The Star Named EOS review – Snap to it for a satisfying puzzle adventure

It doesn’t really matter the medium.  When it comes to sequels, the keyword really is “more.” More of what people enjoyed about the original. And more on top of that: something to expand on the experience.

The reason I’m bringing this up when talking about new story-driven point-and-click adventure The Star Named EOS is that while the game isn’t a direct sequel to Behind the Frame: The Finest Scenery, the first cosy effort from indie developers Silver Lining Studio, it certainly feels like a spiritual successor to that hit 2021 release. There’s a lot of overlap between the two titles, from the charming hand-drawn visuals to thematic explorations of how art (painting in Frame, photography in EOS) not only captures the world’s beauty but also has the power to open the door to personal memory.

That said, The Star Named EOS, published by PLAYISM, has big sequel energy and is more all round. In a good way. At around four hours long, EOS is substantially meatier than Behind the Frame, and dials up its puzzle component in a cerebrally pleasing and coherent way. Also, initial concerns from more cynical players that the game might be an endless string of supposedly profound statements like “When you gaze at the stars, the stars also gaze at you” and “I’ve always believed that if you see something it’s real” prove to be only part of a bigger, genuinely poignant picture.

As for that bigger picture, The Star Named EOS is told from the perspective of aspiring photographer Dei. Soaked in Magical Realism, the tale sees our hero, armed with a scrapbook, letters and instant camera, set out to recreate the images sent to him by his mother, who was frequently away from home with work during his childhood. By recreating these photos, Dei steps into each scene and memory, taking him closer to a forgotten truth.

Without spoiling anything, The Star Named EOS heads in a darker direction. In the process it powerfully conveys how a person’s childhood adoration of a parent, and everything associated with them, can be replaced with resentment and dismissal under the guise of looking at things with grown-up eyes.

The Star Named EOS’s central mystery is intriguing, although what will properly hook you are the game’s puzzles. Unlike Behind the Frame, there is a lot to do here, gameplay-wise. Each revisitable chapter is a chain of brain-tickling tasks that unlock the next step in Dei’s journey. Included are some mini-game classics, like tile sliders, train routing and Tower of Hanoi, among a smattering of more novel tests. While you must thoroughly scan over each interactive environment to find hidden solution components, there’s nothing too opaque or abstract.

Overall, The Star Named EOS offers just the right amount of challenge for a more laid-back puzzle game, enabling progress at the same time it provides players with a sense of accomplishment when they get things right. Personally, I was stuck just once for a substantial period, and that’s because I fixated on an item visible behind a locked cabinet door. This when I already had the necessary tool in my inventory. As a sidenote, if you do need a break from the puzzle-solving, you can always pick up Dei’s camera and take some shots for the game’s internal photo gallery, which has 80 slots to fill.

While you may be compelled to progress so you can unravel the mystery, there is no urgency in The Star Named EOS. That sense is amplified by the game’s soothing score by composer Bo-Xun Lin. The music is in fact one of the game’s big selling points, and I’d go so far to call it one of the most beautiful game soundtracks of 2024.

It may still be too short for some, but over a couple of play sessions The Star Named EOS emerges as a casual puzzle adventure done right – emotionally moving and mentally satisfying.

Having launched on 23 July, The Star Named EOS is available now for PC (Steam, GOG, Humble Store), Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, & Xbox Series X|S. It is priced at $14.99 USD (R145 in South Africa) on all platforms.