Somerville is a truly mesmerizing sci-fi adventure and indie, developed and published by Jumpship. Players must seek out their family after being separated by a mysterious alien battle on Earth. The protagonist gains supernatural abilities, and must use them to solve puzzles while evading terrifying alien forces.

Let’s begin with the pros. Somerville is a very ambitious project, with potent visual storytelling that effectively uses lighting and sound effects to create tension and atmosphere throughout the game. There is an apparent influence from the films of Spielberg and Villeneuve. The cinematic sequences are stunning.

Also, fans will be able to draw a straight line from Somerville to Inside and Limbo. That’s because Jumpship was built with Dino Patti, who co-founded Playdead, which actually developed those two indie gems. Sadly, this will draw many comparisons to those games, which are still arguably some of the best indie puzzlers in the genre.

The pacing of Somerville might be a little frustrating for some, because there isn’t a whole lot of interaction. The game drastically tones down the puzzle elements of Inside or Limbo, so the emotions and backgrounds take priority here. This is mostly detrimental to the game, because its key issues are all technical.

At least on Xbox One, Somerville suffers from some irritating controls and bugs. Walking around, climbing, or picking anything up feels unusually stiff. This makes the puzzles even more of a chore when the AI malfunctions.

For example, early on you’ll have to guide little AI robots with a water pail, and it took multiple (identical) attempts to get them to function properly. Fumbling with controls removes the immersion, which is clearly a focal point of the game. It’s a shame, since the visual experience unfolds so beautifully, and the alien mystery is legitimately compelling.

The backgrounds aren’t very smooth either, as map traversal is stymied by odd little obstacles and the like. There are visual cues that are meant to lead players in the right direction, but this can sometimes be misleading, or the object won’t operate correctly. Pulling on levers, turning wheels, and pushing things aside feel clunky. You will become very impatient.

Final Thoughts

Somerville boasts some powerful storytelling, and it’s very moody. It may not be the most balanced game, but it’s promising for Jumpship, and probably signals a bright future. The devs clearly understand how to craft emotions, suspense and mythology. But Somerville doesn’t escalate or elaborate as well as it could have, and the technical side of things is a drag.

Score: 7/10