Herdling Review (Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 & PC)

In an effort to flock to the plinth of light that befell the likes of Journey, Herdling traces along the same trails of silent storytelling and mythical questing, whimsical notes and extraordinary panoramas. With little to no context or plot to follow, it proudly wears its heart on its sleeve and jumps straight into the thick of a rather touching tale—a creature comfort in which its players must herd boisterous beasts and guide them toward an enchanting beacon that idles atop a snowy mountain. It starts you with you there — not in the days leading up to an epic quest, but at the foot of a daring height, with little more than a staff, a final destination, and a small herd of furry companions.

It goes like this: you, a silent hoodie-sporting stranger who has the power to herd and protect mythical beasts, wake up one late night to discover a towering creature running amok in a local park. After aiding the creature, you notice a large billboard depicting a herd of beasts at the pinnacle of a glorious mountain. From there, you decide that, in an attempt to flee from the opaque concrete jungle and make a few wishes come true, the best option is to blaze a trail and lead the herd back towards their natural habitat. The only problem is, it’s on the far end of the continent, and the creatures in your stead are, shall we say, incapable of doing, well, anything. Herein lies the monocle of your journey: guiding the incompetent beasts and learning how to teach them right from wrong.

Interested in hearing more about Herdling? Then let’s press on.

Guiding Lights

Herdling doesn’t waste time on filling your head with any convoluted stories or character lore, but rather, it drops you directly into the opening sequence of an epic adventure and gives you a simple goal to follow. There are no monologues to onboard, nor are there any text boxes there to overcompensate the lack of lore. In fact, the UI and clutter are nonexistent. But Herdling isn’t the sort of game that requires a wealth of information to understand; it paints its picture with points of interest and the occasional trajectory of sound. With that, it scoots you in the right direction, and it asks only that you simply roll with the flow.

There isn’t much of a story for you to sink your teeth into here, or even a lot of locations for you to explore outside of the pre-determined track that the game sets out for you. From the moment you acquire a staff and adopt your first Calicorn—a yak-like beast, of all things—the route more or less becomes apparent, with a cone of barriers there to prevent you from straying from the path, and a large cloak of fog to keep you from making a mistake.

As you progress through the Himalayan-esque world of Herdling, you essentially “tame” mythical beasts—a process that involves simply holding a single button for a few seconds—and guide them through vast areas. Like in real life, your companions can be injured—a situation that can be easily remediated by finding a glowing fruit in the world and feeding it to them. The good news is that your companions cannot die. Well, none of the twelve that I had did, anyway. Maybe I was lucky, or maybe the game just didn’t want me to suffer from an emotional meltdown.

For the Herd

Herdling isn’t a difficult game by any means. In fact, most of the “challenges” that you encounter out in the world are purely “herd”-based, which means, if you have played a cattle-like flocking game à la Red Dead Redemption, then you probably won’t find the task of guiding twelve beastly friends a major issue. If you haven’t romped through a farmyard sim, though, then here’s all that you need to know about the mechanics: veering to the left steers the herd right, and vice versa. Along the way, you can also rustle through colorful flowers, which effectively makes the herd gallop, so to speak. Aside from that, you also have to complete the occasional platforming challenge, which either requires you to climb a ledge, leap over a gap, or push or pull a lever. That’s about it.

It goes without saying that, while Herdling isn’t a mechanically complex game, it is one that centers its world around unspoken bonds and contextless interactions. The fact that you can name your herd and interact with them (petting, feeding, and curing, for the most part) also makes you more inclined to foster meaningful relationships with your companions and their flock. But again, it isn’t a challenging game; it’s an interactive love letter to soothing pilgrimages à la Journey, Sable, or Abzu.

The world itself is beautiful. No, it’s magical, thanks to its vast size and colorful composition. It isn’t the least bit photorealistic, though, to give credit where it’s due, it is a game that manages to breathe life into the smallest details, whether it’s a luscious meadow or a cavern filled with mystical paintings of a prehistoric age. And it’s the music, too, that makes this canvas all the more special. It’s mysterious, calming, and, just when the right moment strikes, epic.

What Looms Beyond

Herdling isn’t an emotional game, though it does take the occasional opportunity to coerce you into thinking that things can go awry at the touch of a button. For example, Calicorns can stumble and fall, as well as suffer from severe damage if you fail to keep them out of harm’s reach. But that pretty much comes with the responsibility of guiding the flock. And to be honest, the whole journey climaxes in a way that makes you feel weirdly attached to your herd and their loyalist tendencies. Kevin, for example, was the one beast who just couldn’t navigate a bridge to save their life. At times, I hated Kevin. But at the end, I was almost sad to see him disband from the clique. And that same feeling weirdly linked up to all of the companions in the herd.

To answer the question of whether or not Herdling is a fun game to play — yes, it is. I’ll admit, it’s a short game that doesn’t have much going for it outside of its A-to-B progression and musical infusions, but it is a game that just feels good to glide through. And it’s a slick affair, too, with little to no technical flaws there to sully the experience or distract you from the flow of the story. That’s always a plus in my books.

The only major downside to all of this is that, contrary to what I said earlier on, the lack of context is a bit of a double-edged sword here. I don’t know, perhaps I’m being picky. The truth is, though, that with there being no dialogue or lore, or even a point, for that matter, I personally found that it was difficult to care about the journey until it became somewhat obvious in the final moments.

Verdict

Herdling is the sort of game that you would naturally turn to after a long day at the office or, to some, to remediate your deepest, darkest burdens. Although it isn’t mechanically convoluted or draped with secrets for you to unlock, it is an experience that soothes the soul through its elegant simplicity and wholesome progression tropes.

Suffice it to say that, if you enjoy voiceless endeavors that pull on your heartstrings through the power of emotional connections and breathtaking imagery, then it’s highly likely that you’ll enjoy herding the gentle creatures in this peachy world of whimsy and wonder. Think Journey, and add in a few yaks — and you’ll have a rough idea of what you’re gearing up for. If that’s the sort of adventure that you wouldn’t mind jumping into, then I can guarantee that you’ll find more than just excess fur and fodder here. Just don’t expect to feel like a shepherd until the final moment.