The Day I Became a Bird is a short family-friendly experience featuring a beautiful art style inspired by the children’s book and short film of the same name. Its simple mini-games, like puzzles and biking through the street, would be a treat for families. While I have no children of my own, I did find this game incredibly relaxing at a time we all need an escape from the imperfect world around us. Never has a story about a boy’s crush been so precious in the video game space.
Don’t expect the most complicated gameplay out of The Day I Became a Bird. You are fetching items, solving jigsaw puzzles, and collecting feathers all over the mini-games, and explorable locations in the game. It is a slow experience, but to be honest, quite relaxing in between sessions of the intense RPG Crimson Desert and the recently released cartoon FPS Mouse P.I. for Hire.
Sure, jigsaw puzzles aren’t the most entertaining but I felt very relaxed while solving them.
As you explore each level, there are easy quick time events to follow. One has you whirling the left analog stick around, while another has you press the cross/A button at the correct time. They’re simple to conduct, but if you have a kid who has a tough time with these, there is a simpler setting available in the options.
It’s quite charming to find every collectible feather in the game. It encourages you to interact with objects, such as playing on the seesaw with another kid in the park and hopscotch numbers on the ground. The animations are well done for the most part, making each interaction engaging for kids and kids at heart.
The one mini-game I scratched my head with for a few minutes is cutting out objects with scissors and drawing a picture. The Day I Became a Bird has these weird red outlines. I was trying to follow them exactly, but what the game is actually trying to request is that you draw or cut between the two red outlines. I might just be dumb, but the UI didn’t make sense to me for a little while.
What does make sense is the beautiful art style. It takes inspiration from the original source material and turns it wonderfully into a game. Each of the models look simple and charming with their cheeks outlined by pencil squiggles. Some of the scenes with clever uses of lighting are brimming with beauty. Some of the objects in the game have pencil outlines and haven’t been filled in completely, adding a cool look to the storybook-inspired adventure.
The boy in the game creates a bird outfit to impress the girl he likes.
As previously mentioned, the animation in the game is wonderful. It’s so cute how the boy awkwardly takes each step in his bird costume. You also feel a sense of pride as the costume is slowly put together. The art behind the pictures of the book is also gorgeous, standing out as the story is being told.
The music is another aspect of the game that tells the story well. The soundtrack perfectly captures that child-like wonder. There’s a sense of magic within each track. While I won’t listen to them on my phone like Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy tracks, it does the job well within the context of the game. It is available as part of the Deluxe pack alongside the short film and digital artbook.
As you may expect, the story is simple but charming all the same. The animations help the characters emote and the music carries it forward. The narrative is adorable as the boy gains a fascination of birds due to the girl he likes.
The animation when the protagonist grabs objects didn’t land well. Instead of him gripping some items, they are floating in his hands. It took me out of this pretty game published by Numskull Games.
Another aspect of the game that some may feel uncomfortable with is the price. It is $19.99 USD ($15.99 during launch) for an hour and a half experience. That’s honestly a hard sell. If you are a big fan of the original book, however, I think the recreation in game form could be worth the price.
While the price is a bit steep for a short experience like this, I would definitely recommend The Day I Became a Bird to families. It’s a simple, sweet, and pretty experience that I’m glad I played. It’s not the most deep or interesting game in the world, but it’s a great breather between some of the heavy gameplay and storytelling we see on consoles and PC nowadays. Additionally, there’s an easy platinum trophy if you are looking for that.
The Day I Became a Bird is a short family-friendly experience featuring a beautiful art style inspired by the children’s book and short film of the same name. Its simple mini-games, like puzzles and biking through the street, would be a treat for families. While I have no children of my own, I did find this game incredibly relaxing at a time we all need an escape from the imperfect world around us. Never has a story about a boy’s crush been so precious in the video game space.
Don’t expect the most complicated gameplay out of The Day I Became a Bird. You are fetching items, solving jigsaw puzzles, and collecting feathers all over the mini-games, and explorable locations in the game. It is a slow experience, but to be honest, quite relaxing in between sessions of the intense RPG Crimson Desert and the recently released cartoon FPS Mouse P.I. for Hire.
Sure, jigsaw puzzles aren’t the most entertaining but I felt very relaxed while solving them.
As you explore each level, there are easy quick time events to follow. One has you whirling the left analog stick around, while another has you press the cross/A button at the correct time. They’re simple to conduct, but if you have a kid who has a tough time with these, there is a simpler setting available in the options.
It’s quite charming to find every collectible feather in the game. It encourages you to interact with objects, such as playing on the seesaw with another kid in the park and hopscotch numbers on the ground. The animations are well done for the most part, making each interaction engaging for kids and kids at heart.
The one mini-game I scratched my head with for a few minutes is cutting out objects with scissors and drawing a picture. The Day I Became a Bird has these weird red outlines. I was trying to follow them exactly, but what the game is actually trying to request is that you draw or cut between the two red outlines. I might just be dumb, but the UI didn’t make sense to me for a little while.
What does make sense is the beautiful art style. It takes inspiration from the original source material and turns it wonderfully into a game. Each of the models look simple and charming with their cheeks outlined by pencil squiggles. Some of the scenes with clever uses of lighting are brimming with beauty. Some of the objects in the game have pencil outlines and haven’t been filled in completely, adding a cool look to the storybook-inspired adventure.
The boy in the game creates a bird outfit to impress the girl he likes.
As previously mentioned, the animation in the game is wonderful. It’s so cute how the boy awkwardly takes each step in his bird costume. You also feel a sense of pride as the costume is slowly put together. The art behind the pictures of the book is also gorgeous, standing out as the story is being told.
The music is another aspect of the game that tells the story well. The soundtrack perfectly captures that child-like wonder. There’s a sense of magic within each track. While I won’t listen to them on my phone like Kingdom Hearts or Final Fantasy tracks, it does the job well within the context of the game. It is available as part of the Deluxe pack alongside the short film and digital artbook.
As you may expect, the story is simple but charming all the same. The animations help the characters emote and the music carries it forward. The narrative is adorable as the boy gains a fascination of birds due to the girl he likes.
The animation when the protagonist grabs objects didn’t land well. Instead of him gripping some items, they are floating in his hands. It took me out of this pretty game published by Numskull Games.
Another aspect of the game that some may feel uncomfortable with is the price. It is $19.99 USD ($15.99 during launch) for an hour and a half experience. That’s honestly a hard sell. If you are a big fan of the original book, however, I think the recreation in game form could be worth the price.
While the price is a bit steep for a short experience like this, I would definitely recommend The Day I Became a Bird to families. It’s a simple, sweet, and pretty experience that I’m glad I played. It’s not the most deep or interesting game in the world, but it’s a great breather between some of the heavy gameplay and storytelling we see on consoles and PC nowadays. Additionally, there’s an easy platinum trophy if you are looking for that.
by Chris Penwell
