Firework

Firework is an episodic independent adventure game, with psychological horror theme. It was developed by Chinese company Shiying Studio and published by Gamera Game. The game can be purchased on Steam. Its free demo is also available.

Plot

The main character - Lin Lixun - is a rookie police officer. Together with his partner - Zheng Ming - he arrives in a mountain town, from where an unusual report was received. Half an hour earlier, during a funeral in Qingtan Town, the coffin caught fire for unknown reasons. According to a police informant, the fire was started on purpose. This case is the first task the protagonist has to face as an investigator.

As soon as the two policemen reach the village, their police car breaks down. Zheng decides to repair the vehicle, but the battery in his flashlight is running out, so he asks his companion to buy a new one. After purchasing the battery from a mysterious shopkeeper and giving it to a colleague, the protagonist sets out alone to the scene.

Game mechanics

Firework is a side-scrolling game. The player observes the action from the side, revealing successive elements of the world presented in the game by steering the protagonist to the right or left side of the screen.

While exploring the gloomy and mysterious areas of Qingtan Town, Lin encounters new characters with whom he establishes dialogues. Sometimes his interlocutors give him tasks to complete in order to move on to the next stage of the game. Some of the objects that he passes are also interactive. The protagonist comments the presence of unusual objects or inscriptions on the walls. Some of them can also be examined more closely using several available options. Important information is highlighted in yellow. In the game there are also items that the protagonist can take with him.

As in other adventure games, the player solves various types of puzzles. They are integrated into the story and are an important complement to it.

The game saves automatically in key moments or after a longer dialogue with one of the characters. However, nothing stands in the way of saving the game progress on your own.

Technical aspects

Firework features a 2D graphics in a retro style. Shades of a specific color (e.g. gray, yellow) dominate in each of the locations. Many places are covered in darkness, which can only be pierced by the light emanating from a candle carried by the hero or the glow of a lantern. The characters in the title represent the style of Japanese animation.