On the surface, Fading Serenades is a game about delivering packages on a tiny island, managing your inventory, getting to know the inhabitants, and living a quiet life. Underneath that, though, is a story about a sinister world away from the island, with constant surveillance and the threat of the Fade. The island has its own secret too, lost for years after the resident scientist disappeared.
Fading Serenades tells the story of Callum and his robot pal Par, who’s not just a companion but a required piece of equipment that all people from the mainland are expected to carry with them at all times. However, on Clifford Island the technology from the mainland doesn’t quite work as it should, so there is some more freedom there. It is a refuge that few go to and the only inhabitants left are a few older people living out their lives farming, fishing, fixing things, and taking life at a slower pace.
They have some contact with the mainland, but mostly they send packages to each other. Â The story hints at a lot of big things happening in the wider world, but the ending does not quite land as it should because there is a bit of vagueness and loose threads.
As the courier, you are responsible for picking up and delivering packages to the island’s inhabitants, fitting them into your backpack. Packages are different shapes and sizes so it isn’t easy to carry everything at once, though you can upgrade the capacity of the backpack. Going from point A to B means clearing obstacles like climbing walls, jumping across rocks and walking along logs to cross streams. There are minigames where you either have to press the correct buttons or balance yourself, which is impacted by the weight of the items in your bag.
They are simple games but add a nice little distraction and a bit of risk. Fail and you’ll fall, which can damage the items you are carrying. The inhabitants also have missions for you too, which all boil down to finding things and bringing them. The thing is that the items start repeating quite quickly, and each character just has the one additional collection mission which repeats. For example, Baron asks for two logs every couple of days. Logs that can be found in the same place each time.
In addition to couriering, there are a couple of other things to do on the island namely finding and lighting the shrines. These shrines improve your stamina. You can also buy pamphlets that reduce the time to traverse between areas. This is important because each day has a time limit to complete jobs. Once it passes 10pm, you need to be in bed otherwise you will pass out somewhere and be taken to bed. If you get to bed in time, you’ll wake up at 6am but if you pass out on the island you’ll not wake up until 9am, reducing your time in the next day.
Fading Serenades is a chill game to play, even with the daily time limit, because there are no major consequences and you can complete the story in a little over four hours. It has a nice pixel aesthetic too which looks very bright and colourful. Music is also important in Fading Serenades, and the songs in each area sound good too.
