and animation is throughout Creaks, so good job to everyone who worked on it.
Quick side note, there’s a book all about the art of Creaks that gives a great insight to the creation of this game and how each area was developed. It’s really great, and if you enjoy the game, I’d definitely recommend getting a copy!
Creaks is a game I just can’t recommend enough. Even if you aren’t the kind of person who usually enjoys puzzles, there’s still so much joy to be found in this game. The amazing art, music, storytelling, minigames, character design, and the completely unique take on video games is there in every project from Amanita Design, but it’s there even more in Creaks.
I’ve bought this game four separate times, and I don’t regret it at all. I hope if you get round to playing it, that you all love it as well.
There is your Nindie Spotlight on Creaks. Check back again next time for a look into another great Nindie title. What are some of your favorite indie games? Let us know in the comments below! Thank you for visiting Nintendo Link. Happy gaming, everyone.
