It’s quite nefarious if you’re interpreting I Know a Spot is going to be about a secluded place where you get up to no good, but it’s actually a wholesome design-a-scene type thing where you can meticulously place flasks and deck chairs, to fiddling about with the type of breed you want your dog to be. And, if that’s disappointed you that you can’t be mischievous, you can drive your vehicle off ledges, but don’t expect Burnout.
I’m already at a loss for words on how to take this further, as you will see everything within the first few minutes of opening the game, so make sure you know what to expect. There’s a multitude of locations from mountainous campsites to lakes, through to frozen biomes, without the sisters spoiling the ambience with a medley. The premise is you’ve just arrived at the spot and need to set up your camp. Think Unpacking, only it’s the outdoors.
The dog is pretty independent and will be strolling around from the get-go, and if you’re fickle and don’t like the way it looks, you can change it into a husky or a shiba inu, then leave it to wander about while you decide on what car you want. No, this isn’t anything like JDM, though there is an Initial D-like car to pick, a camper van and a teacher-esque Volvo estate. The car modelling is nice, and you can even customise with a choice of wheels, paint jobs and some accessories on the roof rack.
I Know a Spot is pretty basic in its customisations, and you can’t manually select a colour or choice and have to click/scroll through in a linear fashion. However, it’s the vibes the game gives in that you can switch on interior lights or the headlights, then either wait for the moon to show its face, or switch the time of day – or weather – with a toggle, then watch how it gently lights the scene. Hhhmmm… dreamy. It’s pretty decent though, as anyone who’s touched grass and left a 30-metre radius of civilisation knows that nature’s light and nighttime is limited, so seeing the flecks of flames from a campfire is awesome.
The real content is more from the objects and their placement to create a lived-in scene. If you’re likely to click things willy-nilly, you’ll get immediately bored with Bohdan Kvas’ game. It’s about placement and setting the scenario. It’s really weird how immersive it can be when you start building up a story without seeing any actual humans. It’s the bits you leave out that also add to the narrative. Getting a bit deep there, but I Know a Spot is essentially like when you were a kid and would create scenes with your action figures/dolls/Lego and create your own worlds. Cliché as it is, the limitation is your imagination.
What makes this slightly different is that you can control the car. I initially thought this was a bit brave in that you could explore your environments. You can, but from a parking perspective and for a decent selfie. This isn’t a driving game in the slightest, but I liked tinkering with the car without dragging and dropping. The downside is those nefarious thoughts, as I did run over the dog without effect, and when my car plummeted off ‘the ravine’, it did it in slow motion, floated, then sat Zen-like over the stream. That felt a bit of a letdown, but that’s not what this game is about.
As mentioned, you see everything in the opening minutes of I Know a Spot, and if that appeals to you, this is the game for you. I say this about similar titles and idlers, but it would be a nice effect to have a screensaver option to have this on your desktop while writing a review, as it’s pretty calming but interactive, too.
