There are a variety of increasingly difficult puzzles to solve in Zorya: The Celestial Sisters, a puzzle co-op game developed by Madlife Divertissement and published by TLM Partners. Zorya: The Celestial Sisters offers plenty of unique scenarios while consistently introducing new mechanics and telling an interesting story. As the difficulty increases, good communication becomes essential for reaching the goal and solving each puzzle.
Zorya: The Celestial Sisters is about two goddesses, Solveig and Aysu, who are on a path to reunite. As Aysu gets closer to returning to her sister, she learns of the destruction that took place in her absence. Solveig tries to help Aysu understand what happened and how they can fix the world once they are together. In order to bring her home, Solveig must control time to direct the sunlight so Aysu can move through each area without being burned up by the harsh sun.
In this co-op puzzle game, one person controls Aysu and physically moves through each level, and the other person changes the time of day to move the sunlight and shadows as Solveig. Each new area also introduces different mechanics, like Aysu using her wind powers to hit enemies or objects. Enemies can also be burned by Solveig's sunbeam to temporarily stun them so Aysu can keep moving. Each level ends when Aysu touches the essence, but there are also collectibles to find in hidden nooks or areas outside of the optimal route.
The collectibles are a secondary challenge, but finding them will unlock bonus areas outside of the main story. The extra sections contain unique mechanics such as using Solveig's sunlight to melt ice, or having rotating platforms to control with Aysu's wind. The bonus areas require five, eight, and thirteen collectibles to unlock. The rest of the constellations on the world map are unlocked by completing each level in the main story area that comes before it.
The major downside to Zorya: The Celestial Sisters is that one player is often left waiting around while the other figures out their next move. The camera controls are also difficult to manage, and Solveig's ability to place markers isn't as helpful as it should be. The markers are hard for Aysu to see because of her limited view. In later levels, Solveig also has the ability to move pillars which Aysu needs to hide behind, but the movements are twitchy and can frequently cause accidental deaths.
Along with the controls for Solveig being, at times, difficult to manage, some of Aysu's movements can be frustrating. Aysu takes fall damage and will automatically die after dropping from any height. There are various levels with stairs that don't have sides, and if Aysu falls from even the third step up, the whole level will be reset. While some puzzles can be difficult to figure out, others are simply hard because of bad controls or twitchy movements.
Zorya: The Celestial Sisters is a fun co-op puzzle game with a few flaws that are more noticeable towards the end of the story. There are some levels that can be confusing, but overall the puzzles aren't too difficult to solve. The hardest part about the game is getting around the somewhat frustrating controls. However, Zorya: The Celestial Sisters is still a good co-op game to play with a friend online or locally, and the relaxing music and vibrant visuals create a soothing atmosphere that balances out the difficulty of completing each level.
Zorya: The Celestial Sisters is available for Nintendo Switch and PC. Screen Rant was provided a digital Nintendo Switch download code for the purpose of this review.