A Little To The Left

It is not an easy task for a puzzle game to offer a lot of puzzles that stays true to its theme and make most of them enjoyable and rational. A Little to the Left achieves this.

A Little to the Left is a family-friendly puzzler that’s great in short bursts. It doesn’t have a whole lot of content at the moment, but still provides a few hours of relaxing brain teasers to solve.

In all its tricks, turns and trials to overcome, A Little to the Left succeeds on the basis of its charming and relatable premise on the obsessive nature of order and sequence. Messes to tidy up, objects to arrange and patterns to recognize, or perhaps be led astray in assuming there’s one to even recognize. Max Inferno already establish a quaint and attractive presentation here, but it’s thanks to the execution of its main puzzles — with a few added mechanics and incentives to replay puzzles on top — where A Little to the Left finds that added lift to help bolster its appeal. The game’s key means of communication doesn’t always work in its favor and that cozy, laid-back approach can be an occasional annoyance just as it can be a helpful support. Even so, a game that in many ways strikes right at the heart of puzzle game mentality and that desire to find order amid the chaos. Proof that A Little to the Left with all its color and upbeat vibrancy, more importantly, has the wit and the know-how to make its challenge something you’ll take great pride in completing.

A Little to the Left isn't for fans of fast paced action, but if you need some cosy puzzles on these cold winter nights then it has you covered.

A Little to the Left is just delightful. And that’s all that really needs to be said about it.

A pleasant and, at times, playful soundtrack, fun visual effects, and the occasional light interference of a mischievous cat add to an overall charming package. A Little to the Left may have left me scratching my head in confusion at times, but more often, it left me pleased and content with the neatly arranged spaces I created.

A Little to the Left is a tidy up-meets-zen mood experience capable of putting at peace the most troubled of hearts. Delicate colours and relaxing music help concentrate on the one objective of the game: to reorganize both the outside and the inside of ourselves. The occasional block in the resolution of puzzles can be solved by using the Let It Be feature or looking at the solution on the note pad: these are two perfect options to guarantee an impeccable fluidity to the experience and to give the players an array of possibilities when facing apparently insurmountable situations.

A Little to the Left has quaint, cosy design married with a multitude of gratifying puzzles and a mischievous cat. If you have an eye for organisation and live for the order of the everyday things in life, this’ll tick your boxes.

A Little to the Left might be this year's most plesant game thanks to its cathartic organization puzzles.

If last year’s Unpacking has left you craving more mess to mess with, then A Little to the Left is an obvious next port of call. We’re witnessing the birth of a new genre, the tidy ’em up. Judging by how expertly these games tap into the innate human desire for order, expect many more examples to follow.

A Little to the Left is a fun puzzle game for all ages. The depth and variety of puzzle is good to see, with extra replayability allowing certain puzzles to shine. A daily puzzle delivered to each player provides a unique touch. While the game is great, there aren’t a lot of accessibility options such as a colour-blind mode or arachnophobia filter. However, the nature of the game is still easily approachable with beautifully stylised art and music bringing great pleasure. A Little to the Left is pure wholesome and cozy fun.

Even as frustrating as some of A Little to the Left‘s more obscure puzzles can be, we still find ourselves going back to it, picking up a Daily Tidy or trying to figure out those last few solutions. Yes, there’s a big difference between the best and the worst puzzles here, but really, it doesn’t matter: you’ll revel in the good, and you’ll feel challenged by the ones whose solutions elude you. Coming from a two-person design studio, A Little to the Left is a breath of fresh air and exactly the sort of wholesome game we need more of.

A Little to the Left manages to offer genuine challenge, without losing its relaxing, no-pressure atmosphere. Despite being a little too demanding with the nitty-gritty of some solutions, Max Inferno’s debut is a warm, charming triumph.

A Little to the Left is a game that I ultimately ended up respecting more than I actually enjoyed it. I can absolutely see how this is going to be a slam dunk for many puzzle solvers out there, but the lack of clear solutions for some of the puzzles simply wasn't up my alley. Luckily I was able to skip or look up the answer for the content I didn't enjoy, and the less abstract and more organizational-styled puzzled did give me that endorphin hit when everything was finally neat and tidy.

A Little to the Left perfectly captures the cosy and softcore vibes you’d want from a game primarily about the cute-ification of everyday cleaning tasks, with great approachability options and puzzle variety to boot. But its simplicity may leave you feeling a bit listless in the end.

A Little to the Left is another great indie game from Day of the Devs. With addictive puzzles and cozy charm, I really look forward to the Nintendo Switch release to play snuggled up in bed.

The game's simple nature binds a Little to the Left, but it achieves its aims very well. Even when testing your brain with a puzzle, it is a calming game. It offers various puzzles, some with multiple solutions, a daily puzzle to keep coming back to, and a little amusing narrative in the background that all cat owners will find familiar. This is a game I've enjoyed, and I can find myself returning to it, offering an excellent refresher and palate cleanser.

A Little to the Left is a cozy puzzle game which is a true gem to see, even if some puzzle are way more brilliant than others.

A Little to the Left is a good puzzle game to play when you need to take a moment to sort things out. It lets you take a moment to calmly organize things, perhaps tidying up your thoughts. I do wish its levels felt a bit more balanced. There are absolutely tasks that feel like rote behavior, as well as a few puzzles with solutions that might not seem to make sense. At least there’s always the option to “let it be” and move on.

A Little to the Left is a charming and refreshingly cosy puzzle game to sink into. From the tone of the puzzles to the mischievous intrusions of a fluffy white cat, it's a simple delight, only let down by a few more obscure puzzles and fussy controls for certain object interactions.

Every so often the game drifts into trial and error, which takes a little away from the mindful atmosphere. After all, there's far less satisfaction to be found when the player isn't using their own logic.

Playful touches abound. [Issue#379, p.120]