(1)I played only 95 mins before I decided to return it. The farthest I was willing to try is just shy of the rocket-pack. This is roughly 2/3rds of the game, and I probably could've completed the game within the two hours of the new refund policy. I don't want to rip the devs off when it didn't meet my expectations. That's why I returned the game.

(2) I respect the intentions of the devs with what they wanted to accomplish, so I am going to probably be nicer out of sympathy. However, I don't think this is a must-have game or an experience worth buying anytime soon.

Please take any criticsm I have with these caveats.

The initial impressions of this game had me interested to get this game on a sale based on its short length. The mechanics looked fun and unique, and the story seemed full of wonderment.

Sometimes I really do like the narrative-focused games that run around 2 to 3 hours. More polished storytelling and gameplay segments for a reasonable price is what I look for in these kind of games (Portal 1 and 2, Thomas Was Alone and TRI: Of Friendship & Madness).

And within the first thirty minutes, I was enjoying myself. Then after stopping after shortly an hour and a half to see how much of the game I had completed, I asked myself just what was I really getting out of this game.


Once you get the intial set-up and the gist of the gameplay mechanics (grappelling and power-jumping), the game doesn't seem to progress to anything more challenging or does anything different to offer variety with the mechanics.

Although there are sometimes small deviations in the paths you choose, you still feel like the gameplay has only one solution and you are trapped within a corridor.

A similar problem I have had with games like Magnrunner Pulse and QUBE is that the puzzles are scripted with only one solution. It's not a matter of using your powers to solve a room; the puzzle is doing everything in the correct order to reach the end.

Besides the story-bits, the optional seismographs are lackluster; they're not elaboratively hidden in the levels, and they don't provide much to you other than a few unlockables fpr achievements.

Even though the environments make you feel like there's a whole world to explore and absolute freedom at your disposal, there was nothing to set me off-course or extra challenges for choosing to go one route over the other. A corridor with a skybox canvas in disguise.


Much like the environments, the story also feels like something made much bigger than it actually is.

Your Uncle Fred went missing months ago, now you wander in this dimension with some small clues about where Fred went. He was some entrapenour scientist/inventor who became obssessed with his creations and they took him to another, magical world he inadverently created.

Good idea for a story, but not enough for this game. And there's not enough of motivation for the player to care.

There are some optional story-bits that flesh out characters like Mad Maddie and her relationship to Fred or of the protagonist and his attachment to his uncle from one of many adventures. Moments like these are so few and far between the experience, and some of which are hidden as details on the walls as notes, that you might overlook them entirely.

But other than these small glimpses of a narrative, I didn't feel any attachment to the protagonist. That's the failure of the narrative being given towards the player; the question I kept asking, "Why should I care about this uncle of yours? He sounds like a farce."

Here you have the narrator saying how awesome his uncle is and recalling some part of the in-game story in past-tense (so he obviously comes back home). I couldn't really get too attached to someone who keeps telling me how awesome his uncle is.

I'm more interested in my invovlement: What am I, the player, doing? Why should I care? What makes me invovled in the plot when it's been done already?

Perhaps it wasn't the story itself but the delivery of the narrator that drew me away. He is far too monotone without any reason to be--the guy has an uncle who creates jetpacks and alternative dimensions!

Maybe the narrator is supposed to be a blank-character that makes you want an uncle like Uncle Fred. Or perhaps you are the son/daugher of the narrator dreaming up the story about this uncle. (I'd believe that interpretation).

But it's not just a lackluster character that ruins the story. The world itself raised more questions that were never answered. Why is everyting in this world floating islands? Why did Salamanders evolve into people (yes, I know they were transported here in a hidden story-bit by Uncle Fred when he took in those eggs) but what led to their cognitive evolution?

Maybe I am not supposed to ask these questions. Or maybe I'm left to imagine the answers. The problem is nothing from the characters or the world made me grow any attachements. Only in the visual presentation.

For example, you stop by the Salamander village for the first sign of Fred. You don't really talk to anyone other than Mad Maddie, and then you get their crystal from the elder. Off you go again to find Fred . There's simply not enough time to spend there to grow attachments to any character or place in a game where that should be the focus of its time.


Lackluster despite all the care put into the game.

If this game was a proof of concept to flesh out a future game, I would be happy because there is the potential for something amazing in its mechanics and for the game to bring out a charming narrative.

The game, if it ever gets a sequel, needs to remember the golden rule for stories, "Show, Don't Tell", because then we might be able to immerse ourselves in wanting to find our uncle in a strange world rather being told to find him. (Maybe some harder obstacles/challenges too.)

But above all for any narrative-focused titles in the future, the game doesn't need padding for the sake of artifical length; let us immerse ourselves in the world you create at our discretion as the player. Let us discover these worlds; let us discover these bonds we create; let us learn through our involvement why we care for something.

[h1]Disclaimers: [/h1] [b](1)I played only 95 mins before I decided to return it. The farthest I was willing to try is just shy of the rocket-pack. This is roughly 2/3rds of the game, and I probably could've completed the game within the two hours of the new refund policy. I don't want to rip the devs off when it didn't meet my expectations. That's why I returned the game. (2) I respect the intentions of the devs with what they wanted to accomplish, so I am going to probably be nicer out of sympathy. However, I don't think this is a must-have game or an experience worth buying anytime soon.[/b] Please take any criticsm I have with these caveats. The initial impressions of this game had me interested to get this game on a sale based on its short length. The mechanics looked fun and unique, and the story seemed full of wonderment. Sometimes I really do like the narrative-focused games that run around 2 to 3 hours. More polished storytelling and gameplay segments for a reasonable price is what I look for in these kind of games (Portal 1 and 2, Thomas Was Alone and TRI: Of Friendship & Madness). And within the first thirty minutes, I was enjoying myself. Then after stopping after shortly an hour and a half to see how much of the game I had completed, I asked myself just what was I really getting out of this game. [h1]Problem with Linearity in Gameplay, Not Linear Stories[/h1] Once you get the intial set-up and the gist of the gameplay mechanics (grappelling and power-jumping), the game doesn't seem to progress to anything more challenging or does anything different to offer variety with the mechanics. Although there are sometimes small deviations in the paths you choose, you still feel like the gameplay has only one solution and you are trapped within a corridor. A similar problem I have had with games like Magnrunner Pulse and QUBE is that the puzzles are scripted with only one solution. It's not a matter of using your powers to solve a room; the puzzle is doing everything in the correct order to reach the end. Besides the story-bits, the optional seismographs are lackluster; they're not elaboratively hidden in the levels, and they don't provide much to you other than a few unlockables fpr achievements. Even though the environments make you feel like there's a whole world to explore and absolute freedom at your disposal, there was nothing to set me off-course or extra challenges for choosing to go one route over the other. A corridor with a skybox canvas in disguise. [h1]A Small Story Told as An Epic[/h1] Much like the environments, the story also feels like something made much bigger than it actually is. Your Uncle Fred went missing months ago, now you wander in this dimension with some small clues about where Fred went. He was some entrapenour scientist/inventor who became obssessed with his creations and they took him to another, magical world he inadverently created. Good idea for a story, but not enough for this game. And there's not enough of motivation for the player to care. There are some optional story-bits that flesh out characters like Mad Maddie and her relationship to Fred or of the protagonist and his attachment to his uncle from one of many adventures. Moments like these are so few and far between the experience, and some of which are hidden as details on the walls as notes, that you might overlook them entirely. But other than these small glimpses of a narrative, I didn't feel any attachment to the protagonist. That's the failure of the narrative being given towards the player; the question I kept asking, "Why should I care about this uncle of yours? He sounds like a farce." Here you have the narrator saying how awesome his uncle is and recalling some part of the in-game story in past-tense (so he obviously comes back home). I couldn't really get too attached to someone who keeps telling me how awesome his uncle is. I'm more interested in my invovlement: What am I, the player, doing? Why should I care? What makes me invovled in the plot when it's been done already? Perhaps it wasn't the story itself but the delivery of the narrator that drew me away. He is far too monotone without any reason to be--the guy has an uncle who creates jetpacks and alternative dimensions! Maybe the narrator is supposed to be a blank-character that makes you want an uncle like Uncle Fred. Or perhaps you are the son/daugher of the narrator dreaming up the story about this uncle. (I'd believe that interpretation). But it's not just a lackluster character that ruins the story. The world itself raised more questions that were never answered. Why is everyting in this world floating islands? Why did Salamanders evolve into people (yes, I know they were transported here in a hidden story-bit by Uncle Fred when he took in those eggs) but what led to their cognitive evolution? Maybe I am not supposed to ask these questions. Or maybe I'm left to imagine the answers. The problem is nothing from the characters or the world made me grow any attachements. Only in the visual presentation. For example, you stop by the Salamander village for the first sign of Fred. You don't really talk to anyone other than Mad Maddie, and then you get their crystal from the elder. Off you go again to find Fred . There's simply not enough time to spend there to grow attachments to any character or place in a game where that should be the focus of its time. [h1]The Game is What it is[/h1] Lackluster despite all the care put into the game. If this game was a proof of concept to flesh out a future game, I would be happy because there is the potential for something amazing in its mechanics and for the game to bring out a charming narrative. The game, if it ever gets a sequel, needs to remember the golden rule for stories, "Show, Don't Tell", because then we might be able to immerse ourselves in wanting to find our uncle in a strange world rather being told to find him. (Maybe some harder obstacles/challenges too.) But above all for any narrative-focused titles in the future, the game doesn't need padding for the sake of artifical length; let us immerse ourselves in the world you create at our discretion as the player. Let us discover these worlds; let us discover these bonds we create; let us learn through our involvement why we care for something.