- Exceptional and varied puzzle design
- Immersive atmosphere without dialogue
- Stunning visuals and art direction
- Engaging yet polished gameplay
- Unsatisfying and ambiguous ending
- Short playtime with low replay value
Emotions
Players experience satisfaction due to the game's well-designed puzzles, balanced difficulty, and polished mechanics. The depth of the story, atmospheric art style, and overall presentation contribute to a fulfilling experience, especially when overcoming challenges or unlocking alternate endings. Many also highlight the game's value for money and improvements over its predecessor, Limbo.
The game evokes awe through its artistic depth, immersive atmosphere, and surreal visual storytelling. Moments like the submarine sequence, brain-controlled humans, and the haunting finale create a sense of unparalleled craftsmanship. The combination of sound design, lighting, and open-ended narrative leaves players deeply impacted and reflective.
Players feel curiosity driven by the game's mysterious narrative, hidden symbolism, and lack of hand-holding. The ambiguous story, unanswered questions, and thought-provoking twists invite interpretation, encouraging exploration of lore, alternative endings, and deeper meanings behind the game's bizarre world.
Frustration arises from unclear puzzle mechanics, unintuitive design, and technical issues like unresponsive inputs or visibility problems. Some players struggle with illogical progression, lack of tutorials, or repetitive deaths, while others criticize the game's short length, unsatisfying endings, or counterintuitive controls.
Players enjoy the game's challenging puzzles, creative level design, and engaging atmosphere. The balance of difficulty, combined with appealing visuals and mechanics, creates a fun and immersive experience. Many appreciate the game's ability to blend thrilling platforming with thought-provoking storytelling.
Verdict
Mostly positive
Summary
Positive 93% · Negative 7%. Score: 7 / 100
Positives:
- The game features highly praised puzzles that are logical, creative, and well-balanced in difficulty. Players appreciate the variety, multiple solutions, and seamless integration with the environment and narrative.
- The game excels in creating a tense, oppressive, and engaging atmosphere through visuals, sound design, and environmental storytelling, eliminating the need for dialogue or text.
- The gameplay is smooth, well-paced, and rewarding, blending puzzles, platforming, and exploration seamlessly. Players appreciate the balance between challenge and accessibility.
- The story is deeply engaging, symbolic, and open to interpretation, exploring themes like control, freedom, and human nature. The endings are impactful and encourage replayability for deeper understanding.
- The sound design, including ambient noise, silence, and soundtrack, is meticulously crafted to enhance tension, immersion, and emotional impact. It plays a critical role in storytelling and atmosphere.
Negatives:
- Players consistently report dissatisfaction with the game's ending, citing lack of closure, unresolved questions, and ambiguity. Many feel the narrative fails to deliver a clear payoff or justice, leaving them confused or unfulfilled.
- The game's narrative is frequently described as obscure, hard to follow, and lacking in clarity. Players struggle with ambiguous motives, unclear plot points, and minimal guidance, making the story difficult to engage with.
- Puzzles are criticized for being overly difficult, unintuitive, or poorly designed. Some require external guides, while others disrupt pacing or rely on illogical mechanics, leading to player frustration.
- The game's length is a common complaint, with many players feeling it is too short for the price. Limited replayability due to linear progression and few achievements further reduces perceived value.
- The absence of a tutorial or introductory guidance leaves players struggling with basic mechanics, controls, and objectives, particularly at the start of the game.
Gameplay:
- Players consistently highlight the game's puzzles as engaging, well-paced, and logically designed. The puzzles require critical thinking and observation but avoid frustration through intuitive solutions and environmental integration.
- The narrative is conveyed entirely through visuals, gameplay, and environmental details, with no dialogue or text. Players appreciate the immersive, interpretive storytelling that relies on symbolism and player engagement.
- The game's atmosphere is frequently described as immersive and eerie, created through visuals, sound effects, and environmental storytelling. This contributes to the tension and narrative depth.
- The game blends 2D side-scrolling with 2.5D depth interactions, creating a unique platformer-puzzle experience. This design choice is frequently praised for its creativity and seamless integration of mechanics.
- Core mechanics include interacting with objects (e.g., levers, ropes) and platforming sections. These elements are seamlessly integrated into puzzles and progression.
Performance:
- The game is frequently praised for running smoothly on older or low-spec devices, including laptops with integrated GPUs and 'potato' PCs. Minor lags are reported but do not significantly hinder gameplay.
- Players highlight the game's smooth performance on Steam Deck, with no noticeable lags or bugs, making it accessible for portable play.
- Several reviews explicitly state the absence of performance problems, suggesting a stable and bug-free experience for most players.
- The game is described as having average hardware requirements, balancing accessibility without requiring high-end components. Some users needed to lower resolutions for optimal performance.
Recommendations:
- The game is overwhelmingly recommended for fans of dark platformers, puzzle games, atmospheric experiences, and narrative-driven indie titles. Many reviews emphasize its appeal to those who enjoyed similar games like LIMBO or Little Nightmares.
- Numerous reviews suggest purchasing the game during a sale due to its short length but high impact. The low price point is frequently cited as a key factor in its value proposition.
- Players highlight the importance of playing in a dark room with headphones or a gamepad to fully immerse themselves in the game's eerie and atmospheric world.
- The game's narrative and design invite players to explore interpretations, theories, and hidden details, making it appealing to those who enjoy thought-provoking experiences.
- Some players mention replaying the game to uncover hidden orbs or revisit its story, suggesting it has strong replayability for those seeking full completion.
Miscellaneous:
- The ending leaves players reflecting, inspiring theories, academic analysis, and even a movie ('A Substância'). Interpretations include themes of freedom and societal control.
- Players praise the game’s visual narrative as groundbreaking, with comparisons to films like 'Bladerunner' for its themes of artificial life and control.
- Players purchase the game on multiple platforms, including Steam Deck, though offline play may cause tracking issues (e.g., unregistered hours).
- The game’s themes and gameplay are divisive, with some finding it unsuitable for all audiences. Its academic relevance (e.g., vestibular exams) is also highlighted.
- The dissolution of the developer enhances the game’s intrigue, contributing to its cult status and deeper thematic discussions.
