As the "final" game in the Bit Generation series, the pros at Skip Ltd. decided to ditch creating a complex idea like some of the earlier games in favor of a wholly unique experience. It's not as nearly as esoteric as Orbital, nor is it as thoroughly arcade perfect as Digidrive, but instead the devs made a simple game that is completely unlike any other game out there. Essentially, Soundvoyager is a simple collection of minigames that you must complete using solely the game audio (save for some minor exceptions). And well, maybe it's not entirely alone in its novelty; there are a few other games out there designed to be played with the audio alone (take Real Sound: Kaze no Regret, for example), but those are fairly different from what's on offer here.

I was pretty sure that I was going to find myself liking the game less on my revisit like I did with some of the other Bit Gen games, but to my surprise I think I enjoyed it a tad bit more. One thing I never really noticed years ago was that the audio engine is crazy impressive for the tech. Of course, the audio would have sounded a lot better on something like the DS, but I honestly get a big kick out recognizing a lot of these crunched-up samples from old 90s sample CDs I happen to own. And as for the actual tech aspect, this game has really great spatial audio. Sounds will whizz past you with Doppler effects, there are slight (yet very crusty) reverbs in places it doesn't need to be and also in parts to help better indicate where sounds actually are, among a few other minor touches. There's also a rather rudimentary visualizer that lights up the background of each stage with a fair degree a colorful variety. All of these are really cool and make the game very immersive.

The main mode is called Sound Catcher, it's the easiest and generally where the game struts its stuff the most. You'll hear a sound on either your left or your right, and you simply just need to center it to snatch it before it moves down past you. There's a wave at the top to show how close the sound is to the bottom of the screen, but you don't need to rely on it to beat any of the stages. There's also no way to lose in these levels, so just chill out and stitch all of the sounds into a song at your leisure. Some of the later songs are outright wacky (listen to Office Love and/or Electric Ranch to get a taste of that), but I love them all and it's definitely a close tie between Vesper and Homing for my favorites. After finishing the first Sound Catcher level, Voyage, you're given a choice between one of two sounds to catch in order to go to the next level. This game uses branching paths to progress through it, and it's a neat little touch despite it requiring a few repeat plays of certain Sound Catcher stages in order to be fully completed. Personally, I don't find that to be much of an issue, since none of it's much of a hassle for time.

The six other modes are more or less quick challenges to test your auditory skills. Sound Drive and Chase both have you dodging a myriad of sounds on a road. The difference with Chase being that you also have to catch a sound in order to win, of which is possible to miss if you're not careful. One Sound Drive stage also features pedestrian noises that'll beat you up if you run into them, and I think this combined with the goofily calm announcer is where most people get the first taste of this game's sense of humor. Moreover, Sound Slalom has you moving in-between alternating beeping noises, as the name implies. Sound Cannon has you sniping a variety of sounds surrounding you from a distance. And then the last two, Sound Picker and Cock, have you grabbing sounds around you in a small field of noises. Those two are pretty similar, but Picker has stationary noises that you have to single out, and Cock has you trying your best to chase down a small handful of very fast roosters. I'd say Cock and Cannon are generally the hardest ones since it can be a little trickier to tell where sounds are at times, but there are some patterns to the way things move and sound in the game that'll improve your skills (and best times) as you notice them.

While you go through the game you'll also unlock sounds for a special Sound Catcher mode called Remix, which randomly drops in different samples from the various songs and lets you make your own funky mixes of sorts. Beating every stage also gets you Sound Catcher Shuffle which just randomly cycles through full Sound Catcher songs. It's not crazy for the replayability, but for such a fun and distinct experience (with some rather cool tunes), it's honestly all that was really needed here for the two or so hours it takes to finish the game.

So perhaps, Soundvoyager is the best "coffee-table" game of the bunch. It's novel, and considering how much I've written already, there's a pretty good amount that can be said. I think it's also the easiest one to show to people; not that the other games are hard, but since it's a simple game and music is such an cool and crucial part of what makes us human, it's very easy to throw at friends and family and see what kinds of reactions they get. Mileage will probably vary, but definitely try it some time. I recently streamed the game to a couple of homies and that was pretty freaking cool (minus it being a little harder to beat some stages with people talking, but it was worth it). I love this game for what it does, and love the future potential of its concept.

Of course, Skip themselves being non-existent nowadays doesn't help the future of this series nor the later Art Style games, but who's not to say that the concepts here can't live on in the projects of motivated people down the line. Besides the neat aesthetics and presentation of many of the games, I think having these sort of novel concepts is what more people should strive for with their own games. Games that keep things fresh.


Bit Generations series reviews:
Dotstream⠀⠀⠀(Start)
Boundish⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀|
Dialhex⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀|
Coloris⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀|
Orbital⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀|
Digidrive⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀|
Soundvoyager⠀⠀⠀ᐁ (End)

I keep forgetting about writing something here, and I really ought to because I've been slacking on these. (Sorry Detchibe!!!)

It's a fun novelty to be able to play games based on nothing but audio, but I feel like there isn't enough actually there for me to get gripped by it. It kinda feels like a sub-game from Warioware or something. Maybe I'm just an asshole who doesn't appreciate what they still have despite my vision being literally so bad I need annual checkups, but part of me also feels like I'd be more pissed if I lost my hearing. I dunno what I'd do for myself anymore if I couldn't listen to my favorite music anymore. Woe is me if I cannot listen to the Dynasty Warriors 4 soundtrack.....just like how I can barely hear some of the cues in this game....fuck you Slalom.

Anywho, neat, but maybe if you attached a YM2612 to it I'd find myself more intrigued by it. Hopefully people aren't too sore about me scoring this the same as Krusty's Fun House.

If you looked at the screen to play it and thought it was too easy or whatever you missed the point entirely.

We will get old, our many senses will wither with time, particularly eyesight, and that's where I find hope and inspiration in games like this; perhaps a bit ironically as the system its on is reviled by pretentious retro nerds for not having a "real" sound chip.

My dad could have played this as he turned 70, despite needing very intense glasses and a 55" LCD TV sat 5 feet away from him to read subtitles; and that's very special to me.

Thank you to user Detchibe for featuring this game.