Escapism in a purple wrapper: A response to and review of Sayonara Wild Hearts

Like so many others in the gaming community, my last month has been spent in the world of Pharloom, battling my way through the challenges of Hollow Knight: Silksong. “Challenge” is definitely the right word – there’s a lot to do, and very little of it is simple. In the aftermath of achieving the true ending (an achievement I’m proud enough of to boast about in an unrelated article), I sought a different experience.

In February 2020, Dan Williams published this review of Sayonara Wild Hearts. It’s a very positive take on the game, mentioning a lot of what originally drew me to it: the beautiful visuals, the soundtrack, and the easy-to-play quality created by short levels (and overall short runtime). I do, however, take issue with just how wholly he praises the game. It is not flawless, though nothing is a deal-breaker.

The visuals are the first thing that stand out, and they are indeed “gorgeous.” Though the game lacks the graphical fidelity that the biggest games boast, its flattened edges and purple palette give it a distinct style.

A menu theme that has me nodding along even before clicking Start is a win in my book

It works perfectly in tandem with the music, an album created specifically for the game by Daniel Olsén and Jonathan Eng. However, something I think Williams fails to properly convey is just how central the music is to the game. After all, it is a “pop album video game.” It takes no time at all to make those priorities clear – a menu theme that has me nodding along even before clicking Start is a win in my book.

The rest of the music is strong as well (of course, to varying degrees), giving an ethereal feeling to even the parts where you aren’t soaring through a mindscape of some kind. A perfectly timed beat drop during boss fight gameplay is something only a few games can promise, but Sayonara Wild Hearts capitalises on its musical focus to deliver.

The game is split into twenty-three short levels that can be grouped into five sections, almost all with a distinct aesthetic, ranging from a snowy forest to cyberspace. All share the overall stylings, while also reflecting their boss – at least, that’s the goal. Personally, I think the city environment probably didn’t need as much love as it got.

Most of the game is composed of the player character soaring through a liminal space, or navigating the motorways and city streets on a motorbike, propelled forwards by the music as the player moves across the screen. Quick time event (QTE) button presses are a staple, any face button being usable for the purpose. The whole game is fully playable with just one button and a control stick, even less than is required to operate the menus.

However, the requirement to rapidly button-mash can be frustrating, and also managed to catch me off guard every time, as it takes until the prompt fails to disappear to discern it from a one and done QTE. It’s also just uncomfortable after getting into a groove. Challenge is a light touch, and even upon failure the game is generously checkpointed.

Striking a perfect balance of requiring timing to navigate obstacles while not taking enough brainpower to distract from the visual feast 

Beyond the basic gameplay, there are several shake-ups that happen throughout, keeping the game fresh. The tutorials are unnecessary – it’s all intuitively introduced. Occasionally, your bike will start firing lasers in front of it, or the player character will produce a bow and arrow, giving a whole new element to the gameplay.

A stand-out is the universe switching gimmick, forcing the player to keep a couple of different level layouts in mind as obstacles disappear and reappear to the beat. They can’t all be winners – some gameplay styles feel slow compared to the biking and flying that the game treats as its bread and butter. Navigating the inner workings of a VR headset is a level I’d be hesitant to replay.

My favourite levels are those that focus on the core gameplay, striking a perfect balance of requiring timing to navigate obstacles while not taking enough brainpower to distract from the visual feast and ever stellar soundtrack. They are the epitome of the spectacle-filled “set-pieces” that Williams references. 

Finishing the game itself is easy, though more can be extracted from it by aiming for gold ranks, based on collecting things along the way and timing button presses correctly. Both my playthrough and Williams’ resulted in only silver and a couple of bronze ranks, so it’s not easy to breeze through a completionist playthrough.

Furthermore, there are collectables for each level, many of which require some forethought and/or skill in order to fill out the diamonds on the level select screen. It helps to fill out what is a short game, but a sizeable album. While Williams is a proponent of the replay value gained from additional content, I agree more on the grounds of the individual levels (largely) being “so fun”.

It’s difficult to describe as “deep”, but sometimes a quick game which makes you go “wow” is exactly what you need

The story is not a priority. Williams omitted it entirely from his review, and with reason. It mostly consists of opening and closing narration, delivered by Queen Latifah. Her voice meshes perfectly with the vibes that are created, making it soothing just to hear each new level name being read out.

The overall journey is centred around the different arcana found within a tarot deck, taking the Fool from her mundane bedroom and giving her a makeover into a debonair biker. The arcana are more of an aesthetic than actual direction for the story. Though, the ending wraps up what little story content there is nicely enough, providing an overall pleasant message that doesn’t leave nearly as strong an impact as the combination of lights and sounds that make up the journey.

Sayonara Wild Hearts is a beautiful game, well worth a playthrough thanks to the variety and immaculately styled experience it contains. It’s difficult to describe as “deep”, but sometimes a quick game which makes you go “wow” is exactly what you need. Perhaps it won’t make you think or cry. However, it will give you new content for your playlists, and make you smile as you say “Sayonara” to your current reality for a few hours.