HomeFeaturesAlba: A Wildlife Adventure
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is a pure ray of sunshine for the soulI, too, would very much like more skipping in video games
I, too, would very much like more skipping in video games
Last year, Ed wrote about how hewished Ian Hitman could skipin IO Interactive’s big shiny assassin sim. Well, Agent 47 clearly needs to make the next stop on his international mission list a nice, relaxing retreat on the Mediterranean island of Pinar del Mar. Not to murder anyone, of course. But to hang out with Alba for some all important frolicking lessons. She’s a pro at this skipping marlarkey. If she’s not throwing her arms out like an aeroplane when she’s running up and down the yellowing hills of this sleepy little island village, she’s doing a jolly little skip that is probably the most delightful thing I’ve ever seen in a video game. In fairness, the whole game is just pure joy distilled into a chill wildlife photography adventure, but man alive, the skipping is something else. More of this please, developers.
This article was originally exclusively available to RPS supporters, but we’ve brought it backFrom The Archivefor all to read. It was first published on February 4th 2022.
However, a nefarious plot is afoot, as her arrival coincides with an announcement from the island’s mayor that they’re going to tear down the island’s nature reserve and build a swanky new hotel there instead. The locals (and the local wildlife, one would assume) aren’t best pleased with this development, so Alba and her best pal Ines take it upon themselves to make a petition, clean up the island and put a stop to this terrible scheme.
Alba: a Wildlife Adventure - Gameplay TrailerWatch on YouTube
Alba: a Wildlife Adventure - Gameplay Trailer
It’s not quite as clear cut as ‘hotel is bad’, ‘nature reserve is good’, though. While the developer behind the hotel is clearly dodge, the game does give you space to wonder whether, actually, it might not be such a bad idea if the mayor was a) not awful, and b) sensible enough tonotbuild it on the only nice bit of the island they’ve got left. As Alba will soon discover for herself, Pinar del Mar has seen better days. Litter lines the streets and forest walkways, graffiti stains forgotten corners of the marina, animals are getting trapped in plastic six-pack wrappers, and abandoned concrete buildings sit unfinished in the hills. The old castle on top of the hill could be another great tourist destination, but no one has the money to give it the renonvations it needs to make it safe. At one point, Alba’s grandpa even mentions how many jobs it might create, too, which (apart from being the classic, dreaded line politicians often wheel out to paste over the cracks of terrible promises) could also, you know, probably help bring some young people back to the island to support its increasingly elderly population.
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So yes, more skipping protagonists in games, please, developers, and more wholesome summer escapes while you’re at it, too, if you’d be so kind. Seriously, this is an incredible tonic given the time of year, so if you’re in need of some virtual vitamin D and haven’t played Alba yet, it’s well worth picking up onSteam.
