It's a sci-fi story we've all heard before. Humanity has once again messed up the planet and must desperately search for a new home among the stars to save civilization. But when indie studio Superbrothers announced that they would be adapting "Jet: The Far Shore" into their own film, I couldn't have been more excited. It had been almost a decade since the studio released Sword and Sworcery, a quiet, contemplative adventure about a warrior exploring a strange and mysterious realm, and to see this team work with Pine Scented on an epic science fiction It is exciting to see this team, along with Pine Scented, take on an epic science fiction adventure that combines science and spirituality.

For the most part, Jett: The Far Shore succeeds in doing just that, drawing you into a strange world with a lofty and epic story about humans and faith. The humans in Jett are not only searching for a new home, but they are also receiving a divine invitation, a "hymn wave," from beings on an alien planet in space. In an attempt to escape from a dying planet nearly suffocated by the black plumes of industrialization, a space reconnaissance team is formed to inspect the planet and see if this strange world - "the other shore" - can be their new home.

When the team boarded the spaceship ready for takeoff in the opening scene, all the inhabitants had gathered to say goodbye. It is a sea of hundreds of people, all singing the same plaintive song as they bid farewell. It is the beginning of a grim and powerful game that sets the stakes high for the mission before us.

In Jet, you play as May, a scout pilot and mystic who is assigned to accompany the team on their pursuit. After arriving on the planet, your early game mission is all about exploration. You must maneuver a small craft called a "jet" to observe the planet's ecosystem and collect data. The jet is equipped with a scanner, flashlight, grappling hook, and other tools to help you investigate, allowing you to cruise the landscape and scan different vegetation and animals to see how they behave and fit into the wider ecosystem.

Jet's alien landscape inspires this research. This mysterious planet has huge lakes, vast pink meadows, and giant purple planes. The jets hover over various plants and "pop" them with boosters, causing a wave of multicolored spores to rush over them. There are shrubs that ooze yellow liquid, which, when picked up with a grappling hook, attract a variety of alien life forms. These insights are not large enough to affect the story, but instead provide interesting insights into how this strange planet works. Discovering these little surprises is fun, but unfortunately, it is halved in charm by a flight that is tedious at best and frustrating at worst.

In short, the ship is a bit tricky to maneuver. But it's not all bad. On the water, the speedy jets work like a dream. It's easy to use the boosters without overheating, it's easy to turn the boat around quickly when there's room to spare, and it's a wonderful feeling the moment you pedal through exposed waters. But it is clear that the jet is a vessel built for speed, not precision.

On land, it's a different story altogether. Thank goodness co-pilot Isao is a cool-headed guy. Because he crashes into cliffs, gets stuck on rocks, and gets caught up in various plants. The plane is a bit of a mess, as it crashes into cliffs, gets caught on rocks, and gets caught up in all sorts of vegetation. The world around us inspires all kinds of tricks: mossy plants floating in the air, tiny glints of light gaining momentum, and obvious launch points created naturally in the landscape. But I could not use any of the cool tricks of this environment. As you continue to explore the planet, you will encounter craggy, beautiful landscapes and rugged mountains. You have to pay attention to conversations, keep an eye on your booster gauge, navigate the landscape, and avoid enemy fire while piloting your temperamental high-speed jet.

This frustration seeps into other parts of the game. There are many dramatic encounters where you have to zip away from in-flight dangers, but the controls often make them less exciting. However, when these events occur in the open ocean or on the vast plains, they are nothing short of thrilling. One of the planet's most dangerous threats is the "gloaming," the red haze that descends from the Blood Moon at night. The eerie red glow damages jets directly, leaving them no choice but to seek shade until morning. Darting through the ocean trying to beat the moonlight was one of the game's sobering highlights.

Glowing is just one of the many spectacular sights to be seen in this new world, and the best parts of jetting are the moments when you can jump off your cruiser, walk around, and experience them outside the boat. Usually a small area, but still a spectacular sight. One section requires you to blast the entrance to a mountain cave, which appears inconspicuous from the cockpit of the jet. But when you get out and go deeper into the cave, you realize the enormity of it. Everything becomes visible and you realize how small you are on this incredibly strange planet.

When you're not admiring the grandeur of the planet, there is a section where you can return to your home base between outings to chat with your team and get updates on the mission. There is not much to learn about the personalities of your fellow scout members, and the cutscenes can be a bit tedious. This is helped by the slow pacing, which feels slow but deliberate. The game has its own language used by each character, which, combined with the soft narrative, adds to Jett's poetic mysticism.

The main hook of Jet's story is its enigmatic spirituality. Without giving too much away, visions, legends, promises, and scriptures are told, all necessary to weave the foundation of an epic tale. Hundreds of mysterious black pyramids jutting out of the sea, eerie mountains shrouded in mist, strange creatures hostile to intruders. It is a world that is both haunting and in direct conflict with itself. Why did the ominous hymn invite humans to a planet where the ecosystem is actively hostile to intruders?

This is a brilliant hook, and the question haunts us from the moment we set foot on the planet. The fact that May is a mystic and a follower of God is made to mean a great deal, but the reasons for this are never explained, and her mystical mission feels like little more than a talisman. Most of the missions, with a few exceptions, are mere drudgery - gathering resources, finding lost parts, running from enemies, etc. - and do not unravel the mysteries of the earth. But despite such a brilliant introduction, rich in lore and curiosity, when I finished the game, I did not get all the answers I had hoped for.

Jet: The Far Shore has an epic hook: a civilization trying to overcome oblivion, desperate to escape extinction, even following the lull of sinister intergalactic forces if the promise of sanctuary. Subtle controls leave something to be desired, but overall, Jet: The Far Shore is a spellbinding adventure."