Rating: 7.5/10

Nice lil indie, very much in the mold of something like Oxenfree where the majority of the gameplay is just reading dialogue and occasionally picking options. Which I happen to love! It does mix in a bit of platforming too but nothing crazy

I really liked the dialogue in this, obviously what a game like this hinges on and it definitely was the strong point. It had a lot of quirky yet somewhat naturalistic dialogue but now and then would hit you with some moments of profundity out of nowhere

Art direction and music were really great

There was a sequence in this that unironically was the most suspenseful I've played through in a game in some time. And that's WITH the relative lack of gameplay! Just the way they pan the camera, use of lighting, dialogue, etc is so well done, throughout the game really but particularly in that part. Really impressive direction

As for the negatives...the story itself is where the game does falter a bit, it had an intriguing enough setup but never quite came together by the end. Didn't LOVE the resolution to the mysteries it set up, it did feel a bit incongruous to what the rest of the game was about. Almost felt forced in there to keep things more enticing rather than just being based on relationships? But don't think it was entirely needed. Could've just let the mystery be tbh

Rating: 4/10

Meh! Whatever!

I was expecting a silly little time-waster and what I got was more of a boring little time-waster. The levels I did play pretty much felt like a mini-golf flash game where you're...hitting something ~random~ at the hole instead of a golf ball! WOOOOOOAH

Skipping it!

Rating: 6.5/10

The simplest way I can explain it is it's a puzzle game made for the right side of your brain, I can't say I ever played anything quite like it. I felt like I wasn't really using reasoning or logic to solve most of the puzzles but moreso intuition. The creativity involved in the puzzle design is pretty mindblowing at times, especially considering the entire game is confined to four squares that you're continually shifting around

It's a game I think I APPRECIATED more than enjoyed though. Like it's something that I'd definitely recommend to someone even if I didn't LOVE it, just because of how unique it is

Rating: 7/10

Even if it had nothing else to offer, this game gets props for its incredibly unique mechanics alone. Basically, the main conceit of the game is that your actions are almost entirely controlled via blinks (like, your actual blinks, which it tracks through your webcam). Sometimes blinking functions like a mouse click where you're purposefully doing it to interact with something, while other times it'll be something to avoid (e.g. you'll be drifting through a memory and straining to keep your eyes open just a little longer so you don't miss anything, because one blink will end it). It basically feels like an alternative version of VR, and it's an incredibly unique/creative hook for the game. Felt VERY immersive at times.

And on top of that! The story is decent and complements the mechanics well. Even though you're frequently skipping through bits and pieces of the game from errant blinks, the story always manages to flow very smoothly and it just feels like part of the experience - it never feels like you're missing anything crucial.

The biggest knock I can give against it is...this game really could've been a masterpiece. There was SO much potential with the mechanics they set up and I feel like there was definitely a fair amount they left untapped, and in the end it's "just" a good game. While I did appreciate how concise it was (it took like under 2 hours to complete) I do feel like this could've been fleshed out a bit more.

mild spoilers

+

I was really expecting the game, after the first flashback, to be a full life flashing before your eyes and the main idea being that you're constantly fighting against blinking in order to soak up as much of your life as you can. Basically a meditation on how fleeting life is and how the years go by in the...blink of an eye! THAT game could've been a masterpiece. There were some elements like that in the actual game, but it definitely didn't seem to be the focus. One thing I really did like though is the "close your eyes" mechanic they introduced near the end. That was p beautiful and added to the immersion even moreso than the blinking. Such a cool idea to make that an actual part of the game to FORCE you to soak in the moment and block out external stimuli (while also putting yourself into the protagonist's shoes)

Rating: 7/10

Played episode 1 of this yeeears ago and remember finding it very underwhelming at the time. Liked it a lot more this time around! Probably helped that I've been deprived of a new Telltale for so long. Definitely was lower tier for the studio, but I've yet to play a Telltale game I haven't enjoyed.

Gonna keep my actual thoughts/choices to its thread

Abandoned

speaking of which! This game seemed FINE but apparently is like 10+ hours and I def wasn't enjoying it enough to put more time in. It was like a very generic noir but with a cast of Bojack-esque talking animals, didn't seem that special. Not sure why it had such high reviews on Steam tbh. PASS!