The Indie Informer

Returning to an old life, one you fled for brighter horizons, is difficult. Especially if everyone in your hometown is dead. For Ambrosia Sky‘s protagonist, that’s just her job as a Scarab. This role, part mystical and part scientific, is committed to the pursuit of immortality. The Scarabs believe that by extracting samples of the universe’s wondrous flora, humans can leave behind the concerns of mortality. The catch? They have to collect these samples from those who’ve died from a horrific disease called Clusterlung within forty-eight hours.

That’s what awaits you.

The foundational concept is intriguing in and of itself, a space-sailing undertaker putting the dead to rest while studying their vital data — but the game has even more to offer. Even in this first step into the game, it’s plain to see the title’s alluring story is accompanied by a brilliant game-feel.

Traversal in zero gravity or otherwise is velvety and compelling thanks to my trusty grappling hook and the world’s detailed physics. It gives me the freedom to zip anywhere and discover satisfyingly secretive little nooks with suitable rewards. The game’s physics doesn’t just support movement, though.

My main way of interacting with the world is with my cleansing firearm. Rather than projectiles, it shoots water, which breaks apart dangerous forms of galactic fungi piece by piece. In so doing, I clear my path, neutralize dangers, and solve crafted environmental puzzles. Properly breaking matter around me down will grant me ranked samples of the fungi that I can then use to upgrade my gear when I return to my base.

These upgrades include more health, a larger magazine, and — my favorite so far — elemental ammo. Crafting electric projectiles or flaming fluid changes the way I can approach missions. I can power on otherwise useless technology with a blast of my weapon or torch a room of noxious plants. Whatever this says about me, watching a tangled web go up in flames is mesmerizing.

The game action unfolds via individual missions, each in a different location and with its own objective. These grow creatively, causing me to change up my own destructive strategies. If I have to capture seed samples to bring back unharmed, for example, then I can’t very well spray every room with fire.

In addition to reveling in the feeling of fluid motion and logical action and reaction, I was happy to discover the narrative hits hard. My mission after my tutorial reveals the macabre truth behind my hometown. Messages left behind on flickering terminals paint a picture of a desperate community unable to save their life’s work, or indeed, their lives.

The emotional culmination of Ambrosia Sky: Act One‘s early mission is a scene where I lay to rest one of the few people in my old life who encouraged me to become better. I, the player, never met this person while they lived, but the writing and atmosphere pushed me to mourn their loss as if I had. Making this even heavier, the person dearest to me is not among the dead, but remains unaccounted for. Now, I have to find them.