Microscopya Review: Adventure inside a Cell

First, some things you might want to know before really playing the game. This is an educational game, which to me, means that the primary purpose is not to entertain, but to help you learn something in an entertaining way. Also, it’s short,  at least shorter than I expected (took me about 15 minutes to finish it), and I would actually give it a higher rating if it could be longer. With that being said, if you struggle with Biology and love to take in some basic knowledge in a healing way as I do, don’t hesitate to give this wholesome game a try.

Microscopya is a science-themed adventure game that unfolds inside a cell. To ensure the normal and stable functioning of the cell, the protagonist needs to travel to multiple structures and solve puzzles. Along with your journey, instructions and explanatory texts are provided to help you better understand the whole mechanism, from restoring the power inside the mitochondria to powering up the motor protein and moving toward the nucleus.

Though it’s tagged as a puzzle game, the puzzles are not challenging at all and you just need to follow the instructions. To me, the most challenging part is to really understand the whole biological process (and I was in great need of a dictionary while playing it. Mitochondria, cytoskeleton, adenosine diphosphate… my brain hurts). But fortunately, the whole animation design is quite vivid and approachable. I personally really like the part which showcases the ATP Synthase, I mean, at least now I know what ATP is made up of and what’s it for.

All in all, though some might find it a little boring to play this game, given its simple gameplay and serious topic, it’s not bad to take maybe 15 minutes to learn some easy Biology. The hand-drawn illustrations and the background music are also a plus (and you can even change the skin & outfit color of the protagonist). If you get a little bit tired of playing all those fast-paced games out there and want to take in some wholesome energy, I’ll say Microscopya is not a bad choice.