- Publisher: Daniel Mullins Games
- Release Date: Jan 4, 2016
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
- Unscored
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Feb 5, 2016Do not let the screenshots turn you away. Pony Island is a genuinely smart game which manages to surprise you all the way through its short running time. "One trick pony" this is not.
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Jan 10, 2016Pony Island messes with players in unexpected ways that stuck with me for days. It took a number of unexpected turns that caught me off guard and was constantly filling me with a sense of inescapable unease. It wasn't on my radar at all before it released, but at under $5 it's a wonderful use of two hours of your life...So long as you like the idea of Satan trying to steal your soul post purchase.
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Jan 8, 2016I can say one thing with confidence, however. I’ve said it already. I’ll say it again. Pony Island is bloody genius.
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Jan 22, 2016Sharp, multilayered satire that remembers to be a game even as it makes fun of us for playing.
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Jan 21, 2016Pony Island is a fascinating game that really toys with player expectations and consistently surprises and amazes. A game like this, especially in this day and age, is as rare as finding a dodo’s egg – it’s a genuine treasure. Despite its woolly messaging and slightly repetitive gameplay mechanics Pony Island is a truly unique experience like no other.
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Jan 21, 2016It's a bit crazy and over the top, and also something really different from your average videogame. Considering the price, if you're involved in the indie side of things, this might be the perfect choice for you.
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Jan 19, 2016I greatly enjoyed the two or so hours it took me to play through Pony Island. This is a game that delights in toying with your expectations and in breaking the fourth wall, in revealing its sinister yet playful world, and in building up a compelling antagonist and telling an ambiguous story. Pony Island is about as punk rock as they come.
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Jan 19, 2016Games have taught us to expect the expected, but Pony Island throws the rulebook out the window in this puzzle-cum-runner title where you must escape Satan's clutches.
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Jan 15, 2016While Pony Island is a short game —we clocked in at around two hours for a playthrough— it is an achievement. Very quickly, Pony Island’s subtle ominousness becomes a journey into utterly fun madness.
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Jan 11, 2016This is not a game about Ponies. This is a bizarre puzzle game that consistently surprises the player and is definitely worth your money. We don’t want to spoil anything, just try it: it’s ridiculously brilliant.
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Jan 7, 2016A fantastically clever deconstruction of video games and the people that play them, as well as a hugely entertaining action puzzler that’s not really about ponies.
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Jan 7, 2016Part puzzle game, part retro experience, part mindfuck, I haven't played anything as engaging and interesting as Pony Island in a long time.
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Jan 15, 2016This is a disturbing trip into the inside of a videogame, a new interpretation of the era of arcade gaming machine. The last time a game played with the player that much and tried to confuse him, was Eternal Darkness. You gotta love this.
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Games Master UKMar 19, 2016Short, cheap, and unbelievably clever. Pony Island is no less than the first great indie game of 2016. [March 2016, p.75]
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Jan 29, 2016Due to the fact that Pony Island only asks a minor investment in terms of both time and price point ($5), but even more so because it's just so much fun, it falls under "must-play" territory and provides a vastly different experience from other modern-day indies.
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Jan 29, 2016It’s been a long time since we last saw a truly unique game from the indie scene. Pony Island fills this gap with an utterly engrossing game. Our trip into the hellish “innards” of an arcade cabinet is smartly designed.
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Jan 23, 2016For only five euros you can buy Pony Island, an adventure that will keep you stuck to your PC for about four hours. That is all you need to know about Pony Island.
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Jan 21, 2016The game created by Daniel Mullins is one of the most alienating experiences ever made. Dark tones, black humour and meta-references are supported by interesting hacking puzzles that needs inductive reasoning. Really surprising.
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Jan 18, 2016Annoy yourself with this game. The concept is better than the gameplay, but that's okay. It is awesome to go on an adventure in this misleading indie title. Totally worth your time.
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Jan 6, 2016Pony Island is a small game that will never manage to get the audience of an AAA release but in many ways, this game is more engaging than plenty of the big launches of last fall because it features some truly innovative moments and can deliver a narrative that it's disturbing and interesting to the end.
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Pelit (Finland)Apr 12, 2016Wretched Devil itself has slithered inside an arcade machine and tenderly shackles the player inside it. Metafictional loop of satanistic ponies wittily dance through an evening it lasts. [Apr 2016]
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Jan 21, 2016Pony Island is a very entertaining experience full of constant surprises and funny things.
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CD-ActionMar 30, 2016A curious experiment that is really worth taking part in. [03/2016, p.69]
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Feb 1, 2016Clever and surprising. Pony Island is a great puzzle game with an amazing capacity to let you without words.
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Jan 14, 2016Original and controversial, it's one of those games you'll either love or hate. We think it's something fresh and unique, but be warned: it's not a game for everyone.
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Jan 13, 2016Pony Island is an incredibly clever puzzle-horror game that manages to immerse you in a screwed up world of ponies, code, and demonic machinations.
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Jan 29, 2016An experimental and novel experience with some memorable surprises.
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Jan 24, 2016Pony Island is a unique, weird, impossible-to-describe little game. It's clever, often surprising and with tons of personality, but its mechanics can prove a bit repetitive.
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Apr 14, 2016Clever, unique, inventive but brief and repetitive. [Issue#172, p.91]
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| This publication has not posted a final review score yet. | |
| These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation. | |
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Jan 5, 2016This is such a treat, and I fear that the (perfect) name will mean too many people look past it. I love that it’s not mocking anything in particular when it apes early 90s arcade games, and yet feels like it’s mocking the entire universe at the same time. I love that it feels cruel, yet I couldn’t make a good argument to justify why, especially when half your time is spent jumping about a magic pony. So trust me, pick this one up.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 161 out of 260
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Mixed: 62 out of 260
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Negative: 37 out of 260
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Jan 11, 2016
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Jan 7, 2016
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Jan 15, 2016