cat notebook
Like a walk through a museum, you move through art and the art moves you. Nobody can tell you how it should make you feel. But maybe by the end of the experience, the ordeal, you’ll leave the museum a stronger person. That is the beauty of Cat Notebook; there is no wrong way to play, no wrong way to go. At the end of it all is an audiovisual experience that changes you for the better, or for the worse. For those seeking deep introspection, you’ve come to the right place.
– Real player with 71.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Abstract Exploration Games.
I’m not sure how to approach reviewing this game(?), so I suppose I’ll just see how my experience stacks up to the list of features in the description.
“• explore a cat notebook”
I definitely did that, so, check that one off.
“• many unique illustrations to look at and songs to listen to”
To be precise, there are 97 unique illustrations, and 97 songs to go along with each one. Accurate enough so far.
“• do cat-like things”
You can move around. You can meow, sleep, and sit. Seems pretty cat-like.
– Real player with 10.3 hrs in game
ETHEREAL
ETHEREAL is a beautiful puzzle game where you have to move through an abstract maze of colorful geometrical shapes. The challenge is to get through the maze to collect all colored pairs of dots. All puzzles are carefully designed and it was great fun to solve each level. I recommend using a controller, not the keyboard.
My only gripe with the game is that although it introduces new game mechanics one by one, it was on several occasions completely unclear to me what the new mechanic was and I only stumbled upon the new mechanic by accident after much trial and error. Perhaps finding this out the hard way out is supposed to be part of the fun of solving the puzzles, but I would have appreciated it if each new mechanic was introduced in a clear manner at the start of each level, or alternatively if there was an optional introductory tutorial level. However, I still wholeheartedly recommend ETHERAL to anyone who likes puzzle games.
– Real player with 10.0 hrs in game
ETHEREAL 是一款极简风格的解谜游戏，颇具创意。听说是两个人的小作坊做出来的，也太强了叭，wsl。虽然目前可能关卡少了一点，但是依然非常推荐。
游戏简介
游戏的画面和操作都很简洁，虽然我刚开始玩的时候有点懵，因为完全没有任何说明或者提示，不过应该很容易摸索。玩家控制一个属螃蟹的只能水平移动的球，地图中横向的矩形条可以作为桥梁让球上下穿过，通过完成谜题，可以进入一个又一个不同的世界。
优秀的谜题和意境营造
如前面所说，游戏内的操作实际上是相当简单的，你只需要方向键和空格即可，但是每个关卡谜题的设计十分吸引人，不如说能够用这样简单的游戏方式创造出一个这样惊艳的谜题世界实属不易。关卡逐渐深入的过程中，还会有一些全新的具有特殊功能的区块出现，让简单的操作更加灵活多变，既增加了谜题的难度，又让人感到乐趣丛生。作为一个解谜游戏，它的加分项也不显逊色，无论是音效、气氛营造，还是美学设计，都堪称优秀，总而言之这是一款不可多得的优秀解谜游戏。
瑕疵
游戏才刚出不久，有一些问题难免。我觉得，现阶段主要的不足主要是以下两点。第一点就是关卡数偏少，可能需要后续的更新；第二点就是游戏中地图外有secret，我认为这是很好的设定，不过现在找到secret之后似乎并没有什么特殊的反应，就只有一个过场动画。
– Real player with 9.9 hrs in game
Elbub
This game may look very zen on the outside.
When you start playing you might feel like you’re inside a mysterious bubbley type world-
Then you start playing…
You realize you need to be global elite to aim to head towards the bubbles.
Or an experienced austronaut working outside the hubble/space station.
Then you realize you have to follow the ribbon to finish the game xD
Took me 10min to realize that :)
Overall good game, just hard to navigate at the 1st time i guess ;)
It has a nice soundtrack too.
– Real player with 9.3 hrs in game
Read More: Best Abstract Casual Games.
This thing is weird. Really.
The first thing we see launching the game is a menu written in a fancy font related to being a bubble among skies. I don’t mind the font, but the choice of colors is terrible and it looks really bad.
The game itself is playing with gravity by attracting yourself to nearby bubbles in a weird world. There is only sky, a very weird blob-like construction, some strings that we should follow, bubbles of course. And nothing more. It’s psychodelic. Even more when we hit something. And even even more when we click right mouse button by accident.
– Real player with 4.0 hrs in game
Hylics
Fans of Lisa and Undertale, rejoice. Hylics is one of the most greatest JRPG influenced games ever created. A masterpiece that will be talked about for generations to come
Rarely and every couple of years, in the indie gaming scene tends to appears a new creator whose name is destined to be inmortal and referenced in future articles for decades to come. A creator that based in the originality and unbelievable degree of talent showed in his first major commercial attempt, will be cited by future designers, writers and artists as a major influence.
– Real player with 8.9 hrs in game
Hylics is an awesome, super cheap, underrated light RPG. It’s short but not too short, oozing with style, and actually has some very deep and intriguing gameplay mechanics in-lieu of not having an experience point/leveling system. Not needing to get into battles for levels doesn’t mean this game is easy, as there are some very tricky encounters, it just means you have to think and be pretty strategic depending on how dirty the enemy likes to fight.
As for the story, there intentionally isn’t much of one since it’s very abstract, clearly. From what I can tell, you play as a bored farmer who rolls into town, meets up with an archaeologist in search of paper cups, and you set forth to journey finding more paper cups,
! running into a bug shaman who wants to murder livestock and a retired knight who travels with you to kill things. A corrupt and paranoid king assumes you’re journeying to kill him, which is pretty self-fulfilling since he’s antagonistic towards you. Pretty great, honestly.
– Real player with 6.0 hrs in game
FOTONICA
FOTONICA is an adrenaline rush, at the very least. A high speed running game with one button as the sum total of a player’s control. Don’t think of that as a limitation. Quite the opposite. Since this is first and foremost a sensory experience type of game, deriving much from little, it would be unfortunate if even the smallest part of a player’s attention were taken from the screen.
The player, as “runner”, travels very minimalistic landscapes. Some are vaguely identifiable, such as rooms in a sort of building. (The more identifiable the terrain, the faster landscapes seem to go by as the eye/brain connection struggles for context.) The runner also jumps, but I hesitate to call this a platformer. It does have platformer characteristics, such as the pink dots one attempts to acquire by contact. And the varying size and levels of platforms. Some game levels, in fact, are almost entirely platforms. These are generally the more difficult; as players struggle to attain the secondary goal, SPEED.
– Real player with 24.1 hrs in game
FOTONICA is a first-person platforming/running game developed by Santa Ragione. Become one with the speed of sound while you try to survive each level on every difficulty and try to beat your previous highscore.
| | Poor | Bad | Average | Good | Superb | Explanation |
| Design & Visuals | | | |
X
| | Minimalistic graphics for a minimalistic game, uniquely designed levels |
– Real player with 23.7 hrs in game
Goscurry
Goscurry is one hell of a difficult game, a game so difficult you even have to accept a warning at the beginning agreeing to submit yourself to the oncoming challenge.
As hopeless as that may seem the game constantly conveys to you one simple uplifting message; “Don’t Panic”. This is much easier said than done as panic is your worst enemy in Goscurry, the first sign of hesitation being your instant downfall. Flashing texts across the rooftops of a slick retrofuture city of minimalistic neon buildings bearing distracting, sometimes encouraging messages and what seem to be references to The Beatles (“You Are ‘Not’ the Walrus”) and Pink Floyd (“Crazy Diamond”).
– Real player with 13.2 hrs in game
It’s quite a long review, so don’t read if you don’t want an in-depth advice, eventually with spoilers inside.
A long time ago, I discovered real speed in video games, while playing F-Zero GX on Gamecube. Since I’m more a PC guy now, I don’t have it anymore ; so I always pay attention to games which could be my new F-Zero.
I had this in mind somewhere when I bought Goscurry, and definitely, it doesn’t fit in the square F-Zero left empty.
But it’s a f*ckin' awesome game ! The kind of game which seems to be desperately slow and easy. And then you fall. And then you die. And no more than 8 seconds were necessary to terminate yourself ! Wtf man, wtf.
– Real player with 11.4 hrs in game
Quell Memento
I’ll be honest, after Quell and Quell Reflect I felt a little burnt out and didn’t have high hopes. But this game immediately reinvigorated my interest in the series and is easly the best installment so far.
While the core gameplay remains the same, this game features a new look, from the reworked and much improved menus to the various tilesets. The amount of content included has significantly expanded. Not only are there a lot more regular levels, the developers also added 24 hidden levels. There are dozens of new mechanics which gradually introduce a diversity so far unseen in the series. Levels never feel same-y or boring due to various new blocks, bubbles, mechanics and goals.
– Real player with 17.6 hrs in game
my original review for quell, which also works for quell: reflect, the second game, can be read here , but memento mixed things up a little. at its core it’s still more of the same, but the block lighting mechanic alone adds enough variety and extra challenge and there are other new things as well. instead of 84+4 levels, now there are 144 plus 24 hidden ones, and more of a story than in the previous games, but it’s still not really worth mentioning.
– Real player with 13.7 hrs in game
Soft Body
If you love games that sound amazing and feel good to play, this is probably your game of the year. It’s a bullet hell like no other; a game where you don’t shoot your enemies but try to get close enough to touch them without getting shot. And you do it by controlling two snakes at once, one with each hand.
Getting good at Soft Body is like a form of meditation. As you start to get better at it, you stop focusing on controlling one snake at a time, and you wind up controlling both simultaneously, not looking at either one. Then the game starts to throw challenges at you where you need to be moving and dodging and attacking with both of them at once.
– Real player with 144.9 hrs in game
This game is so damn good. The level design and controls are as smooth as an ice cold glass of Dr. Pepper on a summer day. It’s not meant to be an easy game, and the difficulty curve of Soft Game leaves something to be desired, but Hard Game is definitely where Soft Body shines. Tasks that are infuriatingly difficult at first eventually lighten up, only to be stacked on top of one another in rapid succession. There’s no feeling better than grinding out later-game levels and then returning to earlier ones just to find that you’ve become a LITERAL GOD all of a sudden. Add on to that the Halloween levels featuring not a single bullets, and multiple secrets I still haven’t even discovered the meaning of yet, and you’ve got yourself a game that’s worth far more than its asking price. 100% recommended buy.
– Real player with 66.1 hrs in game
Circa Infinity
Immaculate.
In nearly every aspect, Circa Infinity has vastly exceeded my expectations, and sits well near the top of my list of most intelligently designed games I have ever played. A minimalist, puzzle platformer is the last game I would expect to enjoy this immensely amongst a sea of indie titles. I consider the genre to be the equivalent of the FPS of the indie scene: a sort of formulaic attempt to tread ground into the industry, but CI is perhaps the most exhilarating take on a tired template in every aspect of its design. It will consistently challenge your thinking while simultaneously presenting you every tool necessary to complete and appreciate the pieces which meld this wonderful game.
– Real player with 41.2 hrs in game
Circa Infinity (& Affinity). What a game.
Circa Infinity is a puzzle mode featuring 5 worlds. As you progress, you will encounter worlds that introduce new game concepts, especially in worlds 4 & 5. If you aim for completion, I advise you to take your time and carefully analyze the movement patterns. However, if you’re an achievement hunter (like me), perfect your hand-eye coordination, your visual memory layout of the levels, and your commitment into seeing this through to the end. I didn’t receive a proper warning, so I’ll warn you now: if you lack any of the three points I’ve listed above, DON’T go for Circa Infinity achievements.
– Real player with 28.1 hrs in game
Quell Reflect
80 / 100
Quell Your Puzzle Addiction? (A Quell Series review)
Slide, slide.. slide away many enjoyable hours being challenged by some deceptively well designed, compact puzzles in the Quell Series. Your goal is to collect all the Pearls in the minimum number of moves & as a bonus, locate the hidden jewel found on each level. Simple right? Well the “Quells” can be deceiving .. as you will quickly find out.
Including the original Quell & the sequels, Quell Reflect & Quell Memento, each instalment are essentially clones the previous, introducing more & more varied puzzle elements to the rule set, increasing the complexity. Personally, I found the puzzle difficulty to vary considerably, with some perfect puzzle runs only taking a couple tries where others had me truly stumped for ages just trying to complete (let alone perfect)!
– Real player with 15.2 hrs in game
The second instalment in the Quell series, Quell Reflect, builds upon the first game’s framework and enhances the gameplay with new puzzle mechanics. Its look and feel isn’t quite as melancholic but still nostalgic and relaxing in the same way. Aside from the steeper difficulty curve in comparison to its predecessor, everything else is in the same vein.
A few new mechanics, most notably the ability to control multiple drops in one level and the introduction of momentum-based moves, shake up the familiar puzzle gameplay. However, a handful of levels with up to 42 maximum moves to perfect are strewn into later sections in the game and can be tough nuts to crack. There’s an ingame credit system that may be used to view the solution but working it out yourself without brute forcing it takes a considerable amount of time and dedication.
– Real player with 9.9 hrs in game