* I played the game solo. This review will cover the game when played solo.

My Playtime: 8.7h (100% achievement, finished the game)
Grindy Achievement(s): No.
Optional Achievement(s): Yes (10 achievements).
Difficult Achievement(s): No.

Degrees of Separation is a puzzle game where you control two people with contrasting worlds: Ember's world is where the sun shines and water flows, while Rime's world is where everything is made of ice and freezes. The game has six main levels with different main mechanics as a focus.

Pros:
- 6 main mechanics
- Easy to figure out the collectible location
- Freedom to finish the puzzles in any order that you want

Cons:
- Game only saves your collectible, not position
- AI tends not to move in the direction that you want

Specs
Steam Deck: AMD Zen 2 4c/8t 2.4-3.5GHz, 16 GB RAM, 8 AMD RDNA 2 CUs

If you enjoy puzzle games, buy this game.

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The characters seem to use 3D models despite the side-scroller display. However, since they will mostly be shown from afar, it can be hard to see the details. They are easy to distinguish by the color, though; Ember will be red and Rime will be blue. The environment will also be colored to match this color palette, and despite using the same color, it's still easy to see where the characters are since their color tends to be darker than the environment. However, it can be hard to see the ropes in a dark environment sometimes.

The story will be told as you play, telling you the adventure of our protagonists while slipping some lore as you go through the levels. However, I found that the story tends to be lengthy despite the game being a puzzle game. I had to stop a lot of times just to wait for the dialogue to finish, whether it was from doing puzzles or from accessing the exit.

The game tends to incorporate its story into the levels, telling you the mechanics and tying it to the game's story. I like how soothing the voice dubs are, and if you are into games with story as a focus, this game's story is quite detailed. You need to assume what's happening, but the game gives enough context for you to figure it out.

Gameplay
Two people, two worlds. Degree of Separation's main concept lies in the fact that our protagonists live in two different worlds. You'll have both of them on the same screen, although they are divided into their worlds—think of it as playing a game in a split-screen, except that the split-screen will affect each other to solve the puzzle. Ember's world has a gust of wind that sends you in a certain direction and allows you to "fall" into a body of water. Rime's world will turn off all winds and freeze all bodies of water, allowing you to walk above it. The range between both worlds depends on their position—despite being in separate worlds, you control them as if they are within the same world, except that the range of their world will change as you move.

The game has six chapters plus one main hub in total. Each chapter, including the main hub, consists of a big world divided into smaller puzzle areas. Each puzzle area usually can be fit into one screen, although there are some cases where you need to bring a certain item from another puzzle area to solve the puzzle. The chapters usually revolve around the newly introduced mechanic that is unique to each chapter. That being said, the main mechanic of the two worlds will still be applied in most chapters.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3481415105

The puzzles' main goal is to collect scarves, a collectible that can be used to open the door to more chapters. The game is not linear—as long as you have enough scarves, you can explore and finish the world in any order that you want. Navigating through the chapter world to find the puzzles might be tricky, but the game offers a hint that lets you know the rough location of the scarves. It's easy to find the puzzles this way, and you can also fast-travel between these hint structures if you want to. That being said, the fast-travel can still take time, especially if you want to go to an area far from where you are located. Collecting all scarves is also not necessary to beat the game, although it's required to 100% it.

The puzzles themselves are simple. Most of them work on a certain rule that you must figure out first. Once you know about the rule, the other puzzles within the same chapter will be easier to solve. It can take a while to find it, but it was always satisfying whenever you managed to solve it on your own. The puzzles never take that long to finish, and even if you are stuck, there are always a lot of things that you can figure out based on the available techniques that you have. One of them will usually end up as the solution.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3437240336

Length and Difficulty
I finished the game in 8.7h. The game is in the easy-medium range; it can take a bit of brainpower for you to solve the puzzles, although they are never too hard for me. The only exception is in two levels in the first chapter, since they require you to move an object from another puzzle to solve.

Issues
The game only saves your scarf's progress, not your location. If you exit the game midway, you must redo the whole chapter from scratch, although your solved puzzles will still be treated as completed. The AI also tends not to move as I want. There was one level that required me to control both characters at once, and since I played the game solo, I had to rely on the AI. It took me longer than it originally takes to reach what I wanted with that AI. The same goes when you call the AI to come to you. Sometimes the pathfinding works, sometimes it doesn't. As for the latter case, prepare to do the same puzzle twice.

It's hard to find puzzle games that are just right in difficulty for me. Degree of Separation surprisingly nails the difficulty well, allowing me to enjoy the game while still having to think. It was such a nice puzzle game, even if you play it solo. If you enjoy playing puzzle games, I don't see a reason why you shouldn't play this one.