Degrees of Separation, developed by Moondrop Studios, starts off slow but quickly turns into a charming game. This is a 2D puzzle adventure title in which the player fills the shoes of two protagonists, Ember and Rime, as they explore six different worlds, using the elements of fire and ice respectively. Ember is a fiery and passionate daughter of the sun. Rime is a gelid individual on the outside but compassionate to his frozen core. Intrigue has brought them together to discover what lies beyond their homelands; however, once meeting face-to-face they can’t touch, only look. Seriously, there is a giant barrier actually keeping Ember and Rime from interacting, causing water to freeze when Rime walks on it, while Ember is swimming right under him.

Controlling dual protagonists is nothing new, yet this time the environment around you presents the challenges in coexisting. As the two begin their adventure, Ember and Rime begin discovering scarves spread across the six worlds. Each scarf requires the duo to work through their differences and take advantage of the elements that they are unfamiliar with. Collect enough scarves and move on to the next world to continue discovering other lands. To enter the final level you need a total of 80 scarves. This became slowly apparent to me when the next levels wouldn’t open up, thus learning that it’s time to put on my thinking cap and start collecting some threads of memory.

The start of Degrees had a heavy narrative feel, but that quickly gives way to the main attraction of the game, its various puzzles, as soon as you land in the hub area and enter the first world. The different types of puzzles are mostly physics-based, though some did seem to require more luck than skill. As an example of a standard puzzle, a scarf hangs in an alcove above you with a platform that rises when Ember’s light touches it and lowers when Rime’s frost puts the light out. Command Rime to stay on one side while Ember travels to the lamp to trigger the platform to rise and voila, you’ve got yourself a nice scarf. The same type of layout will present itself again, but with other factors such as geysers and small ponds that will require the player to be resourceful with their options in front of them. Don’t worry about paths you did not explore, the fast travel system allows you to backtrack to specific sections of each level and keeps the flow of the game moving.

Fortunately, magicians and researchers of the realm have left behind equipment to help save some brain cells on this journey. These relics include a staff that turns the physical barrier into a physical bridge of separation to walk on, as well as a cloak that allows Ember to turn into the frost element and vice-versa for Rime, just to name a few. Gaining access to the above-mentioned items instantly added more versatility to Degrees of Separation.

Experimenting with angles, seeing how Ember reacts to cold, and being compelled to think outside the box adds a fun layer to Rime and Ember’s budding relationship. Detailing each moment, the narrator gives descriptions on what each character is thinking, bringing the protagonists to life. A fun example of this sees Rime freeze a body of water while still inside of it, thus allowing Ember to use the now-frozen lake as a platform (sacrifices had to be made okay!). This leads the narrator to say, “Ember hurried as she could not bear to see him frozen in such a way”.

It’s clear to see that Moondrop Studios developed this game with an immense amount of love and care. Having two separate worlds on the screen at the same time is nothing short of impressive. Ember’s side of the screen is very shiny, peaceful, almost heaven-like. Rime’s side looks soft, yet harshly cold, with snowflakes hitting his skin as they fall to the ground. It was fantastic to be in the middle of two different seasons, coupled with a buoyant soundtrack, encouraging the dual protagonists to reach their goals. A standout section of Degrees of Separation comes in the form of the third level, when the elements became unstable, which causes an explosion that launches Ember and Rime away from one another.

A few unique design decisions stuck out to me, but in no means made Degrees of Separation unplayable. As beautiful as the game looks, it sometimes gets in the way of progression. The sky serves as the player’s way of knowing how many scarves they have collected in each level – there are outlines of stars that fill in when you collect a scarf, which are hard to notice due to their transparency. It is a creative way to tie in the story with the collectibles, but an actual numerical counter would have been nice so the player could have an easier time keeping track of the items they need to collect to progress.

Degrees of Separation starts off as a tale of two different lands, but unravels into more than a puzzle-solving tale. It turns into the embodiment of starting and maintaining a relationship with another individual and working to make sure it works. Fighting through the elements and putting two heads together to overcome the odds that stand in front of them. It is not easy and can get explosive sometimes, but at the end of the day it will be worth building this bridge of communication.