Carto

Release Date: October 27, 2020

Adventure, puzzle elements, 2D, indie games, exploration games, PS Plus Premium, PS Plus Extra, cozy game, singleplayer

7.7

OpenCritic

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Carto is an exploration-oriented adventure game with puzzle elements, in which we explore a world composed of various biomes, encountering a number of characters and special events along the way. Sunhead Games studio is responsible for the game.

Plot
Mechanics
Technical aspects

Carto is a fairytale game in which a little girl travels the world by manoeuvring the tiles. The game was created by Sunhead Games studio, and its release is the responsibility of Humble Games, known from such titles as Forager, TemTem or Void Bastards.

Plot

In the game we play Carto, a girl who is looking for a way home and has a unique ability to move the tiles of the terrain so that she can get to places that are not normally accessible. During our journey we travel through various biomes that differ not only in appearance, but in the characters and culture that inhabit them. And so ahead of us is a journey through forests, deserts, meadows, swamps and so on.

Carto also encounters a number of NPCs on his way; most of them need help, in return for which they share a clue as to where to go further to get home.

Mechanics

Carto is a two-dimensional adventure game observed from top-down view, which is full of puzzle elements related to the unique power of the heroine. It consists in the fact that at any time we can enter the screen with a map of the terrain divided into square tiles; often on one tile there are different biomes adjacent to each other, like on the chips from the famous Carcassonne board game. Being on the map screen, we can freely rotate and move the tile on which the heroine is placed, transporting her to another part of the world. The only requirement is that the biomes marked on it must match the place we see: the forest must be in contact with the forest, water with water, etc. At the beginning these puzzles are simple, the more you get into it, the more complicated combinations await us.

Technical aspects

The game is distinguished by its fairy-tale and unique graphic design combining the style known from contemporary illustrations addressed to younger audiences, as well as the aesthetics typical of Tove Jannson, which you can mainly associate with its cult series about the adventures of the Moomins.

Videos and Screens

[1:20] Carto launch trailer

[1:00] Carto trailer #1

7.7

OpenCritic Rating

Game is Recomended by 71% of Critics. There are 25 Critic Reviews.

OpenCritic

Push Square: 7 / 10 by Stephen Tailby

A real strength of Carto is its cast of NPCs, written with real warmth and charm. The world they inhabit is also surprisingly well fleshed out, even though you can breeze through it in six or seven hours. This is a puzzle game, but it also tells a sweet, worthwhile tale about tradition and companionship. Combined with lovely visuals and chilled out music, this is a refreshing, relaxing game that's worth marking on your map.

Full Review

LadiesGamers.com:

Carto has a lot of heart at its core, with its endearing title character and family-driven narrative. The map-altering mechanic is user-friendly and offers a unique approach to the puzzle-adventure genre. While deceptively simple on its face, there are some challenges ahead and the going can get tough at times. With every map “riddle,” there seems to be but one solution to allow progression. The joy is in solving a particularly vexing one, when it all lines up just as it should. The main drawback was that at times, things felt somewhat disconnected and flat. The developers clearly wanted a game that was puzzle-driven, first and foremost, and the exploration elements aren’t nearly as developed. But Carto has so much charm and wholesome appeal, that it’s genuinely easy to like. The storybook visuals are so pretty and I love the upbeat soundtrack. The perfect cozy game to curl up in a blanket with, on a rainy afternoon!

Full Review

Nintendo Life: 6 / 10 by Kate Gray

Carto's main concept is compelling, but it runs out of steam in the mid-game and succumbs to repetition far too swiftly. It's nonetheless a beautifully-drawn title that's often a pleasure to play, but when it's tedious, it's really tedious. It's arguably the perfect title to play with kids and novices who are likely to be more forgiving of Carto's many shortcomings, but everyone else should approach with a little more caution.

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