Syberia 3 review

The conclusion of an unforgettable saga.

Version tested: PlayStation 4.

Sometimes they come back when you least expect it. It also happened for the cartoonist series Benoit Sokal, artistic director of one of the video games that marked the adolescence of many players of our times. Let's talk about Siberia, of course, the first chapter of which arrived on PC in 2002. And, let's face it, after that good Syberia 2 the story of our heroine (and lawyer) Kate Walker it was over.

The same Benoit Sokal, to tell the truth, he had been pretty clear on the matter: the miniseries was over, goodbye everyone. Instead, he would have dedicated himself to two new graphic adventures: Paradise e Sinking Island. Do you remember them? Certainly not, and in fact they have had virtually no success. Now, we don't want to imply that a third Syberia has come in a hurry to get some success back, we would be too mischievous. It is true, however, that despite the arrows in her bow, this time Kate Walker struggles a bit to be recognized both on PC and on new generation consoles.

We tried the version for PlayStation 4 di Syberia 3, and returning to help Kate on her new detective adventure was as good as ever. But, nostalgia aside, the new adventures in the ice do not have the flavor of bygone times and struggle to excel like the two ancestors. Let's see together what happened in that of Microids.

Where were we? 

Syberia 3 opens with a Kate Walker passed out in the snow being saved by the youkol tribe. If you don't know them it's not a problem, you will be doing introductions shortly. The lawyer, already protagonist of the journey in the dream of Hans voralberg (narrated in the first two episodes), is on the verge of death and is taken to a clinic where, when she regains consciousness, she finds herself a prisoner of some shady characters whose aims are not clear at first. From here begins his journey to freedom first, then to help the youkol with the migration of the snow ostriches (then it will become something else, but of course if we told you we would be really bad.).

If we considered Syberia 3 only from the narrative point of view we would only have to agree that we are faced with an excellent title. Sokal has not lost his ability to describe fascinating and richly characterized worlds (for example the youkol market is a small masterpiece) and has directed the entire title with great wisdom, despite some drops in the quality of the script, particularly with some characters. secondary, and despite the obvious technical limitations, the latter children of a production certainly not triple A (not that we particularly care). Kate Walker is still a believable and charming character, tormented but strong and able to get by using her intelligence even in the most complicated situations.

In short: from the point of view of history the promotion to Syberia 3 does not take it away from anyone. The problems come later, with a slightly revved control system and not perfectly successful mechanics, naturally regardless of the technical limits of production.

Accessible puzzles and riddles, but bad interface

Let's play a game: let's describe Syberia 3 on its positive sides using three words. The words are: puzzles, combinations and charm. The former are necessary to continue, and far from being insurmountable most of the time you can overcome them by just sharpening your wits. Is it a flaw? Certainly not: the excessively high difficulty level does not play in favor of a graphic adventure. Then, like any self-respecting graphic adventure, there are items to collect and use with other objects.

There are also numerous mechanical puzzles: for example in one circumstance you have to align a key with a lock by turning wheels, while in another you have to manipulate locks to filter the water of a river. Lastly, the charm of a good story. In short, excellent storytelling, puzzles that are not difficult but interesting and a fascinating protagonist, what more could a fan of the genre want? But these are the positives.

The interface is one of the main weaknesses of this third chapter. For one thing, the selection system for elements of interest does not work properly: the objects to interact with are not always automatically highlighted when Kate approaches an active element. Our other arch enemy is the use of the camera: we will have to fight against it to find the right distance and the correct angle. As for the progression, in any case, a lot of space is reserved for conversations with non-player characters, equipped with a system that integrates multiple choice answers, which, however, have no influence on the development of the plot but only on the " mood ”of the character with whom Kate relates.

Finally, during the advancement they alternate both more "open" game sections (in which to explore the scenarios in search of objects and clues) and more fast-paced segments, in which Kate is called to carry out specific tasks that follow one another, among other things without much verve. Such a choice makes the title a sort of hybrid, which neither manages to exhume the value of the first two chapters, nor does it allow us to push ourselves towards a new clearly defined horizon.

A little like the Tomb Raider

From the graphic point of view Syberia 3 undergoes an obvious update compared to the first two chapters, if only from a purely aesthetic point of view. The new Kate Walker presents an obviously gentler and more defined profile, but also an aspect that (we bet you have already thought of it for yourself) in some way could also remind the new Lara Croft of the two recent ones tomb raider. In general, the graphic rendering is not exactly what the big distributors have accustomed us to lately, especially in some details such as textures, water and background elements.

The audio sector, on the other hand, represents a reason for disappointment. First, forget the voice of Stefania Patruno: dubbing in Spanish is not contemplated, and the only trace of our language is represented by subtitles, which are not always clear to read. Then a chronic one persists from beginning to end lack of synchronization between the audio and the lip movements of all the characters. A fairly obvious defect that, right from the start, will make the immersion in the narrative vanish a little.

It goes best with the facial expressions of almost any character, while the body animations of the various figures (especially Kate) will repeat all too often. At least, as regards the background music, the real pride of the first two acts, the impact is positive throughout the narration, with a note of merit for the composition that can be listened to during the credits and continuous references, throughout the game, to the main theme.