Do you remember growing up and how intriguing your shadow was? It always followed you around, it copied your movements and it changed size throughout the day. SCHiM plays on this very idea. I am just going to say it right now, SCHiM is currently my indie game of the year. I had such a wonderful time playing through this, it really brought out my child-like wonder and curiosity. 

An incredibly unique take on a 3D platformer, you play as a tiny black schim who has to use the shadows around the world to jump, run and fly to reach the end objective in each of the 65 scenarios presented. With a great chilled soundtrack and a lovely two toned art style you just can’t help but want to explore every corner of the world. The controls are simple and everything feels smooth, making it one of the best platforming experiences I have had in years. 

Earlier this month, Quest Daily conducted an interview with Ewoud van der Werf, one of the developers for SCHiM. I loved reading through this interview and discovering the passion he has for this project. One thing that stood out to me was his dedication to creating a sense of exploration by tapping into the wonder and curiosity we have for our shadows. He had a simple message: “Never lose your inner child.” I think he nailed it in every aspect of the game he has created.

READ MORE: ‘Never Lose Your Inner Child’ | The Magic of SCHiM

Story: A Life Without a Schim

So what is a schim? It is basically the soul and spirit of any object or living being. At the beginning of the game, your human loses his schim through a series of unfortunate events. We have all been there, that one bad day where everything goes wrong and you just feel low, sad and like the world is against you. A human without his schim is one without spirit and will. Therefore, tasked with the important job of reuniting your human and his schim, you must hop from shadow to shadow and find your way back to him before it is too late. 

I loved the simple story premise; it’s something we can all relate to. It helped motivate me to find ways to get through each level as I got closer and closer to being with my human again. I was able to see what was happening to my human character on screen and I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. Knowing he has lost that spark inside and fun for life you could tell how important his schim was to him. A simple premise but it definitely had me rooting for the pair to be reunited at the end of the game. 

Gameplay: Dashing Through Shadows

I cannot think of a recent time when a developer has really pushed the limits of what a 3D platformer can be. I am a huge fan of platforming games and often cry foul over some of the frustrating controls that live inside some of the classics. This is where SCHiM truly shines. The gameplay is simple, easy to control and beautifully crafted. 

Unable to survive in the light, your schim must carefully leap towards the end goal by using shadows cast on the ground. Luckily, this world is alive. There are people walking, vehicles driving past, birds flying and various objects producing their own shadow. Jumping from one shadow to the next is so smooth. It is like swimming through the ink as a squid in Splatoon. It was all very intuitive.

Controls were simple, one button for jumping, one button for interacting with objects and L1 and R1 for changing the camera. Pushing R2 would guide my camera to the current objective and keep me on track. I really appreciated this feature as it didn’t hold my hand and guide me straight to the goal. It was more like a sneak peek of where I needed to go next but it was up to me to figure out how to get there, genius!

Gameplay: Puzzling Matters for a Little Schim

SCHiM has excellent puzzles to solve. You can interact with objects in the environment even though you are in their shadow. This truly lends itself to the notion that even objects have a schim – it’s really cool! One example was when I had to change the traffic lights from green to red, ensuring cars would start moving in other direction. I really enjoyed playing around with these interactive puzzles trying to figure out my way forward. 

There are times you need to fling yourself from one object to another and this allows for some cool action scenes. Even if I didn’t make it all the way to the next shadow I had another chance to hop into a shadow before I would be returned to the previous one to try again. This quick resetting was a life saver and stopped me from getting frustrated if I kept making a mistake.

Lighting also plays a huge role in this game. I appreciated how the time of day and different lighting effects caused the shadows cast by objects and animals to change. This made for some interesting platforming puzzles to solve. In particular, lightning had me timing my jumps based on the different flashes of light. A pure flash of brilliance.

Another aspect of the platforming I relished was the throwbacks to the retro game Frogger. There were times when you would have to cross a road or a a series of conveyor belts where the camera would pan behind my schim just like in those old frog hopping days. Jumping across the road from shadow to shadow brought back those nostalgic memories. I appreciated this little nod and enjoyed those sections immensely. 

READ MORE: Review | Fabledom (PC)

Graphics and Sounds: Vibes and the City

SCHiM sets up chilled vibes from the moment the game loads up. With Lo-fi beats playing throughout, I instantly felt relaxed and knew that this was going to be a good time. Jumping from one area to the next the music was cleverly crafted to feel distinct and different. From the sounds of a hustling and bustling city to the calm dour sounds of a stormy night, I felt like the music kept that calm, relaxed feeling throughout the whole experience.

SCHiM has a simple graphical design with an isometric perspective. I appreciated the beautiful, simple two toned colour art style. It also helped to make the platforming easier as the dark shadows on the ground were clear to see when contrasted against the coloured backgrounds. As you visit each part of the neighbourhood the colour and vibes change giving each area its own unique feel.

Each area felt very alive. The devs really encouraged my inner wonder as I explored each level. Being the nosy guy that I am, I wanted to know what every person was doing. I particularly loved the beach where I got to ride in the shadows of some fish, a windsurfer and eventually an actual moving beach volleyball. Watching everyone go about their daily lives, with their schim in hand, was a true delight. With all this going on the game ran flawlessly on my PS5 and was a well optimised experience.

SCHiM has Heart and Soul!

Yes, I found my schim playing through this gorgeous indie game. You know that joyful feeling us gamers get in our chest when we find one that really connects with us? I now call it my gaming schim! SCHiM interested me from the moment I first saw the trailer back at Summer Games Fest.

With its beautiful artstyle, chilled and relaxing soundtrack and tight platforming gameplay, SCHiM is one game you cannot miss out on. There’s about six hours of play time and 65 different scenarios to work through; the straightforward story kept me motivated to finally reunite my human with his schim. The controls are simple enough, making jumping through the shadows smooth and responsive. I just wanted to play in and explore each area thoroughly, a true testament to the game’s design. 

SCHiM is releasing on PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo Switch and PC on July 18th and retails for $37.50 AUD. There is also a demo out now on Steam.

Quest Daily scores SCHiM:

10/10

A review copy of SCHiM was supplied to Quest Daily for the purpose of this review.