Fe

Fe
Discover a world you'll never want to leave.
Protagonist(s): Fe Genre(s): Platform Adventure Stealth Platform(s): Xbox One Microsoft Windows PlayStation 4 Nintendo Switch Release Date: 16th February 2018 Engine: Unity Developer(s): Zoink Publisher(s): Electronic Arts Country: Sweden

Fe is an adventure game developed by Zoink and published by Electronic Arts through their EA Originals program. The game was released on all consoles and PC on the 16th of February 2018.

Plot

The story takes place in a dark nordic forest where animals live peacefully and communicate with each other through singing. One day mysterious inorganic creatures called "The Silent Ones" invade the forest, harvesting its resources and trapping the wildlife in strange vine-like prisons.

A small fox wakes up in the forest in the middle of the Silent Ones' attack. Being a child fox, he can do little on his own to fend off the mechanical invaders and was separated from other young foxes.

Fe quickly discovers that by singing in specific ways he can get support from the animals and that special plants can dissipate the vine prisons. With those abilities, Fe makes it his goal to protect as many animals as he can, learn new songs to obtain new abilities, and figure out a way to get rid of The Silent Ones. Through out his journey Fe encounters a giant deer that The Silent Ones are afraid of.

Eventually Fe reunites with four other fox children but the reunion is short lived as they are captured by The Silent Ones who then attempt to take over a powerful ancient tree at the center of the forest that's been giving Fe power. Fe rescues the tree by singing into it's sprouting flowers, which activates a defense mechanism for the tree. With the tree saved, all the Silent Ones stop attacking and head towards a cave, prompting Fe to chase after them.

Fe discovers the Silent Ones have gathered around a strange artifact that's broken down and the giant deer is under attack. A Silent One who appears to be non-hostile guides Fe to help it sing into more of the ancient tree's flowers which slowly begin to repair the broken device, but before Fe can reach the last flower the floor cracks behind him leaving unable to sing to the flower.

The Silent One takes off its helmet and reveals itself to be an adult Fox who can't sign. Fe teaches his kin the song needed to activate the final flower and repair the device. Now fully functional, the device opens a portal that drags in all the Silent Ones in and takes them back to their world; this whole time The Silent Ones were foxes trying harness the Ancient Tree's power so they could repair the device and return home. With The Silent Ones gone, Fe and several other foxes who abandoned their mechanical armors stay in the forest now that peace has been restored

It is left unclear how the foxes became the SIlent Ones or how the portal to their home was broken, crystal spheres and stone carvings spread through out the game give some flashbacks but the details are left open for interpretation.

Why it Rocks

1. Very unique yet simplistic artstyle that gives the game a unique feel. The world changes color and tone depending on the situation and location.
2. Aside from a few hints in loading screens, there isn't a single line of dialogue or text in the entire game, everything is shown silently but still clear enough so the player can understand what's happening and get subtle clues for puzzle solving.
3. Very relaxing soundtrack that gives a feeling of peacefulness but also eeriness.
4. Fe can sign to bond with animals to make them his allies or interact with objects in the enviorment. As the game progresses Fe learns new songs that react to different types of animals and plants, depending on the tone of the song.
5. Often you'll find sparkling rocks that if you sing right next to, they reveal mural drawings with either hints for progression or some backstory.
6. Collecting crystal shards unlocks new abilities such as climbing trees or gilding.
7. Since Fe has no combat abilities whatsover, you can use stealth to outmaneuver enemies or trick them into getting destroyed.
8. While the game has a very "hands off" approach, there's often a helpful NPC pointing you in the right direction you need to go.
   • Singing loudly summons a bird that then flies towards the direction of the next objective.
9. Solid platforming mechanics.

Bad Qualities

1. While the artstyle is very unique, enviorments tend to blend together because everything has the same color tone, making it fairly easy to get disoriented or lose track of NPCs guiding you.
2. The game is very short and has a somewhat repetitive mission structure, many of them boil down to "pick up healing plant and take it to trapped animal/object to progress".
3. The noises Fe makes when singing can get on your nerves.

Reception

Fe received mixed-to-positive reception. The artstyle, relaxful yet sombre tone, and the premise were praised. The "hands off" approach however was more polarizing, with some praising it for allowing the player to figure things out on their own, and other criticizing it for making the game feel confusing and "aimless". The lack of context was also noted as making it harder to understand the plot or setting of the game.

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