Need to Know
What is it? A survival adventure where you play as a herd of elephants.
Expect to pay TBA
Developer Might and Delight
Publisher Might and Delight
Reviewed on AMD Ryzen 5 3600, 8GB, AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
Multiplayer? No
Link Official site (opens in new tab)
Might and Delight is a studio known for making gorgeous—and ruthless—survival games that capture both the awe and ferocity of the wilderness. Or, if you’re like me, you might know it as the studio who made that brutal badger sim that made you cry. Well, it seems like the studio is still on a mission to make me bawl my eyes out over adorable creatures with the third installment in the Shelter series, which this time features an elephant herd.
I’ve been a big fan of the Shelter series ever since the first game, when my badger cub, Patch, was snatched up by a hungry eagle, leaving me emotionally devastated. I had a stronger emotional connection to that badger baby than to any other NPC, it’s that maternal connection that the Shelter games are known for.
When starting Shelter 3 (opens in new tab), being dropped into the studio’s distinctly styled patchwork world felt like a return to the familiar. It felt good to be playing a Might and Delight game again after so many years. Unfortunately, that feeling didn’t last long, and as I explored more, it quickly became apparent that the newest game in the Shelter series has lost its way.
(Image credit: Might and Delight)
I think the crux of the problem with Shelter 3 (opens in new tab) is that there’s no real sense of danger. Protecting your herd feels more like a chore than an emotional response and major technical hiccups suck all the intensity and enjoyment out of the game. It’s also pretty short, and with a single ‘run’ taking less than thirty minutes, there’s not a lot of time to develop an emotional attachment to any of the elephants. I found that I had finished every route and seen everything at the two-hour mark.
What makes the previous Shelter games shine is their ability to show nature as both awe-inspiring and completely terrifying, but Shelter 3 fails to capture that. It breaks my heart since you can see the ideas and concepts of a great survival game, but the execution just isn’t there. Â
