From two-person indie developer Shedworks, named after the shed the duo worked in, comes Sable, an open world exploration game set in a peacefully ruined sci-fi world. Since it began development in 2017, hype for Sable has been bubbling from the additions of writer Meg Jayanth contributing to the game, as well as Japanese Breakfast joining to create the soundtrack.
From fairly meek beginnings to causing rumbles in the gaming world, Sable is finally here. Reviews for Shedworks' dreamy debut title seem to be widely positive overall. While Sable's quaint adventure isn't without a few jarring issues, by and large, critics enjoyed their time with it.
Sable Presents a Charming Wasteland
As a game dedicated to exploration and journeying through the world, Sable's setting is a vital part of the player's experience -- and the game delivers that with gorgeous cell-shaded artwork. GamesRadar's Joe Donnelly especially raved about Sable's setting, reflecting that "its rolling hills, towering cliff faces, knife-edge gullies, and abandoned futuristic structures all loom on the horizon, and suddenly everything and anything seems possible. It's a poignant moment that echoes the likes of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Final Fantasy 7, and Fallout 3 -- those jaw-dropping scenes wherein you first emerge from The Great Plateau, Midgar, or Vault 101...Be it gliding over desert planes under the baking midday sun, zipping across grassy knolls under a starry indigo sky, or simply gazing at the stream of crimson that trails your hoverbike whenever it's in motion -- just existing in Sable's world is a joy."
However, some critics have also found fault in Sable's open world, with PC Gamer's Natalie Clayton expressing how "the only weakness comes at night in certain interiors, the game's palette flattening to pure line-art. Some locations also struggle with their particular shader implementation, with distant mountains somehow turning semi-transparent in the evenings." Still, Clayton says it's only a minor issue, adding that "that reality is easy to forget when you're riding your bike against bold sunsets or climbing some towering ruin sketched with an illustrator's flair."
Sable Is Full of Things to Do and People to Meet
Despite being influenced by games with heavy action elements, Sable forgoes combat entirely. Instead, the core gameplay loop boils down to adventuring, meeting the people that inhabit the world and completing quests. On this topic, Travis Northup of IGN wrote "no matter what paths you choose, however, the things you do in Sable will be largely the same. That includes riding a hoverbike around its visually stunning (if mostly empty) desert areas, solving simple puzzles, and doing a ton of platforming. Platforming is somewhat bare bones in its design...But despite those basic building blocks, it manages to be pretty engaging throughout, due in no small part to the beautiful terrain you'll be scrambling across. You aren't doing exciting midair dashes or using a grappling hook to swing across gaps, but the slower pace pairs perfectly with Sable's zen tone."
As why players will be venturing out into the world, Sable offers a few ways to progress through earning badges for certain trades. Donnelly of GamesRadar highlighted that "the 'Go Here, Collect This, Return to X Person,' routine is also repetitive by nature, but whereas fetch quests in other open-world games often feel like filler, Sable's credible characters and alluring locations frame the process with an attractiveness other games fail to deliver. Sable hardly reinvents the wheel, granted, but there's a certain charm that drives every search-and-retrieve outing that keeps you going and going and going."
However, RockPaperShotgun's Alice Bell had less fun with Sable's quests, writing "some of these side quests are fun and cool. Others involve finding beetles and making them to fall over. And though there is a lot to find in Sable (more than I did by the end) the process of finding anything is so laborious that by the time you get there, and realize you'll have to do a platforming puzzle, there is a strong temptation to go home again immediately."
Sable Critics Have Experienced Some Technical Difficulties
Unfortunately, critics who spent time with Sable also noticed some bugs littering the wasteland.During IGN's time with the game, the reviewer experienced a collection of visual glitches and frame-rate drops, as well as more glaring issues that "ranged from getting locked out of a quest because a vendor's goods weren't showing up, to my bike becoming invisible for some reason for a few hours, to my character's money not showing up correctly leaving me guessing if I could afford things or not. Most issues were resolved by resetting a few times, but not all of them, and the threat of bugs mucking something up was a constant fear throughout my otherwise enjoyably peaceful journey."
Overall, Sable has definitely been charming critics. Although its stripped back gameplay has left some wanting more, it ultimately accomplishes Shedworks' goal of creating a pleasant, relaxing experience, that contrasts with the typical intense, demanding RPG. Such a game from a small team is an impressive feat -- one that is sure to cue them up for future success.
Sable is available now on PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X.