Genre: Point-and-Click Adventure
Release date: April 1, 2016 (Windows/Mac)

The word minim derives from the Latin word minimus, meaning “least” or “smallest.”

Meet some Minims: cute little creatures who resemble a kind of gourd stood on-end with two eyes at the top. The Minims is also the name of a new adventure game for Windows and Mac (previously released on iOS) by indie developer beyondthosehills.

The game’s story is imaginative, well-written and touching, with some humor thrown in for good measure. There are three Minims in The Minims: Mii, his wife Mo and, briefly, Mii’s Elder Minim.

One day, Mii discovers Mo has gone missing and sets out on a journey to find her. This occupies the balance of the game (which is relatively short; I knocked it off in a single afternoon).

Mii discovers that he not only needs to find Mo; he is told by his Elder Minim that he must make a choice: to follow his inner path — which is located in his mind — and be transformed forever, or choose to return to his old life as if nothing had happened.

Mii is also told that Mo has already made her choice. How could he choose anything but to go on? (I didn’t have the heart to choose “go back,” so I don’t know what happens in that case). He is then teleported into his own mind, which turns out to be quite an interesting place.

During his mind-journey, Mii visits curious, unusual locations inhabited by some rather odd characters. Each one aids Mii’s progress in some way; however, this being an adventure game, he’s also obliged to do things for them.

During his travels, Mii must solve a variety of inventory-based puzzles. Most aren’t particularly difficult, although one refused to budge for me no matter what I tried. Even the game’s generous help system was of no use, and I ended up solving it by accident. I found this a tad frustrating, but it’s the only trouble I had.

The developer has given point-and-click navigation an interesting twist. The game also offers 360-degree panning, and you can look up and down as well.

Even though the game is played in 3rd-person, Mii doesn’t always move when you do. There are times he’ll wait for you to check out an area of interest and return to him afterwards. In these cases, you’re often able to shift your view around and see him standing in the distance.

The camera will also pan on its own to show you various things. I particularly enjoyed the camerawork used as Mii traverses a very long, very high bridge. It’s quite cinematic.

The Minims can be played either windowed or in full-screen.

The game offers no user-initiated saves. It does let you return to the beginning of each chapter once you’ve played it. If you need to leave mid-chapter, you’re taken back to the point at which you left the game. If you start a new game, the slate is wiped clean.

The Minims‘ quasi-cartoon visual style is colorful and quirky. I think it’s quite appealing.

There is no spoken dialog in the game; instead, bubbles filled with text appear over characters’ heads, which suits the game nicely. The music is very well-done, as are the ambient sounds.

The Minims is generally quite pleasant and relaxing to play. It has an imaginative story with characters and locations that are fanciful and charming.

If you’re looking for a point-and-click adventure that’s practically stress-free (albeit somewhat short), The Minims is for you. Kudos to beyondthosehills for making such a sweet, enjoyable game.

+ Great story + Pleasant and relaxing + Appealing, quasi-cartoon visual style + Music and ambient sounds are very well-done    – Somewhat short – No user-initiated saves