Many video games may contain subtle social and environmental messages, but indie platformer After Us by developer Piccolo delivers a clear and powerful message. The game's story takes place on a desolate Earth devoid of all living creatures, and follows the journey of Gaia, the Spirit of Life, as she strives to restore the lost souls of extinct animals. After Us boldly highlights the devastating impact that humans have had on the environment and its inhabitants, and questions whether humans should be given a second chance at sharing the planet with other living beings.
After Us has a simple premise and gameplay mechanics. The powerful being Mother used her life force to save the souls of the animals, but they are trapped and in need of rescue. The game's protagonist, with white hair, embarks on a journey to different locations to witness the final moments of the last animals on Earth, and then sets them free to repopulate the planet.
Gaia possesses a range of powers that gradually become available as the game progresses. Some of these powers are only useful in certain levels, but her primary ability, Life, is always accessible. This ability manifests as a luminous white orb that can be used for various purposes, such as purifying the surrounding terrain, repelling objects, and defeating enemies.
In addition to her Life ability, Gaia can scale specific trees and use their energy to soar long distances. She can also wall-ride, running along vertical surfaces, surf along vines, and execute standard platforming moves like sprinting, jumping, double-jumping, and gliding. The controls are simple, easy to learn, and mostly intuitive. However, they can feel unresponsive at times, resulting in accidental falls instead of jumps. Wall-riding can also be frustrating, as Gaia doesn't always stick to the wall as expected.
The game After Us features a lot of dying, but fortunately, it has a very forgiving checkpoint system that doesn't penalize players too severely for failing. In addition to autosave checkpoints, there are also several fast travel locations that can be unlocked during gameplay, making it easy to revisit previous areas to search for collectibles.
These collectibles serve as a motivating factor for most of the gameplay. While the main objective is to free the primary animal spirit of each level, there are also other souls scattered throughout the game that need to be located. These glowing blue orbs can be interacted with using Gaia's Life ability, and collecting them along with the main animal spirit will slowly fill up a constellation for each zone.
The next category of items to collect in After Us is memories, which can be obtained by using Gaia’s Life on the various human figures scattered throughout the game. While some of these statues are not interactive, others will grant the player a photo that tells the story of a human who once lived in that area. For completionists, gathering both the animal spirits and human memories is a must, and After Us provides a satisfyingly challenging but entirely possible task of collecting them all.
Occasionally, Gaia will come across mobile human figures. Unfortunately, most of these are hostile, with glowing red eyes and covered in oil. These creatures are known as Devourers, and they will relentlessly pursue Gaia, draining her life force if they catch her. To stop them, Gaia must use her Life to purify and release them. These moments of combat are skillfully placed to add a thrill of excitement to the game without disrupting the overall relaxed exploration experience, similar to the encounters found in games like The Last Guardian or PlayDead's Inside.
Some of the environments in After Us are reminiscent of those found in other games. The game features imposing structures of unclear functionality that stretch into the distance, emphasizing Gaia's small size as she tackles her monumental task. The game's locations are often stunningly beautiful, even if they are simply depleted lumberyards filled with scattered stumps.
Each level in After Us is themed around a particular spirit animal, and the messages conveyed are powerful. In the whale level, Gaia must avoid harpoons, while the deer level is filled with traps, and the lumberyard is home to circular saw blades that pursue her. The developer's goal is to prompt players to feel empathy for the last animals killed, and they succeed. Seeing the last pig strung up by its hind legs or opening the cage that held the last eagle is poignant.
After Us has a wide variety of levels, each offering a distinct and slightly different gameplay experience. Although the mechanics remain mostly the same, such as platforming, gliding, and environmental puzzle-solving, they are presented in such a way and combined with unique obstacles to make each new location feel fresh.
Despite the dangerous Devourers, who relentlessly pursue Gaia, the camera in After Us proves to be the game's biggest challenge. Players will often meet an untimely end due to the camera's slow turning or incorrect positioning, causing the path to be obscured. This is especially problematic when wall-riding, which is already a difficult ability to master. Additionally, when Gaia needs to move in a certain direction, but the camera continues to face forward, players must jump blindly and likely face death. However, the unique gameplay loops in each level keep After Us engaging and enjoyable from start to finish. The Countryside is littered with trash that can be cleansed with Life to reveal hidden items or paths, while the constant black rain causes harm to Gaia and requires her to seek shelter. The Ocean provides the necessary water level, with siphons transporting Gaia to various locations. Lastly, in the Power Plant, Gaia must restore electricity to scattered televisions, which act as teleporters. Every level requires different strategies to complete, ensuring a fresh experience with each playthrough.
Despite a few technical issues, After Us is a well-rounded and memorable experience. While there were a couple of hard crashes and recurring hang-ups during autosaves, they weren't excessive and only became noticeable halfway through the game. Occasionally, Gaia would get stuck between objects, but the game would quickly fix the problem by killing her off. Overall, the game can be completed in about 10 hours, or 20 for those who want to thoroughly explore every aspect of the world. The visuals are impressive, the gameplay is fun, and the levels are varied. Although the story is simplistic and a bit vague, it serves its purpose well. After Us may not be the best game out there, but it definitely won't disappoint.
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After Us is available on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. For this review, Game Rant was provided with a PS5 code.
In After Us, players take on the role of Gaia, the Spirit of Life, and embark on a journey through visually stunning platforming environments set in an abstract world. The objective is to salvage the souls of extinct animals and revive them after learning their final fate. As players navigate through the wasteland, they must also fend off dangerous, oil-covered Devourers that are on the hunt for any remaining life. Expect to encounter creatures such as the last whale harpooned, the final eagle caged, and the last deer hunted down, among others.
