NAIRI: Rising Tide

Shirin’s sun-baked streets hide political rot, ancient danger, and a looming disaster in this hand-drawn point-and-click adventure. Picking up after NAIRI: Tower of Shirin, the story follows Nairi as she searches for her missing family while navigating a city threatened by an apocalyptic prophecy. Its world balances serious stakes with a disarmingly cute cast of animals, oddballs, and suspicious locals, giving the adventure a warm storybook look without losing its sense of tension. The result is a puzzle-driven journey built around conversation, observation, and gradually uncovering what lies beneath Shirin’s colorful surface.

Most of the action revolves around exploring screens, speaking with characters, collecting useful objects, and figuring out how seemingly unrelated items solve environmental problems. The new Toolbelt system lets Nairi combine inventory items into more inventive solutions, making puzzles feel less like simple key-and-lock obstacles and more like compact logic challenges. Larger puzzle-dungeons add a more demanding layer, connecting multiple rooms and mechanics into extended brainteasers that require players to track clues and think ahead. A map, fast-travel options, and adjustable guidance tools help reduce the friction common to classic adventure games, while still allowing puzzle veterans to rely on their own deduction.

What stands out is the contrast between the adorable illustrated cast and the increasingly ominous plot surrounding Shirin. Every location carries a carefully drawn, expressive visual identity, and optional coins can be spent on collectibles such as character art, figurines, and extra lore for players who want a fuller picture of the setting. Rather than chasing action or reflex challenges, NAIRI: Rising Tide rewards patience, curiosity, and a willingness to test strange combinations. Fans of Deponia, Broken Age, or modern puzzle adventures with personality should feel at home, while its hint systems make it far more approachable for newcomers than many old-school point-and-clicks.