Syberia: The World Before

Sokal's wonderfull world building, the automatons, the mood ... fantastic. Most puzzles are on easier side, but I think it is ok. Toward the end the game getss little bit too sentimental for me, but thats ok :) You should play the game, if you liked Syberia 1-2.

A beautiful and emotionally game. Like reading a good book, one click at the time.

Narrative threads and visual motifs from prior Syberia entries are expertly woven together to produce a satisfying and surprisingly emotional experience -- enough even to stir feelings in a particularly jaded automaton. The puzzles are mostly quite simple and mainly serve to drive the plot forward. They do get a bit more substantial in the second half and are well grounded in the context of the world and the task at hand. While it lacks some of the bleak, austere atmosphere of Syberia 1, it exceeds in the magical world building and bittersweet yearning that Syberia is known for. It is like a love letter to an alternative, romanticised world and era that is based in the imagination. The friction between this ideal and the often grim, messy reality is a theme that is tackled head-on. Mechanically, it is not perfect. The path-finding and moving Kate around can be frustrating in parts. I found that it only poses momentary hurdles, though. Pity, it would have been nice for more fluid navigation. (A long-standing Syberia shortcoming) I would suggest this game would have a much greater impact for those who have played the series, at least Syberia 1. However, the recap does a decent job of re-establishing the context.

I feel like this is as good a wrap on the series as any. Like other reviewers, I don't think I need to repeat that this is more of a visual novel. It's similar in the vein of Life is Strange and other story based games that have some puzzel elements. Syberia 3 felt more balanced, as there were still some serious puzzles that took me a bit to conquer. There were very few in this game that posed a challenge. I don't find myself to be very clever. For instance, a guide needed to explain the fish in Guybrush's inventory was a red herring, which I needed to use to destract a troll with in Secret of Money Island. When I watched the trailer and played the demo, I knew I just needed to play the whole thing. It was just stunning all the way around. The music adds to the environment, and was a wonderful complement. The environments just made me want to visit areas of Europe. I felt the quite town close to the Swiss Alps was perfectly done. It was also nice to see the passage of time as you progressed through the story. Though, it felt like it was perpectually morning or late afternoon to make it a bit more moody. The story was fairly compelling. One piece of the Syberia games I've always been a bit annoyed with has been Kate's constant desire to just keep jumping around. It's addressed and wrapped up, a bit, here. So, that's good. There were plenty of points later in the story line where I was a bit surprised why they went a certain direction. It started feeling a bit soap opera-ey at the end. Then it was over, so it was mostly believable. For me it's a bit difficult suspending disbelief on a few pieces. For instance, no one seems to have a cell phone in 2005 in a major fictional city in Europe? Some of the dialog is pretty odd. Background noise was sometimes oddly chosen too. Felt like a weird mix at times. I had a few performance issues during action scenes with VFX even with RTX 3060. Navigation is a bit wonky with camera angles. Puzzles too. Not as bad as S3 though.

One of the best stories i have ever experienced. So beautiful soundrack and sound design. Animations are very well done and enviromental storytelling is next to nothing. I cannot think another game that blends worldbuilding, level design, storytelling, sound design so seamlessly into puzzles. I think this is the best game of the series.