Much like there are thought to be just seven main story plots, it might be easy to say there are few video game genres left to be discovered. After forty years of gaming, I know my preferred ones, and they’re typically shadowy and unsettling worlds that ooze blood and bullets. How strange it is, then, to have gone this long without a game that not only blends several of these together, but does it in such a stylish and provocative way, too.
If the name Children of the Sun summons immediate thoughts of Joseph Seed and dodgy cults… well, congrats. You’ve guessed correctly, my friend. Whilst little is revealed explicitly – some of what we learn about Children of the Sun’s story is via its animated shorts; some comes via subtle in-game clues – here’s what I can tell you: you’re The Girl, and The Girl is apoplectic. Armed with a sniper rifle, a single bullet and enough pent-up rage to power a small city, she’s on a mission to raze the titular cult to the ground, along with every single soul ever connected to it.
While that setup alone was enough to pique my interest, Children of the Sun’s magic is that even though it’s been tagged as a shooter on Steam… well, it’s not. Yes, you wield a weapon, and yes, you decimate body parts in a crimson puff gory enough to make Sniper Elite blush, but Children of the Sun is a puzzle game first. For as well as that single bullet, The Girl – much like Firestarter’s Charlie McGee or Carrie’s, uh, Carrie – is imbued with a telekinetic power that enables her to control where the bullet goes once it’s fired. This means that regardless of how many cultists are milling about, The Girl can take control of the bullet and ensure she can rip through the skulls of every last man standing with a single shot… and therein lies the puzzle.
