'Indika has seen many images of what awaits a sinner in hell. But she could not remember seeing anything about what the righteous are supposed to do in heaven...'

Indika is a rare game that's hard to come by in story telling, surreal visual, level design that makes you a genius

When you finish it, you feel like you just watched a meaningful film and played a great puzzle game that you will remember for years

On the modern gaming landscape, Indika is like a breath of fresh air. Not many games have dared to explore the subject of religion at all, especially not in a rather unsafe and provocative way. And I am using these words in the most positive sense because we are talking about the experience that makes you think and feel here. An experience that is emotionally strong (if not brutal) and that keeps you engaged all the way through until the end.

The world of Indika feels very real and twisted at the same time. We find ourselves in the steampunk-infused and disproportioned setting of late XIX century Russia. The late-March spring is dark, depressing and it creates the perfect setting for the story to unfold. And it is also looks stunning for the most part. The childhood stories of Indika are told through some bright and colorful 8-bit style minigames, greatly contrasting the bleak world of the game. These minigames are also quite challenging, adding up to the feeling that you are actually playing and not just walking around.

As far as the gameplay goes, aside from the minigames, Indika is mostly a walking-simulator type of game. There are some puzzles to figure out, some platforming, some driving, some chase scenes. While none of them are particularly complex, together they create a well-balanced (and well-paced) gameplay experience, especially given the fact that the game is only a few hours long.

Last but not least, the Russian voice acting in the game is really great. I strongly recommend switching the voice to Russian (and leaving the subtitles in your language on) - this will definitely enhance the experience.

To sum things up, Indika is a perfect indie-game and a must-play for those of us willing to broaden our perspective on videogames as the form of the art.

I promise you are not prepared for where this goes, tonally or gameplay-wise. Not sure it all makes enough sense in the end, but this is still a darkly humorous, philosophical, genre- and mind-bending experience.