Sumire Game Review

I’ve recently played through the cute, but thought-provoking, game Sumire!

-Note: this review is spoiler-heavy!!-

I had come across it while looking through random games available on Steam, and was drawn to the beautiful artwork displayed in the screenshots. For awhile I simply had it wishlisted, but finally decided to grab it for my library during a recent sale! I have been wanting to complete 12 different games during 2024, and felt this would make a great addition to my completion list~

What is Sumire?

Sumire is a beautiful, short games that explores change and the feelings that come along with it. Sumire, who is our main character, starts her journey through this beautifully created world provided by GameTomo when she finds a mysterious seed that crashed into her home. Once she planted this seed, a beautiful, but sentient, flower blooms before her. This flower asks Sumire to show it a wonderful day, for it it is all the time the flower has in this world. So, Sumire sets off to have an amazing day with her new friend.

Exploring the Themes of Change and Loss

Sumire is a game that is not only beautiful and moving, but though provoking as well. The heavy themes of change and loss have resonated with me personally, and provides a great look as to how we can deal with these aspects of life.

Change

As someone who also struggles with change, whether positive or negative, I can relate to Sumire’s character. It is difficult when life is suddenly different than how we knew it to be. While the themes of change and loss are intertwined for Sumire, it is important to realize they are still two different things that can impact us.

Sumire has gone through a multitude of changes-having previously lived with her parents and grandmother to now spending her days only with her mother. The friends she had no longer include her in their day-to-day lives and Sumire finds herself more alone each day.

When Flower comes into her life, she is first adamant about staying home instead of showing her new friend a day to remember.

As the day goes on, Sumire is challenged with doing new things, which we can find in her to-do list written in her notebook! This brings about positive change, depending on the actions she chooses to make.

Loss

We see a variety of loss that can be experienced, and sadly Sumire has experienced each type thrown at us in-game. She no longer is part of a friend group, and her former best friend seems like a totally different person than she had known before. Her dad now lives in the city for the time being, with no idea of when he will choose to come home. Flower is only in Sumire’s world for one day, and will be gone with the coming of twilight. These are all difficult losses for Sumire, but the worst one may be the loss of her grandmother. This event is what sets off our story and the reason why Sumire must face these life changes head-on.

Flower guides Sumire to face the losses she has experienced and to find ways to either cope with them or try to change their results. We seek to make a better relationship with her mother and father, to cope with her grandmother being gone, and to find new friends.

Loss is difficult, but we can find ways to stay happy. While we cannot replace the people who are no longer in our lives, we can still appreciate our time we had with them and continue to make new memories with new friends. These ups and downs are greatly reflected in our story throughout Sumire.

Gameplay

General Gameplay

I played Sumire on the steamdeck using the controls on there, but is generally a simple point-and-click game. You are free to roam around areas pertaining to the narrative of the game you are currently experiencing, which slowly expands as you progress. There are some small puzzles and fetch-quests you must complete to drive the story. Each adds to the experience, but the narrative aspect of the game is most emphasized. There are collectibles, such as coins that can be found throughout each area. These coins can be used to help those you meet throughout the game.

Choices

Another important aspect highlighted in Sumire, is the effects of choices we make. Throughout the game you are expected to make choices. These can involve whether or not you help those you encounter throughout the story, or simply choosing not to do things. The results of these choices are reflected in a karma meter for Sumire.

Why I Enjoyed It

Aside from the great narrative of the game and the way it tackles important themes, there are many factors involved in making Sumire a great game.

For starters, the game has beautiful visuals. There are some scenic locations that are absolutely breathtaking throughout the game. Sometimes it is worth going back to view them again! Each character has their unique appearance and style, truly making them individuals. The color schemes are calming and add to the depth of the narrative you play through.

In creating this atmosphere, the music also plays a large part. It is also a beautiful as the visuals and really help create an immersive enviroment for playing the game. You can feel the sad, yet notes of positive tones throughout the game-and later the overwhelming accomplishment and vibe that better things are to come!

With the mix of stunning visuals, a moving soundtrack, and an emotional story, Sumire brings a wonderful experience to those who play it.

What I Would Change

While it is necessary to see how our choices reflect our lives and that they will always have different outcomes, some choices in Sumire can be confusing or misleading. Unlike in the game, we do actually have the chances to redo things in life sometimes. We can also find ways to fix what we may have messed up! We can take breaks and come back to make a final decision on questions asked. I understand that a game is not real life, but some of the choices should have other options or time constraints.

One other issue I had with this game is during the choice to “poison” or “heal” the characters who hurt Sumire. The directions felt straightforward, but I still failed to heal the friends. When given the choices to continue or not if a color ‘failed,’ choosing not to continue will poison the person. This felt very misleading, as if you could restart the process. There should either be an option to restart or an explanation that not continuing will result in the character being poisoned.

Having a more in-depth description of how this segment works would help greatly.

Closing Thoughts

Sumire can be replayed for different results when it comes to your choices, but I felt I was confident in my first play through. If I were to play it again it would simply to enjoy it has to offer in its beautiful setting. It was a short game, but the timing was just right for its narrative. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience playing Sumire!

I hope this review may inspire you to take a look at playing the game yourself!

Your friend,

Cassy ˗ˋˏ ♡ ˎˊ˗