Parents' Guide to Sumire

The interactive story features an admirable approach to subject matter that can be difficult to address, including the loss of more than one family member. In Sumire, clicking on question marks near characters or objects will trigger brief conversations, which advance the plot, and kids will also occasionally pick up or otherwise engage with objects in the story. The amount of interacting and observing what kids do is generally well-balanced -- neither aspect feels like it disrupts the story, which revolves around the main character struggling to deal with her grandmother's death. Sumire wants to find out what her grandmother has tried to tell her in dreams, which she's convinced would make everything in her life better. A talking flower that appears early in the story ends up being her companion, after insisting Sumire serve as its guide for the day because it can't stay in her world longer than that.

The animation is excellent – stars twinkle, crickets chirp, and flowers sway gently in the breeze. Kids generally need to take care of tasks that come up right away to move forward, which the app doesn't specify, so they may need to backtrack at points until they figure that out. Generally, though, the navigation is fairly direct and frustration-free. A list Sumire refers to in her notebook throughout the story serves as a nice visual cue for what the character has done and what tasks lie ahead. Some involve emotional challenges, which are a recurring theme in the story. Her flower companion, who dispenses positive advice -- such as not worrying about what you can't control -- ultimately causes Sumire to experience another loss. Some kids may have a hard time with the sadder aspects of the story -- and there are a few. But the overall message it presents of expressing feelings and living in the moment is uplifting. As a result, kids who have experienced loss or struggle with similar issues might find spending some time in Sumire's world helpful.