Hello everyone and welcome back to Kralizec Gaming.

Today we are going to take a look at The Longing. This idle-adventure game promises you to baffle you with its strange concept and a great atmosphere. Whether it can deliver on this promise is the question we will try to answer today. The Longing is available on Steam for 14 Euro and 99 cents or your regional equivalent.

With this review you have a choice of either reading it here in text form or listening to the video review. They both contain the same content.

Be sure to check out my other posts about gaming and science @kralizec and visit my YouTube Channel</center-

Buy the game

Video Review

Text Review

A good friend is someone you treasure. Especially when you are in need. While playing The Longing I felt like I was part of one a Czech myth. The myth of Blanice Knights that are said to be waiting for when the Czech people will have it the worst and once that happens they will ride to help it. In The Longing, it is sort of similar. You are just standing and waiting to help until the sleeping king awakens.

A Bit Of History

So… we need to make a few things straight. The developer of the game – Studio Seufz were inspired by the Kyffhauser legend. This legend is very similar to the Czech myth I mentioned a second ago. It tells the story of king Barbarossa. But instead of him dying it is said he sleeps in the Kyffhauser highlands where he waits for the time of need when he will return and help his people.

But let's go away from the history lessons and get back to the game. You play as a shade who serves the king. The king's power has been spent and he needs to sleep to regain his power. For exactly 400 days. 400 REAL DAYS! Your goal is to wait for this much time and awaken the king. So… you got a lot of time and only a single thing you must do. Or more specifically a thing you mustn't do. Leave the caverns under the mountain. So, essentially it is all about the fact that someone tells you what you cannot do and you must keep yourself from doing it.

The Long Wait Begins

So… what will you do for the long 400 days? What activities will keep you occupied? There are no rollercoasters to ride. No buggies to race. In reality, it is all quite mundane. In your humble abode, you will get to draw and even put the drawing onto your wall. Sit in a chair and think or even read. The Moby Dick is seriously waiting for you in the game to read so if you haven't read it yet, this might be just your chance.

Otherwise, you just wander the caverns, walk up and down a lot of stairs and just discover everything that is hiding in the kings underground. You don't have to rush, remember you have the 400 real days to discover everything. So you walk slowly. And this is essentially the main theme of the game. Its slowness. And honestly, I think that no matter how open you are too unconventional ideas and genres here boredom will just eventually appear.

On the other hand, it gives you time to do real stuff. If you find a door that is slow to open, you can open Facebook, talk to your friends, make a coffee, read what is new in the world, and put your kids to bed. Then take a look if the door has maybe opened. If not, well who cares. Just go to sleep and check in the morning. If your character says the door will take 2 days to open you will need 2 days. So, turn off the game and return to it in two days.

The only real reason to keep the game open is the keep your little buddy happy because when the game is shut down he gets lonely and depressed and when you play with him he will be more optimistic and less lonely. Honestly, this aspect reminded me of Tamagotchis. Remember those?

Conclusion

Okay, I need to come clean. There is a way to speed things up. The more time you spend making your home better the faster time flows. Maybe the authors are sort of trying to create a metaphor for time flowing slower when you are lonely, bored, and depressed while it seems to just fly by when you are surrounded by your friends and doing something fun.

But… in conclusion. The Longing is certainly something new and certainly a piece of electronic art. But for your average player, well it is a tiny bit too slow. The concept itself is quite intriguing. I honestly would love to see it done on a smaller scale. Maybe thirty real days of waiting would more easily be digested by your average player. But 400 is too much. Especially for a fairly high price. But if you like interesting concepts and are willing to wait. This might be your new game.

So, that’s it for today guys. I hope you liked the review and if you did, please up-vote the review, follow my blog, and be sure to share it with your friends. And comment, if you have anything you would like to add. See you guys later with more gaming content.

Disclaimer: All the images have been taken directly from the Steam game page