Chants of Sennaar is an awesome video game. There have lately been a few of these information-based puzzle games focused on language and this is among the best of them, standing (almost) shoulder to shoulder with The Gostak.
The basic premise here is that you are climbing a tower full of people whose languages you do not speak. As you go, you collect different glyphs and use logic and process of elimination to completely understand each language. Having multiple languages to learn puts Chants of Sennaar apart from its contemporaries, but it also has an additional clever twist in that you are meant to translate between the languages, letting the members of each floor communicate with each other. Your goal here is to figure out what is going on in this tower, why it is the way it is, and how to fix it.
The narrative and gameplay feed into each other excellently in this regard. The game is compelling to play the whole way through and completing each language is rewarding and fun. A lot of very well thought out UX makes dealing with the different languages and puzzles very easy and satisfying.
The controls and input can be a bit awkward and spotty at times. A couple of stealth sections make these issues even more apparent.
Additionally, I don't think the game gives you quite enough leeway in terms of defining these languages yourself. You get to write in your own translations of each word, but when you correctly identify them (matching a set of glyphs to a set of pictures) the game fills them in for you with the "correct" meanings. I would find it a bit more compelling if it let you keep the names you have put in, allowing your translation to be a bit fuzzier.
These weaker elements don't do much to hinder the rest of the experience, however, and the game is very successful despite them.
Chants of Sennaar has a very striking art-style, with bold colors that also allows each of the floors of the tower you are exploring to be well differentiated. Things are simply but effectively rendered, and the animation and characterizations of all the different members of each group of people you interact with are well done. Your character has a truly excellent goblinesque walk that makes him feel like a real outsider in the tower.
Chants of Sennaar is an excellent game. It is worth playing through, but especially if you have any interest in information centered puzzle games like Return of the Obra Dinn or Outer Wilds or in language deciphering games like The Gostak!
The basic premise here is that you are climbing a tower full of people whose languages you do not speak. As you go, you collect different glyphs and use logic and process of elimination to completely understand each language. Having multiple languages to learn puts Chants of Sennaar apart from its contemporaries, but it also has an additional clever twist in that you are meant to translate between the languages, letting the members of each floor communicate with each other. Your goal here is to figure out what is going on in this tower, why it is the way it is, and how to fix it.
The narrative and gameplay feed into each other excellently in this regard. The game is compelling to play the whole way through and completing each language is rewarding and fun. A lot of very well thought out UX makes dealing with the different languages and puzzles very easy and satisfying.
The controls and input can be a bit awkward and spotty at times. A couple of stealth sections make these issues even more apparent.
Additionally, I don't think the game gives you quite enough leeway in terms of defining these languages yourself. You get to write in your own translations of each word, but when you correctly identify them (matching a set of glyphs to a set of pictures) the game fills them in for you with the "correct" meanings. I would find it a bit more compelling if it let you keep the names you have put in, allowing your translation to be a bit fuzzier.
These weaker elements don't do much to hinder the rest of the experience, however, and the game is very successful despite them.
Chants of Sennaar has a very striking art-style, with bold colors that also allows each of the floors of the tower you are exploring to be well differentiated. Things are simply but effectively rendered, and the animation and characterizations of all the different members of each group of people you interact with are well done. Your character has a truly excellent goblinesque walk that makes him feel like a real outsider in the tower.
Chants of Sennaar is an excellent game. It is worth playing through, but especially if you have any interest in information centered puzzle games like Return of the Obra Dinn or Outer Wilds or in language deciphering games like The Gostak!