Stela Review

Stela is a new side scrolling atmospheric adventure game brought to us by Skybox Labs and delivers on its description. Stela has a beautiful look and an immersive atmosphere that will definitely pull you into the story. Similar to other games of this genre like Limbo and Inside, Stela gives the dark sense of foreboding as you traverse through the universe solving puzzles and staying hidden from enemies.

“Overcome daunting challenges, treacherous terrain, and gargantuan beasts while traversing a decaying land. Manipulate the environment to solve elaborate puzzles and creep past dangerous creatures under cover of muted landscapes, all set to an original soundtrack. Survive sweeping environments including mysterious towns, haunting forests, and massive subterranean ruins brought to life in an atmospheric experience”

The game kicks of with you controlling a young woman running through a dark forest. Big shadowy monsters protect this area and will not hesitate to come screaming to where you are and take a swing once detected. Hiding in shadows is key here. Once you get used to hiding you can run the levels fairly easily, sliding down hills and climbing ladders to reach new areas along the way.

As you progress you encounter bigger and longer puzzles which can range from climbing massive bell towers and setting of a bell that will keep monsters at bay. The puzzles are fun and not too strenuous, you should be able to work these out with ease. Stela isn’t an overly long game and can be finished within a couple hours making it popular with achievement hunter but for what the game is, it is quite fun.

There are a couple of chase scenes where you have to run for your life but apart from that the whole experience offers a relaxing feeling without the hack and slash onslaught that would usually fit into a side scrolling game. The main focus is outwitting the monsters and manipulating them to your benefit, stealth plays a huge roll as you hide from enemies or even from the level background itself which can during certain levels fire a string of fire arrows that can fall from above, hopefully you grabbed that shield. As you reach the end of the adventure things take a weird turn and puzzles become a little trickier but nothing some trial and error wouldn’t fix.

Conclusion

Overall Stela is a fun experience, if short, and deserves a place up there with such titles as Limbo and Inside. Offering a large amount of depth and atmosphere is a plus and most people would likely find enjoyment from this title.

This game was tested and reviewed on Xbox One. All of the opinions and insights here are subject to that version.