What happens when a bunch of frogs raise a cat in a magical glade?
Princess of the Water Lilies is yet another reason to pay attention to the growing and bustling game development scene in Southeast Asia. (Like there’s not already, right?) From Why Knot Studio in Malaysia, it’s a gorgeous hand-drawn game with a beautiful musical score, though some occasional screen tearing and unforgiving one-hit boss fights may test your patience (for some, not everyone).
You’re an adorable gray tabby in the game, named Princess, and raised by frogs in a magical glade. As someone born in the late 80s and who grew up watching 70s and 80s cartoons, I really appreciated the art style and attention to details in the landscapes, animals, and other creatures I’d come across.
There were many moments where I set my controller down and just marveled at the scene in front of me.
One night, you’re given a magical collar, which unlocks your MAGICAL PURR. (Yes, that’s correct.) Your purr, in addition to being adorable, manipulates the world around you. (You can make plants bloom, bridges grow, etc.) It was a cool mechanic that gave the puzzles some extra oomph and made reaching areas and uncovering new secrets satisfying.
Scored by Scott Ampleford and performed by The Budapest Scoring Orchestra, the music is a highlight that sounds as magical as the world blossoming around you. Whether it’s a boss encounter or just exploring a biome, the score supports what’s going on around you rather than distracting from it.
There were a few caveats to my experience. It’s not well stated on the Steam page, but Princess of the Water Lilies is not a casual stroll in the forest. While not quite on the level of something like Cuphead or Hollow Knight, the game features precision platforming and boss battles where it’s one hit and you’re done. Thankfully, said battles also included checkpoints, so you didn’t have to restart the whole fight if/when you were defeated.
My patience, though, by the final boss fight? Certainly tested. (If you’re new here, it’s not that I dislike Souls-like games; it’s just that with being a mom, having a day job, dealing with getting older, and my recent MS diagnosis, I have less ability and patience to deal with most games in that genre.)
I didn’t notice it as much in the second half of the game, so I’m not sure if an update has gone through, but in the first half, I dealt with some screen tearing. I was playing on a 3080 (the devs recommend a 3060), but that tearing was the only thing visually to call out. The controls also felt a little chunky at times, but I know that might also have been because I was breaking in a new controller.
In the end, if you’re in the market for a game that delivers strong visuals, a memorable soundtrack, clever environmental puzzles (and you’re okay with challenging and sometimes maddening boss fights), Princess of the Water Lilies is well worth your time. I loved the journey, even with its rough edges, and I expect I’ll be thinking about that adorable gray cat for a while to come.