South of the Circle PC Review

Story-driven games are popular but not everyone enjoys them as there is not much gameplay. A classic example of this was Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture. Now we have a game that is a story narrative game that was released back in 2020 on Apple arcade and now 2 years on we get to play it on PC and modern consoles. South of the Circle is set in the Antarctic wastelands and tells the story of one man stranded there.

It’s Cold

This will be a shorter review than usual as I can’t go in to much detail as otherwise I will ruin the game. The game main protagonist is Peter, who is on a research trip to Antarctica to study cloud formation. Things don’t go as planned as his plane ends up crashing. While attempting to get help for him and his pilot his mind starts to wander and he ends up having flashbacks to his younger days and reliving memories as he struggles with the weather. The story is pretty interesting and is basically a romance story set in the sixties cold war period.

Tell Me a Story

Like most story-driven games there is little in the way of action or fighting and it is instead all decision making. This takes the form of pop-up buttons on screen that you press within a certain time limit and it is feelings like scared, or kindness or being confident and these progress the story along. Sadly, the decisions don’t make too much difference to the game outcome which is a shame but then the same was with Everybody’s Gone to The Rapture.

The gameplay being linear kinds of makes it highly unlikely to be replayed after completion, so is basically a one-time play. You do get the occasional times where you can walk freely but this is restricted so you only have the illusion of freedom. This is typical of these games, but it is the most restrictive I have played so far. The game is still fun to play through and you should have some investment by the end.

The visuals look amazing and remind me of games like Flashback from back in the day. The colours are light and pastel and with the use of shadows and lights, they really stand out and make you go wow. I think the graphics actually save this game and make it playable as otherwise you might not even give it more than 15 – 20 minute game time.

Final Thoughts

South of the Circle is a fun and gripping story driven game. While there is not much in the way of action, the story more than makes up for this. Sure it won’t be everyone game genre, but do try and give it a try as you miss something great. Could be less restrictive in movements, but still a beautiful game with great graphics and story.