Olija review – exquisite throwback to early-90s adventure games

PC, Nintendo Switch; Skeleton Crew Studio/Devolver Digital
With fast and fun fighting, a swashbuckling Lord Faraday explores a ruined archipelago where he has been shipwrecked

Sometimes you can tell when a game is a labour of love. Olija is a one-person project by Japan-resident developer Thomas Olsson, a strange and gratifying throwback to the kind of enigmatic, pixellated early-90s adventure games that you might have found on the school computer. With its ambiguous lo-fi art direction, minimalist but impactful sound and muted palette, it captures the mystery of games such as Another World, where each distinct screen brought new dangers. However, unlike its inspirations, it feels snappy and instinctive to play, with exciting fights and a magic harpoon that zips you thrillingly around the screen, slicing through pirates or transporting you across chasms towards the next encounter.

We play Lord Faraday, shipwrecked somewhere mysterious and unwelcoming after setting sail in search of a more promising future for his subjects. Exploring a ruined archipelago full of abandoned temples, demonic foes and the occasional taciturn survivor, you search for keys that might unlock the way back home. One island is a kind of home base, where Faraday's former crew join the refugees you rescue along the way and create a little community where you can regroup, buff your weapons and craft amusing hats that add little flourishes to the fighting - flying feathers, or poison resistance.