Yi and the Thousand Moons
Review

Yi and the Thousand Moons (2017) is an adventure game in the form of a musical. You follow Yi who is told by the gods to bring down the moons, but then has to try and save the people of her village from the unforeseen results.

It's a simple game. You explore a couple of stylised environments and take on tasks that progress the story. So far, so adventure game. Here though, as you progress you are accompanied by a musical score punctuated with your interactions and sung verses from the characters you meet.

The result is a gentle game that grants you control of the composition and pace of this unfolding musical. Some might find the slightly hokey lyrics and on-the-nose sung narration off putting, but this is true to the musical genre.

Go with the building songs and lyrics and the game creates the warm uplifting experience of a musical. Only here you are part of the cast rather than watching from the audience. The overall impact is impressive as the game employs professional singers and a real orchestra.

It's a short game, too short for some. But it has the unique appeal of this live band and music that reacts to you. Each time you play it is a new song, with the game characters performing the verses naturally as you come into contact with them. It's also lovely how the characters match the words with their simple mouths.

Our examiner, Andy Robertson, first checked Yi and the Thousand Moons 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 21 months ago.