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In a single word, One Eyed Kutkh is unique. In more than a single word, it's unlike anything we've played before, although it's more of an interactive story than a game to be played. While that might be true of games in general, One Eyed Kutkh almost seems to thrive on it; it aches to tell you this wonderful story and implores you to join in. Kutkh is a spirit of Russian folklore, with many tales to its name, many of which depict it as a trickster or a thief (thanks, Wikipedia); that's certainly the case of our Kutkh, who crashes on an unknown planet and seeks to steal the ships of the Sun and Moon by ascending to the ninth heaven to deceive them.
What's particularly unique about One Eyed Kutkh is the wordless nature of its storytelling, as you're guided around using symbols and your own intuition more than anything. It's also relatively linear, so you aren't likely to get stuck or lost; only the first little sequence with Kutkh in its spaceship is a tad confusing at first, as you're prompted to press buttons that don't really do much, but everything after that is plain sailing. This being more of an interactive fairytale than a game, it's also very short - your first play might clock in at around 40 minutes - but we can't see how it could be much longer, in truth, and it's so enjoyable that it can easily be replayed.
The uniqueness of the experience isn't just reflected in its wordlessness; it's also evident through its art style and soundtrack, both of which are minimal and beautiful in equal measure, and they certainly help to make an impact. The art style matches the other-worldly characters and locations perfectly, and the soundtrack - right down to the sound effects - helps to bring a calm and ambient feel to the whole experience. The only thing that might grate slightly is that character movement and actions can be a little sluggish at times, and while this is sometimes intentional, it's at the parts where it could be sped up a bit where you might feel as though you're waiting unnecessarily.
While the story is straightforward as we mentioned before, there are a couple of puzzle elements thrown in for good measure, though nothing that's going to have you scratching your head in confusion. It's mostly little things, like figuring out which path to take when presented with several options, or the action of getting to where you need to be. The developers say the game can be enjoyed by people of any age, and given the simplicity of the few puzzles and the focus on the story, we can certainly see this being the case.
The game's controls are nice and simple, and you have a couple of different options depending on how you play. Touch control is supported through the Switch's touch screen, and every action is depicted by an icon or a symbol to allow you to easily progress in this manner. If you prefer button controls, you can also use a pair of Joy-Con controllers (the Pro Controller isn't supported) to move a cursor or select symbols, which isn't as immediately intuitive but still works very well. Once you've completed the story once, you can also choose which chapter you'd like to start from, which is a nice option if you don't want to start at the beginning or if you just want to replay the ending.
One Eyed Kutkh is a unique, charming, and overall enjoyable experience. It's very short, but it uses that to its advantage by making its storytelling simple to understand and intuitive to follow; that said, we still yearn for more, given the wonderful way in which the story has been told. That and its minor faults don't take away from an immersive experience that will undoubtedly leave you with a smile on your face, and that can be enjoyed by anyone and easily played in a single sitting. For fans of unique and well-told stories, with a beautiful soundtrack visual style, this is definitely one to look into.