INSIDE for Nintendo Switch

Martin Stig Andersen, responsible for the sound design of INSIDE , composed the soundtrack through a skull. A real human skull . The reason was none other than to recreate the reverberation as if it were playing inside our heads, achieving an effect that is as disturbing as it is familiar. It is a good example of how Playdead’s second work  is taken care of down to the smallest detail, and explains why he manages to get into his head like no other videogame has done before. 

When it was launched in June 2017, coming first exclusively to Xbox One, INSIDE passed us by like a steamroller. Limbo was a fantastic game, and we all expected something great from the Danish studio, but this? INSIDE broke all our schemes, showing that video games still have a lot to say as a means to tell stories.

Now, and after its release also on PC, PS4 and iOS, INSIDE comes to Nintendo Switch(along with Limbo), and we bring your analysis so you know how adapted to the hybrid console this masterpiece of recent history. 

A boy and his blob

All videogames deserve to be discovered without prior knowledge, but in the case of INSIDE this is especially important. For that reason, and given that in Hobby Consolas we have already analyzed it in two (two!) Occasions, we are not going to talk too much about basic aspects such as mechanics or history. It will suffice to know that it is a side scrolling game, with jumps and puzzles.

It’s not too long (in about four hours you can get to the end, although there are several collectables and the odd secret), but this, coupled with the bright design levels, the originality of their puzzles, the fantastic atmosphere that is breathed throughout moment (with quite a few touches of terror) and the skill with which the story is told (the narration is developed in an entirely visual way, there are no texts or dialogues), they get to feel like returning to INSIDE. It is perfect for the days that we have a few free hours; It’s a Sunday game.

And what console is perfect for that? Exact. The Nintendo Switch version of INSIDEis shown at lower resolution and there is a slight reduction in the rate of images per second compared to the versions of PS4, Xbox One and PC, but it makes up for it with the possibility of being able to play anywhere. We are rubbing our hands just thinking about the plane trips in which this jewel is going to make time fly by . Of course, and given the importance and fantastic sound design, it would be a crime to play without headphones.

Someone may put their hands to their heads when reading this, especially the part of reduction in the rate of images per second. But keep in mind that despite the simplicity of its graphic style, characterized by a low polygonal load and a reduced chromatic variety (caters to artistic reasons, the use of color is another very careful section), INSIDE hides many details amazing graphics, such as a spectacular volumetric lighting, effects of smoke and fog, water and some very careful animations, with physics that behave very realistically.

In addition, we are not talking about cases like Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus  or Doom where frames per second can make an important difference at the playable level. INSIDE does not require millimeter precision (not too much) and is equally enjoyed on the Nintendo console.

Martin Stig Andersen said that after finishing the whole recording process, and due to the vibrations, the skull he had used to compose the soundtrack had lost all his teeth. And it’s funny, because playing INSIDE , whether it’s Switch, Xbox One, PS4, PC or mobile, for the first or the fourteenth time, produces a similar effect: leaving us with our jaws on the floor.