videogameblog

I don't really have tonnes to say about this one. The Unfinished Swan has been on my radar for a while, being the only other game made by What remains of Edith Finch developers, Giant Sparrow. Most of the concepts here are executed nicely, but pail in comparison to its indie successors. At the time this probably would have been quite a refreshing narrative, as it questions things like 'the meaning of creating art'. Games with themes like this would have felt pretty new in 2012, but in 2024 it just seems underdeveloped. It feels like a creative stepping stone leading to What remains of Edith Finch, which is better in virtually every way.

You can see concepts present in What remains of Edith Finch here; I mainly drew comparisons to the fish factory sequence when I was playing. Both initially introduce a pretty rudimentary system that gradually opens up and recontexualises itself multiple times. You start off throwing ink on walls to reveal them, and then you're using water to grow vines, then you're building platforms. It reminded me of how in the fish factory sequence you're initially viewing a top down, rudimentary game which shifts to 3D, then to an exploration game, eventually becoming unrecognisable when compared to it's opening sequences, much like The Unfinished Swan. These systems are applied in completely different contexts in both games, but I thought it was interesting to see where some of the inspiration for my favorite sequence in Edith Finch might come from. The system of recontextualisation works really well in Unfinished Swan, keeping gameplay pretty engaging. I was worried when I started that the entire game was going to consist of throwing ink at walls to reveal where you're going, similar to Scanner Sombre. I wasn't finding this particularly engaging during the first sequence so i'm glad they didn't stick to it. There's a tonne of different gameplay systems present here, some of them could probably be their own entire game. The part where you build blocks by outlining the width and depth was especially cool, I wish they used that more. None of the puzzles are particularly challenging, but they do their job. There was alot of potential in the systems at play here but I feel they weren't used to their full potential; there definitely could have been a challenging puzzle game here. Part of me feels they kept it simple for accessibility? The game opens by showing that it's taking place inside a child's storybook, and it could easily be played by a child as one.

There's alot of visual variation present, I really liked how they play with lighting and player-generated landscapes. There's a sense of accomplishment and personalisation when you turn around and see an entire level painted with ink/vines in a way completely unique to you. I found the sequence in the blue town and the one in the dark woods especially pretty, really great art direction for an indie game from 2012.

Overall, I enjoyed playing An Unfinished Swan but it never really seems to reach it's full potential. At the time of release I could see it being pretty interesting, but in the modern day it seems outdated and underdeveloped. The systems at play are average, but they all have charm.