Leaving Lyndow is a walking simulator with a bit of exploration, point and click elements, and puzzles thrown in. And I don’t mean that in a reductive way, I like all those things and actually had a great time with the game.
The game is quite short (about 45-60 minutes long) and even though it is set in the same universe as Eastshade, the upcoming larger game, it has different gameplay mechanics – Eastshade will be an open-world game with longer conversations, quests and where the player can make their own story; while Leaving Lyndow is more of a glimpse into Clara’s life and her last day before a dangerous expedition, with short puzzles and closed off areas.
As mentioned, you play as Clara, who is leaving her home to join the Guild of Maritime Exploration. The game begins on the day of you leaving, and begins with you in the room starting to pack up your things and follows as you bid farewell to family and friends. I am new to the Eastshade universe, and I took my time taking everything in and understanding what was going on. The characters and the location really drew me in, and the attention to detail was fascinating
Leaving Lyndow is a beautiful game, and even with the short length I was given an adequate change in scenery often enough to appreciate that. Excellent lighting and texture work is seen throughout, and as someone who enjoys playing these story and exploration driven walking simulators, I was glad I decided to check this game out.
The calm and relaxing background music is good addition to the game, and suited the game’s tone really well. The soundtrack is free with the Steam version of the game, and I actually have it running in the background as I am writing this review. There’s not much in the way of voice acting here, but that doesn’t take a lot away from the overall experience, given how short the game is.
At this price, the length of the game – about 45-60 mins – is not a bad deal. Apart from simple exploration a few interactions, there are some mini games and puzzles to add variety to the gameplay. My only main issue with the game was it lagged every once in a while on the PS4. The PC performance is fine, but the PS4 version needs some patches to fix these issues.
Leaving Lyndow is a short but enjoyable experience, and I am looking forward to Eastshade. The visuals, music and presentation is great, and is worth picking up if you’re into these kind of games.
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