Black The Fall

A unique premise and heavy interplay of gameplay and narrative elevates Black The Fall above its rather stock standard game mechanics.

Black the Fall is a good Limbo-like game, but with less personality than his muse.

Black The Fall isn’t exactly revolutionary when it comes to the world of atmospheric platformers, but it still excels in what it sets out to do. It paints a frightening image of a land deep in the grip of Communism back in the day, but never sacrifices enjoyment in order to get its message out. The visual style is striking and eye-catching, the puzzles are well-crafted and put up a perfect challenge, and everything controls almost perfectly. It’s an impressive piece of work with a lot of heart put into it, and the end result is a brutal but beautiful bit of platforming that comes highly recommended. Indeed, it did end up having the same quality as its peers after all, and can proudly stand beside them.

Black The Fall is a rarity, something unexpected for its ability of mixing a setting inspired by the true history of Romania before the fall of the communist regime and the mechanics of a traditional puzzle-platform. The result is crippled by some flaws, but Sand Sailor Studio has created a nice alternative to the Limbo/Inside subgenre.

In general, Black the Fall has conquered us, above all by the harshness of its setting and its denunciation of the total regimes and the control of modern citizens / consumers. An excellent recreation of the futuristic myth of Orwell and a wake-up call so that we do not let ourselves be controlled by the Big Brother. Deep, entertaining and technically very surprising.

Tense and inventive, Black the Fall is great until the late-game difficulty erodes its atmosphere. [Sept 2017, p.75]

Impressive treatment of the Romanian revolution in 1989, with minor weaknesses in the field of game mechanics.

While most players will likely see where its influences lay, the dystopian world of Black The Fall succeeds on many occasions in creating a distinctly disquieting atmosphere, while a trial-and-error-based puzzle design offers just enough interactivity to keep its spooky narrative kicking.

If you like Limbo and Inside, do not miss Black the Fall. It does feel like a budget clone of Inside sometimes, but then again, there are not many games in this vein. Plus, you get to learn a little bit of history.

More fine-tuning would have led to a higher score and a little less frustrating moments wouldn’t have been bad either, but after all the game makes a positive impression.

Great logical platformer strength is mainly on delightfully drawn distressful atmosphere and fine visuals. While gameplay is not completely spotless, a number of interestingly designed puzzles makes the game a pleasant thing for anyone who likes to think.

A bleak meditation on the idea that the most one can do in such difficult times is to keep your head down, and keep moving. [Sept 2017, p.116]

Black the Fall is a clever and ingenious adventure puzzle game with a dark and oppressive atmosphere, but we miss a better and more original puzzle design.

I enjoyed my time with Black the Fall because I am a fan of these kinds of atmospheric 2D puzzle platformers that tackle heavy themes.

It is sometimes even able to shine with its own light, succeeding in refreshing the sensations generated by a genre that in recent years has known too many emulsions and a few really original works.

Through the stylishly muted visuals and the trappings of a Communist state on the brink of collapse, Black The Fall challenges you to escape its series of perilous puzzles in a bid for freedom from oppression. Though it will live in the shadows of its critically acclaimed peers and has a few rough edges, Black The Fall is a great addition to the puzzle platformer genre.

Black The Fall has the makings of a deep and emotional retelling of life under a totalitarian communist regime. The literally dark, oppressive, and intimidating imagery combines with the music, sound effects, and mechanics to narrate scenes without using a single word, and that alone has to be respected.

Black The Fall is a pretty good allusion to the crimes of the communist regime in Romania. The game has a rich atmosphere, but there are also some serious shortcomings.

It all comes down to a game that, while not terrible, isn’t going to set the world on fire. We won’t be seeing any Black The Fall clones in the next few months.

Though Black deserves credit for adding new puzzle mechanics along the way, it could’ve easily seen its 6-8 hour runtime chopped in half and still gotten its message across.

Black the Fall is... okay. Not the worst atmospheric puzzle-adventure out there, but also very far from the top steps of the podium. A strong, oppressive atmosphere can get you places, but a game of this kind still needs a good plot, and some gameplay mechanics that are more than decent.