In Rays of the Light is an updated take on a previously released game called The light. Both games were made by Sergey Noskov and are an example of what you can achieve with Indie development. A vision and some tech knowledge are all it takes to pursue your dream in the gaming business. Sometimes this approach yields a nugget of purity like In Rays of the Light.
Follow the light or stay in the darkness
In Rays of the Light starts out in a room with no further explanation setting the tone for the whole game. Once you exit the room you find a message on the wall that instructs you to follow the light along with a flashlight. Take the flashlight or keep to the darkness. The choice is entirely up to you. Whatever path you take, it will ultimately lead you to one of the two endings. How you get towards the ending is not explained at all. In Rays of the Light is meant to be an adventure based on exploration. Explore the world around you and find clues to get further in the story.
Cold war vibe
The building you start in turns out to be a typical grey building you associate with the cold war period in Russia. Very practical but not appealing at all. Once you start to explore you’ll notice the building was used for educational purposes but has now been abandoned and left in disarray. Walking around this desolate building feels ominous the whole time because of the depressing views around every corner. Exploring the building will eventually lead you to some easy puzzles to solve in order to get through locked doors or open up closed closets. Shattered around the world are collectibles. These are optional to collect but they offer small snippets of insight into what happened there and why nobody is around.
Once you manage to get out of the building, in Rays of the Light still looks empty. A few buildings to explore and an abandoned bus are that’s left. Along the way you’ll find stuff to interact with giving you a bit of purpose along the desolate state of the world in the game. Sometimes you’ll need to collect certain items before you can go further giving this game some adventure vibes. These elements are scarce making this game more a walking simulator type of game.
The experience
The game is light on pure game elements. The adventuring is very “light” and there are no enemies to be seen in the game. Still the game manages to grab your attention to keep going. The experience of getting through this game is the big appeal. The constant pressure of wanting to progress without any clue as to how might not sound like fun. Nevertheless the experience I had was awesome. Especially when the game is about half way through the game throws some curveballs at you. These made me think beyond the story Sergey Noskov was trying to tell. It invoked what an abstract piece of art might invoke when really taking it in.
Give me some more
After about two hours I find myself at the ending of the game. In awe of what I experienced but still with a feeling of wanting more. I would’ve loved some more content. A few more collectibles to find and beef out the story a bit more or some extra locations could’ve satisfied me a bit more. The game does not hold you by the hand making it easy to miss out on things. I needed to backtrack a lot and wouldn’t have minded some more to see along these lonely walks. The walking/running speed could’ve been better if they were a nodge higher (or at least adjustable in the settings).
Conclusion
If you are in need of something special and you don’t mind being thrown in the deep end… In Rays of the Light might be just the “experience” you seek.
