Overview – developed by Whyknot Studio in collaboration with publisher Red Dunes Games, Princess of the Water Lilies is a 2D puzzle platformer, taking place in a magical handcrafted world. As a cat that is adopted and raised by a family of frogs, go on a magical adventure to save your home from a mysterious mechanical menace. This title is available exclusively for the Steam service, with a link to the game at the bottom of this review.
Disclaimer: before I get into the review, I would like to thank PR Hound for providing the copy of Princess of the Water Lilies that was used for this piece. The provision of this software has not influenced the contents of this review, all thoughts and opinions contained within are my own.
Now with the introductions out of the way, let’s get into the review, starting with the story. I will be covering the game in as broad a manner as possible, as I do not want to spoil the surprises of this adventure.
Story – adopted and raised by family of frogs in a tranquil pond, a young and adventurous cat is gifted with a magical collar. This provides her with magical powers, allowing her to give life to the world around her, including causing the Water Lilies to bloom. During this ceremony, mysterious mechanical beasts appear, causing destruction and capturing the inhabitants of the forest. Now the young cat must use her new powers to save her home.
Gameplay – Princess of the Water Lilies is a 2D puzzle platforming adventure, where the player must explore the lands around the home of the frogs. As the cat, players need to traverse the varied landscapes of the world outside their home. To explore the areas, the player will need to run, jump, climb and crawl with golden orbs guiding the way. The world is made up of several different biomes, which includes a verdant forest, underground caverns and the mountains.
While exploring the different biomes, there will be many interactive elements, which will be affected by the power of the magical collar. The collar creates magical purrs, which will cause the flowers to bloom, fungi to come alive and transform the world around them. In some areas, there will be pods that teleport and launch the player in the air. Then there are mushrooms, which can open gates, allow the cat to navigate hazardous areas and jump higher.
Throughout the different areas, the player will need to rescue the captured creatures, trapped in boxes that can be swiped to break, or chained with locks. The player will also need to give items to characters that block the way, requiring puzzles to be solved to reach them. These include snails, which must be given to moles in order to open the area up. The item and objective varies, depending on the area that the player is in.
As the player makes their way through the adventure, they will encounter more challenging and complex puzzles. Which include multi step puzzles, like using the bell magic to stun mechanised creatures, which will try to kill the player to stop them. These mechanical menaces will try to crush, drill and even electrocute the player, with any contact knocking them out. Then there are also deadly spikes, pitfalls and bottomless pits.
During some sections, there will be enemies that will attack when the player is nearby, like spiders on web lines, which will make them charge the player. These enemies will require some good timing and movement to avoid, but if the player does get taken out, they will return to a checkpoint. There are generous auto save points, allowing the player to keep trying after every failure. This is most important during the boss encounters.
The bosses that the player encounters will be challenging, requiring the player to use the gimmicks o the area to succeed. These bosses consist of mechanical monstrosities, where once peaceful creatures have become twisted and try to destroy the world. In order to render these threats harmless, the player will need to use the power of the magic collar to free them. These segments have multiple phases, with each one increasing in danger.
As each of the encounters is passed, the player will be able to access the next area, getting one step closer to unravelling the mystery of these robotic invaders. To reach different areas, there will be some backtracking that is needed, with the player crossing through the moonlit pond. Near this magical area, there is a giant tree which the player can cause to bloom leaves. To do this special blue orbs need to be found, hidden in secret spots throughout the locations.
To help the player in their navigation, there will be travel frogs, which will allow the cat to warp between different points across the world. Near each of the travel points, as well as scattered throughout the areas will be record frogs, which will save the progress of the game. But for those who don’t want to manually save, the game autosaves frequently. There is a journal that players can look at, showing them the completion percentage for each of the zones.
This is not a very long game, but there is enough content and hidden collectables, with many secrets. The amount of hidden items, secrets and surprises for players to locate, adding to the replay value for players. There are three save slots, with an additional autosave slot, allowing up to three different playthroughs of the game. This is great for parents and kids, who want to share the game as well as those who want to try and speedrun.
Now with the gameplay covered, it is time to discuss the other aspects of this release, starting with the controls.
Controls – Princess of the Water Lilies has a very simple control scheme, offering the player an easy to pick up experience. The game also supports a variety of controller options, with all of the general controls being easy to use and fairly intuitive. There is also keyboard support, which work pretty well in general further adding to the playability. For those who are using specialised controllers or peripherals, Steam Input is fully supported for this release.
Difficulty – there is a fairly balanced difficulty curve, with the opening area introducing the player to the mechanics, with little in terms of danger. But as the player delves further into the adventure, the challenge will escalate, with the boss sections being the toughest part of the game. Thankfully, for those who may have a bit of a hard time, the frequent checkpoints, including during the bosses will make it possible for all players to make their way through the game.
Presentation – This is a visually beautiful game, with visuals that look like they have been hand painted, creating a magical world that is reminiscent of theatrical animations. The sprites are detailed well but can appear a little small if this title is played on a system like a Steam Deck. Luckily there is enough detail in the visuals that this should not impact the gameplay. The use of color and light works well, contrasting well between the foreground and background.
There are cinematic scenes that will play during the adventure, signified by black bars that appear when they start. There is no dialogue during these scenes, with the animation being used to imply what is happening. The music for this game is beautifully orchestrated, with music that has elements of whimsy, tension and sadness to them. Throughout the game, the music adds impact to the experience, being able to convey emotion without needing dialogue.
Final thoughts – I enjoy puzzle platform games, so when this appeared on my radar, I was more than happy to jump onto it. I very much enjoyed this experience, with the story being told in a way that is universally understandable, conveying all of the needed details without words. The text that is included is simply to help the player press buttons, which works very well for tutorials. The general feel of the game was smooth too, with no issues in terms of lag or delay.
During the opening section of the game, I did have some troubles getting used to the platforming, with some missed jumps and unintended deaths, especially during the first boss. However, after this things fell into place and the experience was a lot of fun. The only issue I can see is that some players may find the bosses a little too difficult. So with all of that said, I am happy to recommend this to everyone, especially parents and kids to play together.
In the end, I give Princess of the Water Lilies a final score of 5/5. This is a gorgeous puzzle platformer, with an engaging silent story and a world that is vibrant as if it was hand painted, offering a challenging but not punishing platforming adventure. If you want to check this game out for yourself, a link to the game will be below.
Link to Steam version (HERE)
W.Kohaku Media 