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-   -   The Witness (https://www.menewsha.com/forum/showthread.php?t=217571)

Pkero 01-28-2016 05:52 AM

The Witness
 
The Witness is a hard sell if you've not heard of it. It's the latest game by Jonathan Blow, creator of Braid, which is largely credited as being the game that kicked off the Indie game scene as we know it today.

It's hard to talk much about The Witness without spoiling it, but I'm going to try to give a general synopsis of why I find this game so gripping in hopes that some of you will pick it up and enjoy it. I feel like this is a game where JBlow went into my head, found the game I've always secretly wanted to play but never been able to articulate, and it was plopped right in front of me.

The Witness is something like a collection of mazes crossed with Myst. It's an adventure game that takes place on an island. This doesn't exactly sound like it's reinventing the wheel, but it never strips the player of any agency. It begins the player with puzzles like this:

http://i.imgur.com/kErZoZ2.jpg

You start by clicking at the circular node, then drag a path to the end of the maze. Simple.

The game then slowly introduces new elements into these puzzles, like dots that must be crossed over before going to the end. But it never TELLS you these thigns, it simply introduces them at a slow pace, or in large groups. It introduces new rules in various spots on the island, then begins combining them, and learning these rules is instrumental to solving puzzles all over the island.

It's a real thinker of a game. I've put two one-hour sessions into it, both that have ended in fatigue; not frustration. I feel like I have to really piece things together and learn what's going on, as opposed to the game just giving me an arbitrary puzzle and telling me I'm smart for solving it. It really makes you feel like you're working toward solving some greater puzzle.

If this sounds like something you're into, it's well worth the $40 price tag, even though it may seem steep for an indie game.

Since this thread may turn into a discussion, let's start by limiting to asking for help with individual puzzles and avoiding plot points until the game has been out for longer than a couple days. [:)]


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