Pony Island

 PC
User Score
7.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 260 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 161 out of 260
  2. Mixed: 62 out of 260
  3. Negative: 37 out of 260

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  1. Ostrypwns
    Apr 28, 2017
    10
    It is rarely that after finishing a game I rush to metacritic page to review it with a perfect score. It is also rare for me to finish even short games - and Pony Island definitely qualifies as such - in just one sitting. This game is an adventure unlike any other that made me feel as if indeed I was trapped inside some insidious machine that wouldn't let me out - not without a fight. ItIt is rarely that after finishing a game I rush to metacritic page to review it with a perfect score. It is also rare for me to finish even short games - and Pony Island definitely qualifies as such - in just one sitting. This game is an adventure unlike any other that made me feel as if indeed I was trapped inside some insidious machine that wouldn't let me out - not without a fight. It is also the best game I've ever played featuring satan as the main antagonist, and simply one of the best games I've ever played. It will make you think, it will make you laugh, it will make you ask "what is a video game?", and it does not overstay its welcome. So what is Pony Island? It is a favour that you owe to yourself. Get it and enjoy, you will be pleased (if you have at least half a brain that is).… Expand
  2. HuckingAwesome
    Jan 7, 2016
    10
    An incredible experience. Funny, creepy, baffling, and engrossing, Pony Island is an experience that everyone should have. I don't want to spoil everything, but at $5 on Steam, this is a steal. Give it a try, and give the Devil his due.
  3. CooperWJ
    Jan 13, 2016
    10
    Pony Island is such a hard game to make. It breaks the 4th wall repeatedly and its just such a weird feeling to the game i couldn't think straight after playing it ...... oh and PS:the trailer music is AWESOME DEFINITELY worth $5 on steam and 1-4 hours of your life
  4. nothingisart
    Mar 2, 2016
    10
    Best game what i'am playing,and best gameplay! OST too best. Very much puzzles, and best storyline!
    Please this is game by god! (and by satana XD) play this pls
  5. etc
    Jul 31, 2016
    10
    Amazing game, the game has a very dark story behind, this game broke completely the four wall, and the puzles are so simple and funny at the same moment.

    The complete review here: http://eltentaculochillon.com/analisis-pony-island/ (only in spanish)
  6. aditya1101
    Oct 5, 2017
    10
    This is a super clever game that goes about its satire of other video games in a way that is very over the top and ridiculous but also well thought out. I really enjoyed it and have played through it 3 times now.
  7. Archound
    Dec 13, 2021
    10
    I wanted to give 9/10, but I started to think about the drawbacks... and I've found none. One could not simply make this game better, it excels all its ambitions. Must play for computer games lovers (this title will become classic like Portal or Stanley Parable).
  8. FireSpark_
    Feb 21, 2018
    10
    Какая же это годнота, просто слов нет.
    Интересно с самого начало, не оторвать глаз. Очень понравилась вся эта идея с хаками и измениния уровней.
    Музыка в играх меня не всегда особо впечятлала, да и здесь я не вслушивался, однако она подходила под моменты. Головоломки не из самых трудных, но всё-же интересны. Сам же геймплей просто шикарен, красочно и красиво (разнообразие как таковое    Какая же это годнота, просто слов нет.
    Интересно с самого начало, не оторвать глаз. Очень понравилась вся эта идея с хаками и измениния уровней.
    Музыка в играх меня не всегда особо впечятлала, да и здесь я не вслушивался, однако она подходила под моменты. Головоломки не из самых трудных, но всё-же интересны. Сам же геймплей просто шикарен, красочно и красиво (разнообразие как таковое имеется). Так же разные варианты прохождения и не одна концовка.
    Сюжет (хоть и не полностью раскрыт гг но он шикарен) 8/10
    Музыка (на самом деле трудно мне оценивать, но..) 7/10
    Геймплей 10/10    … Expand
  9. alexpetal
    Apr 8, 2019
    10
    The game is extremely well done and is unique to every other game I've played. The fourth wall is broken multiple times and there are quite a few characters other than just ponies. The easter eggs were hard but fun to find. It manages to keep the game creepy and scares you without the need of jumpscares. I love the 'Show don't tell' with the puzzles and just the puzzles overall. The onlyThe game is extremely well done and is unique to every other game I've played. The fourth wall is broken multiple times and there are quite a few characters other than just ponies. The easter eggs were hard but fun to find. It manages to keep the game creepy and scares you without the need of jumpscares. I love the 'Show don't tell' with the puzzles and just the puzzles overall. The only problem I have with this game is near the end where it's shown that it was obviously made for Windows 7 and definitely needs an update so it can change depending on what OS you're using.… Expand
  10. brockcheese
    Jan 12, 2016
    9
    This game is amazing. It's disturbing engrossing and overall enjoyable. As long as you can get past the title, the rest of the game is a blast to play and sucks you right into the world with its weird characters.
  11. PaulVeto
    Jan 11, 2016
    9
    This game is a fantastic experience. Genuinely hilarious and charming, it takes you on an adventure through an arcade machine created by devil himself. Throughout the journey accompanied by a fantastic soundtrack, you uncover quite an interesting story that is both funny and terrifying. It's humorous, it's tense - and more than anything - it's clever. My only problem is that some of theThis game is a fantastic experience. Genuinely hilarious and charming, it takes you on an adventure through an arcade machine created by devil himself. Throughout the journey accompanied by a fantastic soundtrack, you uncover quite an interesting story that is both funny and terrifying. It's humorous, it's tense - and more than anything - it's clever. My only problem is that some of the puzzles are a bit too difficult, which felt a little annoying. Outside of that , Pony Island is a brilliant adventure to go through, boasting what I think is one heck of a climactic finale that will lodge in your memory for quite some time.… Expand
  12. zulx2009
    Jan 18, 2016
    9
    the best creative game I have ever seen
    An incredible experience.funny and puzzling
    best indie game of the year
    worth $5 on steam and 1-4 hours of your life
  13. sandman1234
    Mar 23, 2016
    9
    I think this game is very creative and original. If you are looking for something that will keep you entertained for 2-3 hours, this game is a good option. The "battle" vs the last boss is the best one I have ever seen, and the game is really cheap. Some parts of the game are not that interesting (mainly tha part when you move the pony), but overall, it´s a great game, and great value forI think this game is very creative and original. If you are looking for something that will keep you entertained for 2-3 hours, this game is a good option. The "battle" vs the last boss is the best one I have ever seen, and the game is really cheap. Some parts of the game are not that interesting (mainly tha part when you move the pony), but overall, it´s a great game, and great value for the money… Expand
  14. ILikeToDoThis
    Jul 3, 2016
    9
    The concept of this game is awesome, but look at something like watchdogs, great concept less than amazing execution. So how did this turn out...... absolutely fantastic. It starts slowly luring you into this creepy arcade world and then transforming into a chaotic self aware story with some of the best and most surprising moments I've had this generation. The one problem with this game isThe concept of this game is awesome, but look at something like watchdogs, great concept less than amazing execution. So how did this turn out...... absolutely fantastic. It starts slowly luring you into this creepy arcade world and then transforming into a chaotic self aware story with some of the best and most surprising moments I've had this generation. The one problem with this game is how YOU NEED TO GO IN BLIND knowing little to nothing about the story to have the best experience which can be very difficult nowadays.

    P.S. Long Live Beelzebub    … Expand
  15. Moromete
    Apr 30, 2020
    9
    The sheer shock of moving from one wild idea to another makes Pony Island one of the most surprising and engaging recent indie titles. Daniel Mullins knows how to break the fourth wall in increasingly entertaining and somewhat deranged ways and the soundtrack and visuals really help sell the entire experience. The final four or so of the game could have benefited from a little more careThe sheer shock of moving from one wild idea to another makes Pony Island one of the most surprising and engaging recent indie titles. Daniel Mullins knows how to break the fourth wall in increasingly entertaining and somewhat deranged ways and the soundtrack and visuals really help sell the entire experience. The final four or so of the game could have benefited from a little more care but overall this is one of the best game and meta experiences of 2016.… Expand
  16. drlowdon
    Nov 3, 2016
    8
    To be honest it’s hard to know where to begin when describing Pony Island but, suffice to say, it’s very clever and unlike anything else you’ll have ever played. In gameplay terms it largely consists of endless runner style segments and abstract puzzles but you really have to just try it for yourself to even you’re going to have any understanding of exactly how it works.
  17. Gwyndolin
    Jan 9, 2016
    8
    An indie game that's intelligent, atmospheric, immersive, and breaks the fourth wall.
    You have to be tolerant to some light puzzle solving and look past its visuals to get the best experience.
    It's around 4 hours long but it's littered with secrets for you to revisit and find. Keep playing until you get 100% achievement if you want to see all the content. It's only $5 on steam,    An indie game that's intelligent, atmospheric, immersive, and breaks the fourth wall.
    You have to be tolerant to some light puzzle solving and look past its visuals to get the best experience.

    It's around 4 hours long but it's littered with secrets for you to revisit and find.
    Keep playing until you get 100% achievement if you want to see all the content.

    It's only $5 on steam, totally worth it if you are up for some mindfuggery.    … Expand
  18. tremault
    Apr 5, 2017
    8
    There is a point where I said out loud "This game is freaking genius!". My brother can vouch for that.
    It is very clever.
    I have to be honest, the segments where you play the endless runner portion are sometimes a bit too challenging for my tastes, but I would just knuckle under and get through them because the rest of it is really rather clever. I won't spoil it by telling you why, but    There is a point where I said out loud "This game is freaking genius!". My brother can vouch for that.
    It is very clever.
    I have to be honest, the segments where you play the endless runner portion are sometimes a bit too challenging for my tastes, but I would just knuckle under and get through them because the rest of it is really rather clever.
    I won't spoil it by telling you why, but chances are you've already seen a ton of spoilers. If you haven't then don't read any more reviews and just play the game. It's better that way.    … Expand
  19. iseeall
    Mar 4, 2018
    8
    It's an unusual puzzle game where you attempt to escape from a bugged arcade machine with a stupid endless runner game which has an evil AI and won't let you leave. It's a unique experience, and basically every next puzzle is unlike those you've seen previously, so the game keeps asking you to think out-of-the-box all the time.

    Good: - nice retro feel from the late 80s - early 90s,    It's an unusual puzzle game where you attempt to escape from a bugged arcade machine with a stupid endless runner game which has an evil AI and won't let you leave. It's a unique experience, and basically every next puzzle is unlike those you've seen previously, so the game keeps asking you to think out-of-the-box all the time.

    Good:
    - nice retro feel from the late 80s - early 90s, achieved with graphics and sounds
    - unusual puzzles which don't repeat themselves
    - the humor of it all: you stumble in the dark trying to figure out what's happening and what this game is actually about. I suppose the author also puts a question here what makes a game a game, or what a game is? Since the game itself (Pony Island endless runner) is boring as hell, and fiddling around with hacks, bugs and options is the real game.

    So-so:
    - it's a puzzle, so, no replay value. And often you are stuck and just move around the screens doing random things, trying to guess what the author wanted from you this time. And since it all mostly doesn't make sense, it can get frustrating. But that's just what puzzles are about. If you aren't really into puzzles, you may drop it in the middle.

    Bad:
    - nothing really    … Expand
  20. RMDsilva
    Aug 28, 2017
    8
    Super unexpected, funny and old school gaming - the best is how it makes you play simple games and make you alert to whatever oddball might be coming at you next
    wish it was bigger, more complex, varied and a little deeper (:
  21. Gohenko
    Jan 17, 2016
    8
    Hi, fourth wall. Sorry, we're gonna have to break you. A lot.

    Nah, seriously, Pony Island's a pretty clever game and well worth the asking price of 5€. I don't really want to say anything else about it, because it's best experienced without knowing anything beforehand.
  22. njja02
    May 15, 2018
    8
    Simplistic game, but creative and interesting to play to the end. I would recommend it.
  23. GreenMachineG
    Jan 9, 2016
    8
    Pony Island is a hard game to describe without spoiling. It’s an “experience” game, one that simply must be experienced. It follows in the footsteps of games like The Stanley Parable, Her Story, and Undertale. At it's core Pony Island is a simple endless runner with hacking puzzles thrown in, but where the gameplay falls lackluster the story and atmosphere make up tenfold. Even withPony Island is a hard game to describe without spoiling. It’s an “experience” game, one that simply must be experienced. It follows in the footsteps of games like The Stanley Parable, Her Story, and Undertale. At it's core Pony Island is a simple endless runner with hacking puzzles thrown in, but where the gameplay falls lackluster the story and atmosphere make up tenfold. Even with sometimes repetitive gameplay the game can still really surprise you. If you have a soul to spare and like ponies give this game a shot.

    8.5/10    … Expand
  24. KirillMalevan
    Jan 25, 2016
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Есть свои моменты ну они везде но не везде ну есть свои минусы свои плюсы мне она понравилась и шутки про сатану которых там нет и тут нет запятых… Expand
  25. stop9091
    Nov 20, 2016
    8
    A very strange puzzle game.

    The narrative is a meta-game: the player plays the hacking of a videogame machine in order to escape it (!).

    The difficulty of the puzzles is low, but not trivial.

    It is very fascinating though. It will take only a few hours to complete, so it's definitely worth trying it.
  26. RagingPoet
    Nov 8, 2017
    8
    Pony island has very engaging mechanics when it comes to emulating buggy devil-possessed OS and puzzles are mostly nice. Arcade parts are not very fun, but short and easy, so you won't spent too much time doing them.
  27. pkody337
    Jul 16, 2023
    8
    It's a magical game about ponys you can play in one sitting. It goes on sale for a dollar often so I would definitely recommend it for that price.
  28. Klewer
    Aug 12, 2017
    7
    Definitely worth a look. Interesting concept of playing a game in a game which is corrupted. It's not a overly long game, maybe 2-3 hours out of it. At the right place it is worth a look as it's a quite different to the norm.
  29. TenchuuKhan
    Sep 24, 2016
    7
    Narrative awesome, gameplay.... nyah.

    You are trapped in a video game that you need to escape out of. The storytelling here is really fun and awkward. Gameplay dumbs down to clicking around menus to find a backdoor, then you hack it. That however is pretty much only 3 things: 1 - sidescroll a unicorn firing lasers evading obstacles and fighting some enemies. (The sort of sidescroller    Narrative awesome, gameplay.... nyah.

    You are trapped in a video game that you need to escape out of. The storytelling here is really fun and awkward.
    Gameplay dumbs down to clicking around menus to find a backdoor, then you hack it.
    That however is pretty much only 3 things:
    1 - sidescroll a unicorn firing lasers evading obstacles and fighting some enemies. (The sort of sidescroller that automoves)
    2 - you need to get a key into a hole. For this you have several columns and redirect functions to get the key in there
    3 - variant of 2 just that ponies fall down

    Game time: 3-4 hours    … Expand
  30. Jovuto
    Feb 27, 2016
    7
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Gameplay - 8/10

    I find it really interesting how Pony Island somehow turns navigating a fictional OS into a game and how it can take many different variations on the same concept to keep things refreshing. Also the meta moments towards the end of the game genuinely tricked me and is miles smarter than any of the meta tricks you'll see in any other game (Undertale comes to mind even though that game is great). However, some repeating ideas can become stale but don't necessarily overstay their welcome as this is a relatively short game.

    Controls - 10/10

    Literally nothing to complain about.

    Aesthetic - 6/10

    I get that this is meant to have a lo-fi look to it but I feel like at least some more effort could be put into the look of the game, especially the world outside of Pony Island... it looks very "Unity"ish.

    Sound and Music - 4/10

    This game has some pretty decent music but, because all music and sound effects were made by outside sources, it can sound very "stock" at a lot of moments.

    User Experience/Tutorials - 9/10

    Practically no tutorials are needed and Pony Island knows this. I mean... do you really need a tutorial for navigating menus? Also, despite how messy the look of the game is (not a criticism), the game manages to be really clear with how things work. There were a few times where I got stuck but apart from that this game has great UX.

    Story - 6/10

    This game leaves so much to the imagination and I mean that in a good way. I feel like there's going to be a bunch of fan theories on what actually happens at the end. A few complaints that I have is that the game feels too desperate to be "copypasta"-like and it can be jarring at times and also it leaves too much to the imagination at the end. The ending just kind of feels like a lazy cop-out (but no where near as bad as The Witness's ending).

    Price - 8/10

    I feel like £4 is a pretty good price tag although I would prefer it if it was just a little but cheaper, along the lines of £3 would be nice. I completed the game in about 2 and a half hours and it has replayability but I just didn't feel like returning to this game.

    Conclusion -

    Pony Island is a solid game with a unique experience. It however lacks polish and a fully realized story. If you want to play something interesting and you have a little bit of money to waste, I'd say go ahead and buy Pony Island... it's great.

    Overall - 7/10    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

23
#23 Best PC Game of 2016
71
#71 Most Discussed PC Game of 2016
100
#100 Most Shared PC Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 29 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 29
  3. Negative: 0 out of 29
  1. games(TM)
    Apr 14, 2016
    70
    Clever, unique, inventive but brief and repetitive. [Issue#172, p.91]
    Read full review
  2. Pelit (Finland)
    Apr 12, 2016
    84
    Wretched 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]
  3. CD-Action
    Mar 30, 2016
    80
    A curious experiment that is really worth taking part in. [03/2016, p.69]
See all critic reviews »