There are games which I might not even consider the best thing out there, or even some of my favorites of the year, but I still can’t help but deeply respect. More often than not, that’s due to their troublesome development, when the people behind the project had to overcome tons of setbacks and hardships in order to ship their title. One such example is Saviorless. At first glance, there’s not a lot that makes it stand out. It’s an artsy indie platformer, with some philosophical themes. The typical case of a game that looks better than it plays. But then you start learning about its development… until you find out it was made in Cuba.

I went to Cuba on vacation last year and was fascinated with the country’s beauty and the friendliness of its people, but was also appaled to see the living conditions of its populace. I am not going to enter into a political discourse, because this is a rabbit hole not pertinent to a game review, but the country faces food shortages, Internet restrictions, censorship, constant blackouts, international trade embargoes, among other things. The fact a game was made under such conditions is just shocking to me. I didn’t even expect for a viable computer to exist in that island, for it to be powerful enough to run a game engine.

The sheer fact some folks spent seven years under constant adversities, and still managed to finish this game, is commendable. Not to mention the fact of being able to find a publisher keen enough to publish it, despite possible (and, honestly, unnecessary) backlash. For those reasons, among many others, I respect the hell out of Saviorless. But then comes the question: is it good? This is not a review that’s going to give Saviorless pity points due to its development conditions. A game is a game, and a game being sold for money needs to be worth your money. Thankfully, Saviorless is still a good game. Not fantastic, but worth your time. If you’re into artsy platformers, that is.

The game is about a series of direct and indirect protagonists. The direct protagonists are the ones you control, such as a mysterious kid venturing through dangerous lands in order to reach the Smiling Islands, a hunter beast, and more. Each one has a different control method and abilities, but most of them share a little flaw: their platforming ain’t great. Saviorless isn’t exactly a cinematic platformer like old-school Prince of Persia, Oddworld or Blackthorne, but it shares some small elements in terms of jumping mechanics. It’s a bit sluggish by design.

The “indirect” protagonist part is one of the game’s most interesting aspects, at least from a storytelling point of view. The game is narrated by higher beings, also named “Narrators”. In the mind of the elder narrator, a story should always feature the same ending. In the minds of his nephew and niece, it shouldn’t, so they have the chance of changing the protagonists’ fates in brand new ways. In essence, it adds just a slight touch of philosophical and free will themes to the game, but nothing too dense. This is no Nier: Automata. It just makes an otherwise simplistic game a bit more interesting to explore and appreciate. If it wasn’t for that, Saviorless would have been basically an underwhelming piece of eye candy.

Don’t take this as criticism. In terms of its presentation, Saviorless is fantastic. It features a gorgeous art style meant to resemble a living, breathing picture book. Animations are excellent, and character designs are pretty good. Every single locale is very different from the previous one. Furthermore, the game doesn’t shy away from the occasional gruesome imagery, despite its borderline fairytale-ish vibes. The first time I saw some carnivorous maggots bursting out of an NPC, Alien-style, I was actually kinda shocked.

The same can be said about the music. It’s calm and soothing, but there’s always that slight undertone of something sinister or off-putting in the background. Maybe it’s the minor chords being used in its compositions. It reminded me of GRIS, in the way that the soundtrack is beautiful, but also deeply melancholic. Even though, Saviorless is nowhere near a gut punch as that other title, that needs to be said.

I’m not taking its fascinating and heartwarming development history into account when I say that I liked Saviorless and recommend it… if you’re into this specific kind of slow-paced, artsy platformer. It’s short, sure, and it can be occasionally annoying during some specific sections, but it’s got amazing visuals, a handful of neat puzzles, and a neat take on themes like free will and destiny. If you are into games like GRIS or Limbo, look no further, this is the kind of title which will satiate you for a (short) while. It might not be the greatest thing in the world, but I do wish for this game to become a stepping stone for its development team, with more (and better) titles in the future coming from them.

Graphics: 9.0 A gorgeous art style meant to resemble a living, breathing picture book. Animations are excellent, and character designs are pretty good. If anything else, Saviorless is pure eye candy.	Gameplay: 6.5 The platforming is slow and intentionally clunky. It’s akin to a cinematic platformer from the 90s, but a bit more loose. It could have been better, but it’s nowhere near as irritating as games like the original Prince of Persia or Blackthorne.
Sound: 8.5 Beautiful, morbid, and mostly ambient. The music is a perfect fit for the game’s fantastic but somber atmosphere.	Fun Factor: 7.0 Not taking its fascinating development history into account, Saviorless is still interesting. It’s short and occasionally annoying, but its story is pretty good, and some of its puzzles are quite smart. If you are a fan of games like Limbo or GRIS, look no further.
Final Verdict: 7.5

Saviorless is available now on PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC and Switch.

Reviewed on PS5.

A copy of Saviorless was provided by the publisher.