Artistic games are becoming more common these days, so traditional violence and action elements play second fiddle to a more slow-paced and atmospheric experience. Regardless of whether you're talking about the odd painted landscapes of The Witness or the strange adventure of Journey, there are plenty of different experiences to be had. Koi is the first Chinese-only PS4 game, and it attempts to provide a different, artistic experience. It's interesting, but unfortunately, that doesn't always mean fun.

You play as a koi fish swimming around a pond filled with other colorful fish. Also in this pond are flowers of various colors. You need to find a fish of a certain color and return it to the matching flower, which causes it to bloom. In most cases, the flowers are in the open, and you'll just need to find the proper fish and bring it there. Other times, you have to push smaller flowers together to create a larger one that can blossom. There are simple puzzles to solve to open doors and barriers, but they mostly involve bringing enough fish to enough flowers for something to happen.

The puzzles are odd in that they're very simple, and in some ways, I'm not sure if they're meant to be. One recurring thing would be that I'd see the fish on the other end of a barrier. Swimming up to the barrier triggered the fish to assume I'd rescued it, and the second I swam a bit off-screen, the fish would follow me, teleporting right through the barrier. A bit later, I found a split in a path which I realized was where that fish was supposed to be. A lot of the hitboxes for things seem off, which breaks certain challenges. There was a gate with three fish locked behind it, and I managed to rescue two of them just by swimming close to them and without solving the puzzle. Other puzzles seemed so easy that I didn't think they should be classified as puzzles at all. If there's a green fish and a green flower three feet from it, is it really a puzzle? (This was actually one of the late-game puzzles!)

Koi mixes things up sometimes with a few minigames, but they're not particularly interesting. One is a variation on Simon Says, where you have to pick glowing leafs that appear in a certain order. Another is basically Concentration with the markings of different colored lizards. A third involves you spinning squares to make sure the various puzzle pieces are lined up correctly. They're not bad minigames, but they're also not fitting for the title. It felt like the developers ran low on mechanics and had to toss something in to pad out the gameplay. Neither is particularly challenging or thought-provoking. The Simon Says minigame is probably the most difficult component in the game — and only because it has actual punishments for dying.

A major element of Koi is that you don't have any real punishment for mistakes. The game has two major things that can damage you: black fish and electric sparks. Taking damage causes your fish to be temporarily slowed, and if you've collected any other fish, they get disconnected from you. This is a non-issue in almost every situation, so there's basically no punishment for screwing up. There's one area where getting hit at the wrong time can make you have to perform some awkward movements to reach a fish that's trapped in a near-constant damage area, but otherwise, this is a very relaxing game. Some people might find it frustrating that there's no real bite, but others will probably enjoy the game's casual, relaxing nature.

Koi's level design doesn't manage to remain relaxing enough. The early levels are comfortable, beautiful and enjoyable, and the minor threat of the black fish is minimal. As the game progresses, it becomes grimmer and darker. Your koi swims into polluted industrial areas full of black fish with Metal Gear Solid-style sight cones, and while this isn't particularly threatening, it lacks the comfortable Zen-like relaxation of the earlier stages. The later stages feel like they should have more bite than the earlier ones, but they don't. You can swim through the dangerous black fish if you don't mind being slightly slower for a few seconds. The only downside is that there are certain trophies for finishing stages quickly, so you might have to be careful, but even those shouldn't stress out anyone.

The level design is also fairly weak. The early levels are small and cramped, and finding the missing fish is a piece of cake. It isn't until the very end of the game that you get a large complex level that might makes use of the built-in hint button to guide you to the next fish. However, it becomes clear that larger isn't better, and rather than a larger level being an excuse for more complexity, it just means you have to take twice as long to swim to your destination. Additionally, the hint button is more of a tool to avoid the tedium of searching for a small fish in a big pond rather than helping with complex challenges. The game doesn't overstay its welcome, but even by the end, I was starting to get bored of it.

Koi's biggest flaw is that it's absurdly short, so you can achieve 100% completion in about 90 minutes. That's not enough bang for the buck for a $10 game. It has collectibles, but they're easy to find, and even when you miss them, you can pop back and quickly grab them. There are about nine levels, but some aren't much more than story or tutorial levels. The story has some positive things to say about environmentalism but doesn't present those ideas in an engaging way and doesn't go very far with them.

To its credit, Koi has some nice visuals. The early levels are bright, colorful and charming to view, and the gradual slide into urban pollution and decay is nicely realized, but it doesn't go far enough. There are some really nice areas at the beginning and end of the game, but they're not beautiful enough to justify playing the game on its own. Likewise, the music is peacefully atmospheric but not exceptional. The early levels are nice in a Zen sort of way, but it doesn't hold a candle to some of the other atmospheric games, like Journey or Flower.

Koi is a beautiful but shallow pool. The first impression is strong but as you go on into the game it quickly becomes clear there just isn't much below the surface. The puzzles, story and gameplay are "barely there" enough to work, but without much that develops from the basics. As an experience, it's enjoyable enough, if over a bit too quickly, but as a game, it's pretty lackluster and tough to justify the price tag. It's a shame since there's a lot of potential here, but Koi doesn't manage to realize it.

Score: 5.0/10