A tragic story
The Kite is a point-and-click game the bravely tackles the topic of domestic abuse. It will put you in the shoes of a woman who has an abusive husband and a missing son. This may not be your usual storytelling game that is often filled with exciting adventures and fun discoveries, but it is equally challenging and engaging. Before you start with it, we would advise you to get ready for an emotional ride.
Hoping for the best
The game begins with the introduction of the family and their unfortunate circumstances. You will be greeted by the sight of a messy apartment unit and will get started on basic interactions and tasks. As a point-and-click game, you will basically try to click on the different objects around you and see if it is something of significance for the story to progress. There will also be an exchange of dialogues that will escalate quickly to the fight between the woman and her husband. Frightened, their little boy runs away into the night with his favorite kite, leaving the woman distressed. She goes to search for her son, and thus begins the first challenge in the game which is for you to successfully get out of the apartment. The Kite will kind of remind you of an escape room game where you will have to solve riddles and puzzles in order to advance. Besides the situational puzzles and click-based interactions, there is nothing more to learn about its mechanics. The game tries its best to get its players invested in the story it is trying to tell and keeping challenges to a minimum makes it easier to understand what is happening.
Bone-chilling
As if the plot of the game is not sad enough, The Kite also makes use of dark and depressing themes with its visuals and art. The whole game consistently threads on the grayscale with no other vibrant colors entering the picture. Its character designs also look simple and hollow, as if all life has been drained and washed away. The backdrops are detailed yet lonesome. Combining all those elements effectively conveys the sad reality of what it is like to live in an abusive household and to be surrounded by unforgiving people who are also just trying to deal with their own problems. After you escape the apartment, you will learn that the dysfunctional family lives in an equally depraved neighborhood. Despite it all, you will not be exposed to heavy drama but rather, the game is more of a slow burn that will pull on your heartstrings as you go on.
An enlightening experience
The Kite is a pretty simple game with easy mechanics and 2D graphics, but it does not aim to leave an impact on its players by using flash effects or over the top drama. It is a game with a message to relay with hopes of making people see the other side of the coin. Even if it is not your magical, interactive storytelling games, playing The Kite is not a waste of time.
