FEZ

FEZ is one of the most beloved indie games and is considered a classic in the indie genre. It gained enormous notoriety after its controversial creator, Phil Fish, was featured in the documentary “Indie Game: The Movie” alongside the likes of Edmund McMillen and Jonathon Blow (designers of two of my favorite games Binding of Isaac and the Witness). At one point in the documentary Phil Fish restarted on many of the assets in the game because he did not like how they looked. After playing the game I can tell that every area is meticulously crafted giving FEZ has a feeling I can’t quite describe. I want to issue the disclaimer that despite picking up the game two or three times, I have yet to finish the game. I doubt I will EVER finish the game.

FEZ is a platformer that uses semi-3D areas which rotate around four faces. Collecting cubes to open doors unlocks new worlds and puzzles. Mostly the puzzles include jumping on blocks, climbing ladders, climbing moss, and rotating the screen.

The art in the game is breathtaking, but after a handful of zones they feel like an exercise in repetition with varying color schemes. Areas often lack any landmark or unique features. I can’t tell you how many times I entered a new zone and thought I had been there before.

Not every zone needs a landmark, but the puzzles need to be hard enough to be memorable. Most of the puzzles are the same “rotate the screen to line up the ladders” idea. The worst part is that the architecture, with a few exceptions, is bland despite the beauty of the zones they inhabit. Incredible sunsets of purple and orange are the backdrop to a shack with no particular characteristics. “Not all architecture has to be monumental” is a common refrain among architects. While I wholeheartedly agree with that in real world applications, if a world is supposed to be magical and otherworldly, buildings shouldn’t feel like a garden shed.

Miyazaki is a master of taking small undiscerning buildings and imbuing them with character and history. It probably isn’t fair to compare a one person team to Studio Ghibli, but I just can’t believe the game has such incredible use of colors and textures yet most of the game feels hollow.

I’m going to review a handful of the areas that I think were particularly egregious.

An entire town with two windows and no unique building features. The windmill was clearly tacked on at the last minute to try to add character. The tree on top of the building feels fake because the thickness of the building isn’t appropriate compared to the scale of the tree and its root system. I appreciate the grass/moss on the roofs, it quickly fails to connect because nearly every single area uses that same technique.

Columns that lack any detail beyond alternating colors. The pipes beneath the platform lack any discernable use. The floating platforms don’t feel naturally occurring and their existence lacks purpose. The heaviness of the door thresholds don’t match the elegance of the merchant stands or the color pattern of the columns.

How does this make sense as a monument? Why would this door be here? Random meaningless material changes is senseless.

This is the only piece that I recorded that I found particularly compelling, but it’s completely overshadowed by and unrelated to the beautiful background atmosphere.

I only got halfway through the game and could not bring myself to continue through another couple hours of squandered potential, bland level design, and fatuous architectural design. FEZ was a groundbreaking concept in 2012, but its architecture and world fail to create a cohesive, inspiring, or even believable experience.