Great game! Unique nonlinear mix of adventure and platformer. Game mechanics are quite solid, many different puzzles, jumping, running and making pictures :P But most important: incredible atmosphere. Music, environment of different planets and that eerie felling of loneliness is just amazing.

There is only one flaw... it's really short. One longer evening and that's it.

Bottom line: Short but really charming and unique game.

Saira is very pretty and has a neat interface, but it suffers from two really big - and surprising - problems.

My first issue with this game is the lack of responsiveness to button commands. I don't know if Nifflas intended to slow the response a little, but this thing feels like molasses, which isn't exactly a quality you look for in a platformer.

The second big issue is level design. It's just plain awkward sometimes,and without many visual cues to assist with gauging jumps. Compounded with the lack of responsiveness this makes for a really frustrating experience.

What surprises me is that Nifflas exhibited such mastery over level design in his previous three attempts. They all respond very quickly and fluidly, too. Maybe the control issue can be fixed in a later release, but until that changes I think I'm gonna let this one go.

This is a charming game, the kind that you can relax with. The worlds are nice to explore, the music therapeutic, and it has a non-violent theme - suitable for everyone.

This is quite a unique game. It's a puzzle-based side-scroller with an interesting storyline accompanying it. The puzzles have a wide range of difficulty, and you're given some interesting methods of solving them. One of the major features of the game is your character's PDA, which lets you take pictures of anything on the screen you think might be interesting or useful later. This way you don't have to manually write down access codes or the like whenever you rin across them.

The game is rather forgiving, often providing save-points near dangerous puzzles.

The biggest problem is that the menu system, which takes a bit of getting used to. You essentially have two windows in your PDA which allows you to have two things running at once (so you can check a photo while operating a control panel, etc.). It's really just a matter of swapping back and forth between controlling either window, but it can take a bit of getting used to.

Saira is a very clever, slower-paced platform game focused on exploration and puzzles. It was created by Nifflas, the indie developer behind the Knytt games, Within a Deep Forest, and others. So if you're interested in this game, you might want to try those games first (they are freeware) to get an idea of what you're in for. But Saira is significantly deeper than those. Granted, Knytt and the other games are intended to be a pure, unfiltered exploration experience and there's nothing wrong with that. But Saira brings some very unique and engaging puzzles into the formula. Plus, it features a fun, pinball-inspired game when traveling between planets.

The story is interesting. Saira was attempting to teleport to her friend on Mars, but during teleporation something happened that she was protected from. When she arrived, almost everyone was gone. She finds another person named Bobo, but they are separated and she tries to find him again... if he's still alive.

The platforming can be somewhat intense at times, with timed sections, flight and other interesting mechanics. Each planet lends itself to some different ideas, which is quite brilliant, and the planets within each solar system often have related puzzles (take pictures on Planet A to figure out a a puzzle on Planet B). You have to charge your battery to go to farther solar systems, and each planet is like a new discovery with new ideas.

The picture-taking is very innovative because it helps you solve puzzles without having to travel back to a place you were at previously to check something. You can check your pictures any time, including when working on puzzles.

There are save points all around every planet, similar to Nifflas' previous games. The placement and design of each planet is very nicely laid out and they each have very different atmospheres. The challenge comes entirely from platforming and puzzles. You can get hurt from occasional monsters, but it just sends you back to a save point. You don't actually fight them.

The progression is somewhat open-world. You can explore wherever you like, and each planet is a small, non-linear level. But it takes battery power to explore farther away, so you must solve puzzles in each solar system to get to the battery chargers. Most puzzles are done through terminals that are placed throughout the world, and there is a very wide variety of puzzles, some of which will provide a lot of brain-bending to figure out.

The visual style follows up the unique, atmospheric ambience of Nifflas' previous games. Some planets look more interesting than others, but there are a lot of very beautiful locales throughout the game with a lot of nice, subtle effects. Somewhat simple, but highly effective.

For me, this is a must-play game for people that enjoy puzzles and platforming. There are some similarities to the Metroid series (like Nifflas' other games), but the game isn't as action-focused. If that interests you, I'd highly recommend it. If you're unsure, try the demo on Nifflas' website. You can always input a serial number later if you decide to buy it, and pick up where you left off. But I would caution judging the game too much based on the demo. The game gets stronger the longer you play it and the farther you get, an effect that might not be apparent from the demo.

What is this game about? Well I can’t answer this question for sure, but I know that it must be something cool. This is one of the many indie games that deserve a badge “Well done good Sir!”. This game has so much features, for example you can take photos of hints you found and just access them from your PDA later. basically, the game is a Jump and Run about traveling through space, and hell, it feels great. You control the game completly with your keyboard, the graphics are nice and clear, the menues are genuis, the hacking minigames are great and different everytime and I really dont know what else to say, this game just should be played.

Before I begin, do be assured that there are no spoilers here, apart from a brief recap of the introduction slideshow.

Saira is a pretty cool platformer that has you playing as, well, Saira. The game ships with one pre-made episode, where Saira's day just can't get any worse - apparently everyone, including her sister, has disappeared mysteriously, and her only friend has been teleported to some distant part of the galaxy.

That's where Saira's adventures in fantastic worlds begin. This is a non-violent platformer, where you avoid enemies and solve intermittent puzzles along your journeys. You will be doing a lot of free-running, wall-hopping, ledge-climbing and wall-running.

As with other games by Nifflas, the environments are gorgeous. No planet has the same backdrop, and despite the game being in 2D, it has a very nice 3D feel thanks to multi-layered backgrounds. The atmosphere of the game is further kicked in by the sounds of wildlife and nature. You can feel the gush of winds sweeping you in some places; and in others, the feeling of isolation carried by the beautiful soundtrack really makes you feel alone.

And the world really feels lived in. Enemies and harmless wildlife are rendered in good ol' 2D, but they usually go about doing their own thing, until you approach them. Some will follow you meekly, and others will try to kill you. Add in trees that sway gently in the breeze, and stunningly beautiful entities such as a clock tower or falling leaves, and your senses will be in for a treat.

But Saira is not without its faults. For all its merits, it's controls are very slippery, which is a shame since this is crucial to the fun factor of any platformer. Even though you can respawn at the nearest checkpoint when you die, without losing any progress, it breaks the flow of the game due to poor timing in a split second.

Also, the levels are broken up into segments/'rooms'. This segmentation can be really ridiculously placed, especially during times where you have to wall-hop up a vertical chasm, and the segment transits from one to the other, making it difficult to wall hop properly when the next chasm loads.

For all it's flaws, Saira is brilliant. It's very relaxing, and can take your breath away at times.

Saira is one of those games. Set in a free-roaming galaxy, Saira is an episodic game where you control the title character through various platforming and puzzle challenges. Many of the puzzles are simple if you manage to explore the various worlds thoroughly, as they are printed on walls or hills or the like. Saira then can use her camera to snap a screenshot of the area, and refer back to it later when opening a force field lock or some other puzzley thing.

The game’s look is interesting – it’s very retro while still feeling crisp and new. The movement of the Saira character is smooth and slick, but her character design recalls Flash platformers of old. The environments, despite being 2d, feel like they have a 3d aspect to them – the sun will shine in your eyes as you pass it on one planet, for example. So, in summary, the images are nice, but this is still an indie game and not a big-publisher title, and that can be determined right away.

but it still a great and enjoyable game

8/10

Saira is a wonderful game. It's genuinely beautiful, the level design is spot-on, the platforming mechanics are excellent and the puzzles are often interesting but rarely frustrating. It's challenging enough to be satisfying, but it never feels like the designer is out to get you; there's little frustration, and almost no tedium.

Great puzzle/platforming game! Some tricky puzzles to be found and lots of jumps to make, very well made and simple game, can't wait for the next one!

Saira is a mix of platforming and adventure gaming that throws in a bunch of fun but challenging minigames as part of the puzzles. The music is moody and atmospheric, not to mention unique, and it drives home not just the character of whatever planet you're on, but how alone you truly are.

Saira's planets are unique and well-made, the environments are beautiful, and the puzzles - for the most part - are logical and well laid out. The camera tool allows you to take pictures of anything and saves on backtracking by allowing you to snap a picture of the password you just unlocked, so you don't have to memorize it. Or you can just take scenic pictures of the landscape if you want.

This game isn't all about puzzles though, some areas will require speed and agility to get through to the next area. It can take a few tries to get where you're going sometimes, but all obstacles are surmountable if you're persistent.

The minigames range from easy to friggin' hard, but even the hardest of minigames can be solved with patience and thought, not to mention a little trial and error.

It's impossible to find yourself stuck in a no-win situation in this game, whether in a minigame or adventuring on a planet's surface. Sometimes a quick teleport can erase your last platforming misstep, saving yourself from having to climb all the way back to the top of the jump just to try again. If you fall into a bottomless pit, you'll just teleport back to your last checkpoint.

This is a very streamlined game that only occasionally frustrates, and seldom for very long. It is very easy to lose track of time solving just one more puzzle or minigame, exploring a new planet, dodging monsters, or just taking in the planet's ambiance. If you like the feeling of speed, have a love of puzzles, or simply relish the idea of exploring new worlds, you can't go wrong with this title.