Belgian Game Spotlight - Heim
Welcome to a new year and alongside it, a new Belgian Game Spotlight! The last time you were reading these updates, the robot apocalypse was upon us in Rise of Humanity, but this time around, we're venturing into more peaceful territories with Heim, an indie puzzle-adventure inspired by Norse mythology.
Heim is best compared to a violence-free version of The Legend of Zelda: an adventure that sees you exploring magical lands full of new places to discover, people to meet, sidequests to complete and puzzles to solve. All of this, set in a mythological world with Norse-inspired deities and folklore.
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You play as Ashyr, a young hero who departs on a mystical adventure that takes him to far-off places and different
worlds and only through clever use of your newfound magical abilities will you be able to see the complete story unfold.
Throughout the adventure, you'll unlock skills like seeing the memories of the past, moving objects with a form of telekinesis and playing songs on your magical flute. You'll sail on the endless seas, discover ancient secrets and even get to talk to a few gods along the way.
Heim is violence-free, but that doesn't mean that you won't be challenged. There are a lot of puzzles in the game that increase in complexity as you progress and you'll also have to carefully platform to elevated regions that will feel punishing when you miscalculate your jump.
What managed to impress, is how many different gameplay mechanics are present in this game made by Solo developer Tom Ryckeboer. It's not a simple matter of running from point A to B and talking to some people along the way, you'll be given a handful of unique tasks as well.
From petting a dog (you HAVE to pet him, because free will is an illusion) to composing music, plotting charts across the starry night sky and etching designs in a wooden statue. And all of those actions happen in the first half hour of the game!
Visually the game is pleasing to look at as well, there is an almost cell-shaded quality to the aesthetic with black outlines around objects and characters looking like they are sculpted out of clay (which is in theme with the Norse lore as the first humans were supposedly sculpted by the gods)
The world is quite large and feels vast, allowing you to reach any location you can see in the distance, by running, swimming or sailing there on your boat.
It's exciting to see what solo devs can achieve these days and it's clear that given more time and practice, we can expect great things from future titles.
If reading this has made you excited to try Heim yourself, be sure to buy it on Steam or at the very least Wishlist it!
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Want to keep up-to-date on the game and the developer? Here are a few places you can follow them:
We hope you've enjoyed this feature article and if you're a Belgian game developer yourself, don't be afraid to reach out and maybe we'll spotlight your game next month!
