Review: The Star Named Eos (Nintendo Switch)

The Star Named EOS is an escape room-like puzzle game in which you play as a girl named Dei, a photographer following in her mother’s footsteps. Each level in this game is based around recreating pictures your mother had sent you while on her journey. And with each level completed, you learn more about her story and the secrets of your family.

Each level starts with a cutscene, reading part of a letter from your mom. The letters contain a picture, as well. The first one you receive is of a window, taken from inside a train. The window has red curtains and a vase of flowers sitting on its sill. After looking around the room, you’ll find clues hinting towards recreating this photo. To do so, you have to solve puzzles such as finding keys, codes, and more.

With each puzzle you complete, you’ll obtain more objects. In the first level, you’ll find curtains and flowers like in your mother’s photo. Once these are placed in the right position, you can take a picture exactly like your mother’s with your own camera. This transports you to the train on which the original photo was taken, where you find a new letter with a new picture to recreate. Once you solve this level and complete your copy of the new photo, you’re transported to where that one was taken, and so on and so forth.

Along with insight into your mother’s story, each level provides “bonus pictures” you can get. You have access to your camera at any time, which can become very useful. For bonus photos, however, there is a cryptic indicator as to what you should be taking a picture of—usually a sticker of some kind. Getting all three bonus pictures gives you access to extra information of your location, and you can tell if you captured the right photo by whether its polaroid border is colorful and decorative, or just plain white.

While using the camera, you can zoom in and out. This allows you to use them like binoculars, enabling you to see clues that are farther away.

You access the camera with the X button, zoom in and out with ZL and ZR, and take pictures with R. The other controls for this game are just as easy. You look around with the right stick, and move your cursor with the left. You interact with objects and puzzles by clicking A, and access your inventory with Y. In your inventory will be the pictures from your mom, and any items you find to help solve puzzles and recreate photos.

The Star Named EOS uses entirely hand drawn imagery, which helps this game to feel more genuine and interesting. The music also helps add to its overall emotion and mystery which allows its touching story to be told in a heartwarming way. The game is fun, creative, and captivating. It’s also fairly short, making it a fun and quick play that’s hard to interrupt.