SandBloom Studio initially started out as a small game development studio in Barcelona. With only two releases behind them, it would seem like they have a long road ahead of them but they’re taking huge leaps forward. SandBloom Studio first released Emma: Lost in Memories on 16 August 2019, a basic and semi unimpressive side-scroller indie game on the visual front but its biggest driving point was its incredible story. Now they’re released DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters on 14 April 2023 and the difference is clear as night and day.

DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters might not have the AAA visuals since it’s built on a minimalistic 3D voxel aesthetic, but it still counts as a huge step forward for SandBloom Studio, featuring interesting puzzle aspects and another amazing story. They’ve gone above and beyond to bring us a masterpiece aimed at the strength of simplicity. Some might say it looks like a more detailed version of Minecraft or a smoother experience compared to Trove, and in some cases, both are true but also not, DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters took both concepts and made them a lot better.

In DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters, you start your seemingly endless quest as a soul. Newly departed from the land of living and entering the afterlife, where you are placed into a skeletal body. This might seem a bit odd but you’ll eventually see that the majority of the game is built on Spanish culture, where the dead who are remembered go to the Land of the Remembered. This is where you come in, and you’ll feel lost and confused with only a basic tutorial as you make your way up to the Temple of Shu. Though this is also where you first encounter the Corruption.

Like with all things in life, there are good and bad. While the Plane of Memory might seem peaceful and nearly heavenly, there is the corruption which can destroy you as well. The corruption is usually patches of dark patches of what looks like an evil form of grass, but much like a weed, it spreads across the lands like wildfire. Your only options through it would be with a charged light block, certain powers you unlock later on, or going around / over it.

Once you make your way to the top of the temple, you’ll meet Asem and get to see his grand entrance as a Guardian of the Plane of Memory. This is where you learn that you are a Lux, a soul touched by the primordial and chosen to become a Guardian who can take up a color of the light spectrum. The reason behind the colors is because the primordial created the Plane of Memory, and from there, she tasked 4 engineers to create 4 pillars of light that keep the corruption at bay. After that, she split her own light into 9 parts and gave them to willing souls who became the first guardians.

Asem will tell you to get to the Nexus, the homestead for all souls. However, he’s badly injured, so he’ll instead give you his artifact, and your first taste of power. Your artifact is your only tool, while it is mentioned that some guardians can fight, your role is to survive and the artifact will help you with exactly that. Your first ability is called Light Eye, and it’s also your most important ability. It works just like a flashlight, but it can be used to charge light cubes first and foremost, but also to reveal the Hidden. The hidden is a strange form of a corrupted monster than roams around the lands but as the name implies, they are invisible or hidden.

Your Light Eye will reveal them temporarily but it can also attract and enrage them, causing the Hidden to come after you and once again, smash your existence into the void. Your Light Eye will be your most used ability because it serves a massive purpose when solving the various puzzles you’ll encounter. You’ll also need to use a different set of strange boxes and mushrooms that will grow and expand when you shine the Light Eye on them. As mentioned before, there are tons of puzzles throughout the world, and you’ll need every tool you can find to solve them for the sake of progress.

Once you reach the Nexus, you’ll get to create your own artifact. The process can be lengthy and time consuming but every step reveals more to the world you’re in, and the story as a whole. It also becomes clear just how similar to Spanish culture DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters can be. Though since every Guardian takes the mantle willingly, you also find out that when a Guardian dies, the color of light they held goes back to the Vita Tree for the next Lux.

Once you have your very own artifact, you’re tasked with going to the different lands and activating each of the 4 pillars of light. This is to drive back the corruption that threatens to wipe out the Nexus and to charge your artifact for the abilities it will give you. Though some care is heavily advised as each pillar has its own ancient corrupted beast that protects their respective pillars. They only have one objective, to keep you from reaching the pillars.

As you progress through the lands in the Plane of Memory, you’ll learn more about the previous Guardians. Sometimes it’ll be information as to how they navigated the lands, and other times it’ll be interesting bits of lore. These can be found in abandoned camps or stone tablets, while they might seem pointless, they do give a lot of extra context to the game and add so much depth. One thing certain though, all the previous Guardians except for Asem, fell by Donovan’s hand. Donovan is a guardian who gives into the corruption, and he also starts delving into Forbidden knowledge that leads him further down his dark path.

Next up on the abilities list is – Break Lights. It might look like an offensive ability but it is unfortunately not. Break Lights is relatively straightforward, its main purpose at first is to destroy breakable objects like boxes, wooden planks, cut ropes, etc. However, it can also be used to rotate the mirrors mounted on pedestals or Light Mills. This does complicate the puzzle solving side slightly but progressing is still easy until you progress further and unlock more abilities.

Another useful ability you’ll unlock through progression is Light Ray, and also where the puzzles take a more difficult turn as the complexity increases. It allows you to lift and move around certain objects, yet again for the sake of solving a puzzle or saving a fellow soul who will help you on your journey. It can be a bit underwhelming at first but with a little creativity, it opens up the possibility for some interesting solutions to the puzzles, or maybe even being able to skip a whole section if you’re really careful with your placements.

Your last ability is Light Form. You’d think this might be some ultimate ability, and in a way it can be. Light Form amplifies your inner light and allows you to walk through corruption, though it’s not permanent, it does have a very generous duration though. Another added benefit of Light Form is that it will slow your fall, letting you jump from heights that would shatter you. While there isn’t a damage or health system, the developers did take just how fragile a soul is speculated to be into account, so the corruption, Hidden, and a rather steep fall can kill you.

Light Form seems to have all the best parts for a puzzler since it’ll also allow you to dash forward. While it’s not always necessary to use the dash, it can make solving some of the puzzles a lot easier, once again requiring just a little creativity. Your Light Form will also have other interesting uses as you progress, like traveling at high speed across rails and charging up switches. However, the risk of corruption or the Hidden is never far behind. The most powerful aspect of Light Form is that it can temporarily blind the hidden, giving you a much-needed window to get past them or escape beyond their reach.

DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters has an odd visual design. The 3D voxel aesthetic can lead to games looking incredibly underwhelming but that’s part of the game’s beauty, it’s a different perspective on platformers and really refreshing to see. While DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters might have an unholy amount of glow, it’s still really well balanced with the overall world design. The character design is really simple since everybody is just a skeleton. The only distinguishing features would be some paint, armor, hats and small cosmetics. Though in the Plane of Memory, everybody is the same and equal, no matter where you’re from. DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters bridged a massive racial gap that most other games don’t quite pull off.

The sound engineering in DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters is brilliantly done. The background music changes depending on the land you’re in and the situation, but it’s also quite calm and easy on the ear. The biggest shining point in DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters is the voice acting, with each person you meet being uniquely voiced and their parts were beautifully played. Though this also adds to the racial gap being bridged in the best way possible, and yet again, showing distinguishing features like vocal accents in this regard.

DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters is a beautifully crafted game overall, and it also has an incredibly rich story. The visual design might seem a bit odd at first but it really shines in later parts of the game as you progress. This is definitely a game that needs some patience in the beginning since you don’t get much to run with, but it is well worth the wait and the effort. While DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters did have one or two minor stutters, they don’t ruin the gameplay at all and they are to be expected considering DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters was built with Unity.

Jay Claassen
Editor, NoobFeed