Cosy games have always been a great way to unwind and enjoy the art of video games. The beauty of these games comes in the sometimes simplicity of the gameplay yet often can convey a broad range of lasting emotions.

Piccolo Studios alongside publisher Private Division have given MKAU an early preview of their new title ‘After Us’ on the PS5, an adventure platformer title that will release on current gen-only platforms. The preview for this title will only cover my first 90 minutes within the game and there will be a short video cut together for the MKAU YouTube channel as well to watch.

The opening moments of After Us introduces us to the playable character Gaia awakened by the inhabitants of a dreamlike sanctuary. The tall swaying grass in the wind dances around the plethora of animals as they chase each other around.

Above the trees, impossible set pieces are played out with whales and other sea creatures floating through the air and a warm glow emanates from the central location. As gorgeous as it was, the elated sensation was just as quickly expunged as the sprites were whisked away, leaving Gaia alone.

There were no fully spoken words and it is a minimal text-based narrative, but the world-building was ready to do the heavy lifting. Leaving the lush and colourful sanctuary, you find yourself in a bleak and ruined surreal depiction of Earth.

Rusted-out cars and broken scenery were left floating in place which created the platforming experience for you to progress through the world. It wasn’t exactly clear how or why the world was the way it was, yet the mystery drives the exploration with a need to know more.

The control scheme felt very natural with the fluid and gliding movements accentuating the liveliness of Gaia compared to the run-down and dreary landscape. Flowers blossomed at her feet as she ran forth by holding ‘R2’ and white whisps glowed around her as she double jumped to then glide to the next platform with X. The best feature though was found by holding down ‘L2’ and a burst of nature extends out around Gaia that can clear out oil-type filth and cause sprouts to blossom into full-grown trees.

The simplistic design made focusing on the jumping puzzles a series of small victories as you collected lost spirits. There wasn’t a whole lot of challenge to be found inherently but this was more of an introduction atmosphere to get accustomed to the world.

The storytelling of the devourers though was the main takeaway, as their part in all of this had caused the world to be in the shambles that we found it in. A truly gut-punching discovery at the end of the first area rammed home the importance of Gaia’s journey and was a promising narrative to follow.

Returning to the Ark, the lush environment we started our journey was truly a breath of fresh air. I loved the contrast between the areas and the next step in my journey was up to me, I could choose which way I wanted to go next. I do love my cosy games, and this reminded me of triumphs such as ‘Journey’ and ‘Rime’ which places After Us in great company even with a short preview that this was.

Written by: Shane Fletcher