The Flame in the Flood Review

Growing up I remember playing the original Oregon Trail in school on the first Apple computers. The Flame in the Flood takes me back to these days of my childhood, only without the dysentery.

In the Flame in the Flood you play as a young girl named Scout, with your dog sidekick. You start out with an empty backpack on a small piece of land and the knowledge to craft a few items. It’s this that the game gets you started on your survival journey. You gather materials to craft better clothes to keep warm, or to make traps to capture animals to cook and eat, and so on. In order to do this you need to venture out into the river and explore.

As you progress down the river and through the game you need to keep track of Scout’s health, hydration, hunger level, and health. This is done by docking at different areas to gather additional materials to craft, finding places to get rest, cook, and eat. Hunger, thirst, and cold aren’t your only enemies. Wild animals will threaten to kill you at some of the different spots you stop at, and will prevent you from gathering the items you need as well as getting your much needed rest. It can be difficult to keep on top of nature and all of Scout’s needs, especially when the food or water you gather is riddled with parasites, or if you cannot find any at all.

Each time you journey down the river is different. This can help or hinder you. Enemies and resources that appeared at one stop may not be there on your next play through. RNG will play a part in your success or failure.

Overall, this simplistic yet challenging game is an experience that I highly recommend and I feel any gamer will enjoy. The replay value is very high as I find myself replaying the game over and over again to see how far I can get down the river as well as what new items I can craft.