What I did in the game: 100% completed.
The One Picture I have taken: Equipment screen.
I wasnt expecting for this one random indie game to take away so much of my time for one week, but truly, Mai: Child of Ages will surely become one of those indie hidden gem that more people should try. When I first saw it popped on the eShop, I almost just scrolled by, but I don't know, there was something in those screenshots that caught my eyes, and I'm sure glad I ended up buying it.
Let's go with the negatives first, the game has A LOT of jank! You can go through some walls, the physics is all over the place, the jumping one in particular, to the point you could surely sequence break by jumping to places you're not supposed to. There was also a lot of crashes (always after a warping somewhere or entering a new zone, but fortunately, it always auto-save just before, so I never lost any progress) and the performances on the Switch 1 were really not great, so I've played on the Switch 2 which solved most problems, but that may not be an option to everyone.
And yet even with all that the game just won my heart by how much love was put into it. The game is like an hybrid between a 3D Platformer and a 3D Zelda game. You're going back in time between the present and the future. When in the present, you're a child and you're playing the platforming section, jumping everywhere finding collectables all over the map. But when you're in the future, you're now an adult. You can't jump anymore (except when reaching a ledge, like in Ocarina of Time), but instead you can now fight with a Sword and Shield, shoot arrow with a bow, everything you can expect from Zelda gameplay. Since this game is all about time travels, doing some things in one era will indeed change stuff in the other, and everything is really well interconnected. The game also offers Metroidvania gameplay as you constantly find new power-up that helps you access places you couldnt before. At the end of the game, you're almost a mobility god, you can jump to most places, even many where you clearly wasnt supposed to reach, and while I've talked about janks above, I was so surprised to see that almost everywhere was solid ground. The freedom you have is really amazing.
And you'll be exploring A LOT of places. If it first I thought the game would be isolated on one island, you quickly gain access to a boat which open a second world map where you start exploring many islands, all with their collectables to find. And while sailing everywhere, you start seeing that there's also a whole world underwater, which you'll be able to explore once you gain the diving upgrade. For a small indie game, the world is just vast to explore. And the collectables you find by exploring everywhere actually give you gameplay advantage. More jumping height, more speed, more air when underwater, more attack power. You also collect tons of materials and there's also a basic crafting system, where everything you craft make you even more and more powerful, to the point where at the end, you're just unstoppable.
As for the story, it's really basic, but still touching at the same time. There's a third time period, the past, which I won't spoil, but where most story beat happens, and I was always curious to reach the next past segment. For the graphics, the game is weirdly beautiful to me. I say that because at first glance, it seems way too basic, almost low-poly untextured in some place, and yet there's a charm to it that I can't explain. The character of Mai though is really great, the hairs flowing everywhere in particular. Just don't expect AAA graphics, this is a small indie team after all. One thing though, there's pop-in problems on the Switch 1 where assets seem to load slower. On Switch 2, it's less of a problem, since everything was loading fast on the internal harddrive.
So yeah, that's pretty much it for me, I didnt expected to have so much fun with this one as I have. If you like platformers and Zelda games, and can endure some jank here and there, I'm sure you'll love this one. Highly recommended.
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