The Witness

 PlayStation 4
User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 853 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 557 out of 853
  2. Mixed: 148 out of 853
  3. Negative: 148 out of 853

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  1. xandrucea
    Mar 2, 2016
    7
    The game has beautiful graphics and the world is very big so there should be enough time to play. Furthermore there are more than 600 of these puzzles you already know from the trailer. There are many different puzzles. What I don't like is, that there are just puzzles of that type. If there would be also different kind of puzzles I would buy it immediatelly!
  2. Spidor
    Feb 27, 2016
    9
    A true puzzler's puzzler, The Witness is a gorgeous and ambitious game. If you like cracking clever puzzles and feeling like you're the smartest person alive, have a go. The puzzles may SEEM samey from video reviews, but man oh man - they really maxed out on having the smartest, most intricate puzzles around, without ever escaping into the realms games of yore used to, where solutions wereA true puzzler's puzzler, The Witness is a gorgeous and ambitious game. If you like cracking clever puzzles and feeling like you're the smartest person alive, have a go. The puzzles may SEEM samey from video reviews, but man oh man - they really maxed out on having the smartest, most intricate puzzles around, without ever escaping into the realms games of yore used to, where solutions were completely unfeasible without shelling for a guide. Even the toughest this game has to offer is within the realms of reason for a good, patient gamer.

    The downsides of this games are somewhat moot - the plot is rubbish and pretentious, where the rich vivid world could have accommodated something much more significant. The focus on grandiose and a-morphic concepts is, pardon me, **** instead of focusing on the game's world and charm. The sound puzzles are pretty awful, though doable. If you're good at these types of puzzles you'd be done much faster than what reviews claim; I found it fairly short at around ~20 hours to beat everything. The Challenge included (a final area of extreme difficulty puzzles).

    And one last word of caution Avoid walkthrus AT ALL COSTS - it will demolish your sense of achievement, and there's nothing better than cracking the entirety of The Witness on your own.    … Expand
  3. zkg03mjmk
    Feb 26, 2016
    4
    I have no idea why many critics give this game high score (even 10 out of 10), it is totally overpraised. I bought it at full prize cause of these misleading review. The graphic somehow makes me dizzy which normally won't happen with other 3D games. Dunno if it is because of the color or the lighting. And the puzzles are so repetitive and flat. They are not easy, yes, but only because theI have no idea why many critics give this game high score (even 10 out of 10), it is totally overpraised. I bought it at full prize cause of these misleading review. The graphic somehow makes me dizzy which normally won't happen with other 3D games. Dunno if it is because of the color or the lighting. And the puzzles are so repetitive and flat. They are not easy, yes, but only because the developers hide the rules of the puzzles intentionally. If you know what are those color squares are, they are just repetitive puzzles. I quit the game after 2~3 hours with a bunch of solved puzzles, and find no plotting at all. Disappointed at the game, even more disappointed with those critic reviews.… Expand
  4. MisterBirdy
    Feb 21, 2016
    8
    Slightly down graded my score after finishing the game. The puzzles and the complexity were first rate. They and the stunning use of color in the landscape deserve the highest praise. Indeed the entire game deserves the highest praise for providing a game that takes patience, thought and dedication to complete. It is rare that a game is willing to offer a challenge other than a test ofSlightly down graded my score after finishing the game. The puzzles and the complexity were first rate. They and the stunning use of color in the landscape deserve the highest praise. Indeed the entire game deserves the highest praise for providing a game that takes patience, thought and dedication to complete. It is rare that a game is willing to offer a challenge other than a test of motor skills. Most games reward pattern memorization over pattern recognition and I congratulate the creators on such a fine puzzle. That said I am left empty on completion. No overarching sense of purpose for the puzzles and a fairly flat cheerful ambiance deprived the game of a drama that has made other puzzle games more enjoyable with frankly inferior puzzles. This isn't a condemnation. If you enjoy puzzles and the reward of thinking through some fairly difficult ones this game offers a nice balance of needing to remain aware of the environment, think laterally but also requiring a player to dig in and actually work out the solutions. If you are more given to word puzzles and cryptography than to shape, color and pattern puzzles then this might not be the game for you. The same for the more casual puzzler. If you aren't willing to get out your colored pencils and graph paper you could have a very hard time with this game.… Expand
  5. Bugstaman
    Feb 18, 2016
    6
    Decent game was cool in the beginning but got tired of it towards the end. Got to be very difficult and couldn't wait to beat it and bury it. Kept working through it cause thought there were gonna be some cool secrets and stuff advancing through the game never really found anything interesting about the island. Thought the ending was stupid
  6. Dreizehn
    Feb 18, 2016
    10
    This game is an amazing experience that worth playing for every fan of mystery games and puzzle games. The difficulty is well handle, al the puzzle are interesting and never repetitive and the ambiance and charisma of the world (the island) is incredible well created. This game is a master piece and a piece of art.
  7. zac249
    Feb 18, 2016
    10
    Absolutely brilliant game, intriguing puzzles, beautiful landscapes and just an overall blast to play, the Witness was is easily one of the best games I have played in a long time. It exceeded my expectations and I couldn't be happier. I only wish I could go back in time and not cheat on the puzzles on which I did as solving difficult puzzles by myself was extremely satisfying. TheAbsolutely brilliant game, intriguing puzzles, beautiful landscapes and just an overall blast to play, the Witness was is easily one of the best games I have played in a long time. It exceeded my expectations and I couldn't be happier. I only wish I could go back in time and not cheat on the puzzles on which I did as solving difficult puzzles by myself was extremely satisfying. The "certain" challenge at the end of the game was also extremely fun and satisfying to beat. It was a great game and has plenty of replay value. 10/10 would play again.… Expand
  8. Dawso
    Feb 15, 2016
    5
    Simply put the value for money this game offers is abyssmal. It feels like a well put together phone or tablet game, beautiful world, but one filled with line mazes and puzzles only. Lets face it who wants to pay alot of money for alot of line puzzles that lead nowhere important.
  9. Jovuto
    Feb 14, 2016
    5
    Gameplay: 7/10

    For the most part, the puzzles in this game are pretty entertaining and require the player to think in different ways. However, unlike games of a similar nature (like Myst), the puzzles become really repetitive and boring after a while as all puzzles are solved via the panels (except for one area). The puzzles also become unbearably difficult later on so the gameplay may    Gameplay: 7/10

    For the most part, the puzzles in this game are pretty entertaining and require the player to think in different ways. However, unlike games of a similar nature (like Myst), the puzzles become really repetitive and boring after a while as all puzzles are solved via the panels (except for one area). The puzzles also become unbearably difficult later on so the gameplay may not be accessible to some.

    Controls: 4/10

    If you're planning on playing this, play it on PC because the controls on the PS4 are dreadful. Moving the camera is unbearably slow and what's worse is that there's no setting to change the camera's speed. The lack of camera sensitivity settings is unacceptable in a game like this.

    Aesthetic: 10/10

    This game is gorgeous and what's surprising is that everything seems to be low poly to some degree. Jonathan and his team did a great job.

    Sound and Music: 10/10

    When I heard that this game would have more than a thousand footstep sound effects, I was blown away and I still am. You can just tell that a lot of care and attention went into making the game sound just right. Usually I'm a fan of games with great soundtracks but The Witness doesn't have one. But that's because it simply doesn't need one. The sound design in this game is enough to win me over.

    User Experience/Tutorials: 9/10

    Apart from telling the player how to move, how to activate a panel and how to run, the game tells the player nothing in terms of how to play the game. The game shows the player instead. Each area of the island is a tutorial for a puzzle mechanic and each area (minus a few) does such a great job in teaching the player how a certain mechanic works.

    Story: 0/10

    Ooooh boy.... this fell apart really quickly. So, there's two endings. One that happens when you get to the end and one that happens when you discover a secret after getting the normal ending. The first ending simply puts the player back to the beginning of the game, resets the puzzles whilst some people say some meaningless quote on quote "deep" drivel. This honestly feels more like a troll ending than anything. Like, did Jonathan Blow just waste a good chunk of my time with this game just for it to be reset? The secret ending is even worse than the first. It's basically an "it was all a dream" ending. The worst and laziest kind of ending to any story. Except this time, it was all just a crazy VR game. The ending is complete and utter **** and I'm so glad that I used a walkthrough for the last segments of the game because I would've felt so defeated if I had wasted my time actually solving the last few puzzles.

    Price: 1/10:

    After an ending like that, I can't help but feel ripped off by the shocking £30 price tag. I would probably give this section a higher score but after all the "don't pirate our game" drama I can't help but be even more annoyed by the price tag. Hey... if you want to pirate The Witness, go right ahead because it is no way worth £30.

    Overall: 5/10    … Expand
  10. MrNalle
    Feb 14, 2016
    0
    I hated this game so much that I created an account here in the sole purpose of reviewing it. After solving puzzle #2 it was already boring, but I heard good things about this game so I gave it a real shot. However, after solving the same kind of puzzle about a hundred times more surrounded by horrible graphics it was clear, this is the most boring game ever. Might be suitable as a phoneI hated this game so much that I created an account here in the sole purpose of reviewing it. After solving puzzle #2 it was already boring, but I heard good things about this game so I gave it a real shot. However, after solving the same kind of puzzle about a hundred times more surrounded by horrible graphics it was clear, this is the most boring game ever. Might be suitable as a phone game for people with absolutely no life or suffering from Alzheimer's.… Expand
  11. eys
    Feb 13, 2016
    10
    CURRENTLY 35 HOURS ON PS4, NOT COMPLETED.

    400 puzzles completed so far (PS4), so still have much to do, but I absolutely love The Witness. Some people may be turned off by the "line puzzles," wondering the need for the world itself around them. But for many, there are reasons. Big reasons. Here the environment is the puzzle, the panel is where you put your answer. Explaining any further    CURRENTLY 35 HOURS ON PS4, NOT COMPLETED.

    400 puzzles completed so far (PS4), so still have much to do, but I absolutely love The Witness. Some people may be turned off by the "line puzzles," wondering the need for the world itself around them. But for many, there are reasons. Big reasons. Here the environment is the puzzle, the panel is where you put your answer. Explaining any further would spoil them.

    There are also puzzles that don't use the environment, teaching you many of the rules of this game that will be used and built upon in the future. It won't tell you how to do them though, this game is as much about learning the puzzle as it is about solving the puzzle. But the answers are there. It can be a very hard game when it wants to, but it's never unfair. If you're stuck, the open world is great to look around and solve other puzzles.

    And the art direction is just incredible, sometimes I'll just stare at how pretty everything is. You'll quickly notice the amount of detail put into it and how much thought was put into where and how everything was placed. I mean, look at this small blog post:

    http://the-witness.net/news/2015/06/polishing-the-architecture/

    Don't expect much story, though you can piece some together. This game is pure puzzle. No hand holding and no "Good jobs." A game about observation, epiphany and logic that wants you to learn instead of being told. If you like puzzles, especially difficult ones, play it.    … Expand
  12. plotlesviolence
    Feb 13, 2016
    8
    OVERALL = 2
    A puzzle game
    PRESENTATION = 8 There's no story or plot, which is fine, since they would only intrude on the gameplay (other reviewers have said there is a plot and I don't know what they're talking about, unless they mean it's the story of a guy solving puzzles). Graphics are gorgeous, with overlapping low-textured shapes that makes everything look painted. No physics    OVERALL = 2
    A puzzle game

    PRESENTATION = 8
    There's no story or plot, which is fine, since they would only intrude on the gameplay (other reviewers have said there is a plot and I don't know what they're talking about, unless they mean it's the story of a guy solving puzzles). Graphics are gorgeous, with overlapping low-textured shapes that makes everything look painted. No physics to speak of, no music.

    GAMEPLAY/MECHANICS = 8
    All puzzles are solved by drawing a line from a starting circle to its corresponding finish line. You can press a button to start drawing anywhere in the game world, which is necessary because many of the hidden puzzles aren't on the obvious puzzle panels. The trick to each puzzle is that your line must obey certain rules, like separating certain shapes on the panel, etc. Typically the challenge is figuring out what the rules are. Often the hint that drives the solution is found in the game world, or you need to be standing at a certain angle to align shapes properly, which is why you can walk around the world (and why only showing you puzzle panels wouldn't have worked).

    DESIGN = 6
    The game is open-world, which is a massive mistake. Often times you will encounter puzzles in the wrong order. In the right order, you get smaller puzzle panels that make it easy to guess what the rule is for a certain type of puzzle, and then the panels gradually get more complex. In the wrong order, you get puzzle panels that combine several rule types you have not encountered yet (especially the central town area, which you get to early on), or puzzle panels so large it becomes impossible to guess what the rule is by trial and error.
    Worse, it is not obvious when a puzzle panel is enforced-ly inaccessible to you. Most puzzle panels have a glowing cable that lights up to let you know that the next panel in sequence is available, but many don't. Sometimes there's a white barrier hinting that you cannot complete the panel, but sometimes there are absolutely no visual clues. So I've spent several hours, combined, trying over and over to complete puzzles before giving up, not knowing if my failure was because I couldn't figure out the rule or if the panel itself was incomplete until another nearby panel was solved. That's a significant design flaw, and better worldbuilding might have cut out 5 out of the 15 hours it took me to beat it.
    That said, I appreciated its singular vision. The Witness never takes detours into minigames with other half-baked mechanics. It is a rarity, a genuine puzzle game that has you use your brain rather than complete fetch quests, and I enjoyed it.    … Expand
  13. Dionysus_Jones
    Feb 11, 2016
    9
    All of these "the game gets boring after a couple hours" reviews are hilarious -- and a little bit sad to be honest. Anyone that feels this way is likely going to miss out on the excellent "second layer" of the game, and undoubtedly some of the best puzzle mechanics & level design that we'll see in this console generation. Nothing is on this island by accident... and once you realizeAll of these "the game gets boring after a couple hours" reviews are hilarious -- and a little bit sad to be honest. Anyone that feels this way is likely going to miss out on the excellent "second layer" of the game, and undoubtedly some of the best puzzle mechanics & level design that we'll see in this console generation. Nothing is on this island by accident... and once you realize that (and you will), this game will consume your free time & occupy your every thought -- whether awake or asleep.… Expand
  14. IslingtonA
    Feb 10, 2016
    10
    This is the best puzzle game ever made. It is also one of my top 5 games of any genre. It is absolutely *not* the same puzzle over and over, as others have said. I guess they just didn't play far enough? The environment and the "maze" puzzles are bound to and inseparable from one another. Neither could exist or would make sense without the other. This is increasingly true the further intoThis is the best puzzle game ever made. It is also one of my top 5 games of any genre. It is absolutely *not* the same puzzle over and over, as others have said. I guess they just didn't play far enough? The environment and the "maze" puzzles are bound to and inseparable from one another. Neither could exist or would make sense without the other. This is increasingly true the further into the game you get. If you like puzzles you really must play this game. The Witness is a true classic. People will still be talking about and playing this game ten years down the road. How many games can claim that?… Expand
  15. Jackrov
    Feb 10, 2016
    9
    The Witness is a very well designed puzzle game. The game design, the art and the engine have all been very polished. It makes for quite a unique and engrossing experience. Out of the 10ish sets of puzzles you can encounter, I found a couple less inspired than the others, but another couple stood out for their cleverness.
    I found the best part to be figuring out the rules of the puzzles,    The Witness is a very well designed puzzle game. The game design, the art and the engine have all been very polished. It makes for quite a unique and engrossing experience. Out of the 10ish sets of puzzles you can encounter, I found a couple less inspired than the others, but another couple stood out for their cleverness.
    I found the best part to be figuring out the rules of the puzzles, a required step for solving them cause the rules are not told trough text, but via a series of little initial puzzles that open each series in a clever way.
    I can't speak about the finale resolution (if any) of the mistery of the island, because I want to complete every puzzle before moving through the final gate. I am getting strong vibes from the immobility, the bright colors that permeate everything, the frozen time and the statues, all of which reminds me of the "Invention of Morel" by Alfonso Bioy Casares. If the final resolution is half as riveting as the one found in that novel, I'll change my score from 9 to 10.    … Expand
  16. GamingNinja
    Feb 9, 2016
    7
    A pretty good puzzle game with loads to uncover. Problem is all puzzles are kinda the same but different.
    The world itself really shines, with beautiful graphics and intelligent level design. A great game for anyone wanting to challenge his mind but I would wait for a price drop because this is not worth the 36 euro's price tag unless you are the biggest puzzle enthusiast.
  17. Noahsmith37
    Feb 9, 2016
    7
    To start off, I simply want to say that I beat the game and I earned the Platinum trophy, so I did give the game time. However, I just feel that it was way too pretentious.

    The world is gorgeous, with an incredible art style, and I would love for another game to come out looking the same. However, The Witness just felt kind of empty. Also, I can understand treating gamers like they are    To start off, I simply want to say that I beat the game and I earned the Platinum trophy, so I did give the game time. However, I just feel that it was way too pretentious.

    The world is gorgeous, with an incredible art style, and I would love for another game to come out looking the same. However, The Witness just felt kind of empty. Also, I can understand treating gamers like they are smart, but giving absolutely no direction in 2016 isn't pushing boundaries, it's antiquated.

    In the end it is a puzzle game, if you love the puzzles then by all means, play the game. However, the story is almost non-existent within the game and you have to dig really deep and even then it still just gives off that same "holier than thou" feeling, like they knew they were making some that is just "different" than other games. In comparison Bloodborne had little storytelling, but the rest of the game blew me away, so I loved it. I'd give The Witness a 7.5 but I had to choose so I went lower rather than higher.    … Expand
  18. claytastic
    Feb 8, 2016
    9
    So far I've put about 10 hours into The Witness. That's right. I've put 10 hours into a game primarily about solving mazes. And you know what? I have no shame in saying that. Because that's not why this game is amazing. The beautiful art-style, the near endless exploration, the satisfaction you get from solving one of it's many complicated enigmas. Those qualities are what make this gameSo far I've put about 10 hours into The Witness. That's right. I've put 10 hours into a game primarily about solving mazes. And you know what? I have no shame in saying that. Because that's not why this game is amazing. The beautiful art-style, the near endless exploration, the satisfaction you get from solving one of it's many complicated enigmas. Those qualities are what make this game amazing. While I won't deny I got tired of the same mechanic over and over again, it felt right. I feel that if The Witness was some action adventure game or first person shooter, that would ruin it. Coming from Johnathan Blow, the guy who made Braid, I know he wouldn't do something like that. The Witness, in a way, feels like Braid (and a Johnathan Blow game). You're dropped into a random setting where you have no idea whats going on or how your character got here, but something about it feels right. That all sounds weird, but if you saw it from my perspective, you'd know what I'm talking about.
    The Witness is one of the freshest experiences I've seen in years. It's a simple concept which then turns into the difficulty of say Dark Souls. This is an experience unlike any other which I still would've bought, even if it was more that it's $40 asking price. 9/10.    … Expand
  19. KB5K
    Feb 8, 2016
    5
    I really wanted to play this game, but after purchasing and within 5 minutes of playing it made me incredibly motion sick to the point where the game is unplayable. Apparently this game causes simulation sickness for a lot of people who don't typically suffer from it, and the dev is working on a patch.

    Making a game comfortable to play and knowing how to make a 1st person game have the    I really wanted to play this game, but after purchasing and within 5 minutes of playing it made me incredibly motion sick to the point where the game is unplayable. Apparently this game causes simulation sickness for a lot of people who don't typically suffer from it, and the dev is working on a patch.

    Making a game comfortable to play and knowing how to make a 1st person game have the correct FoV to keep the player from barfing - this falls under design competency. Until this is fixed, the game is literally unplayable for about 33% of gamers.

    Once it's patched, I'll update my review.    … Expand
  20. SirYakalot
    Feb 4, 2016
    6
    Some of what is done with the puzzles is extremely clever, though you do have to get past the first hour of the game which can be tedious and confusing. It's nice to play a game that expects you to work out how the rules of the puzzles work before you can then solve the harder puzzles.

    Unfortunately the problem is a lack of editorial - for every good puzzle type or element, there is    Some of what is done with the puzzles is extremely clever, though you do have to get past the first hour of the game which can be tedious and confusing. It's nice to play a game that expects you to work out how the rules of the puzzles work before you can then solve the harder puzzles.

    Unfortunately the problem is a lack of editorial - for every good puzzle type or element, there is another whole section which is tedious or frustrating. Frankly the creator needed someone there to tell him not to include every last idea he came up with. Sadly it's the puzzles that could simply have existed on a phone screen that hold the greatest intruigue with what little is done in the environment feeling like a shallow attempt to make the 3D world more relevant.

    This is another main downside for me - although the style and colour of the world are beautiful - the design is not. It's a static, sterile feeling world, reminding me of an American theme park version of a beautiful island deigned by someone who's never actually travelled. There is an artificial boat reck you can take a little ride though. There is an Asian zone, a forest zone and so on. In the end it feels more like some sort of awful theme park prison than anything enjoyable.

    As a last point - it's a real shame more was not done with audio, portal 2 did incredible things with ambient soundscapes and the silence does not help the atamosphere. Foley is, frankly, too realistic for the style (this is not Dogville), and the recordings you find are meaningless and frankly, incredibly pretentious (and this is coming from someone who liked Dogville!).

    I did enjoy it, but if you only play one 70 hour game this year, choose another. I would recommend waiting for a sale and then playing it but by bit. Hopefully the creators will focus more on their craft next time around, and less on their own image as intelligent, artistic 'auteurs'.    … Expand
  21. broyds
    Feb 3, 2016
    10
    I cannot believe the amount of bad reviews this game is getting from user reviews on this site. Personally it is a well deserved 10/10. Don't let the bad reviewers put you off this game, they are idiots plain and simple. Rant over lets start this review!

    From the moment I stepped out of the opening cave and saw the island for the first time, my jaw dropped, the colour palette and    I cannot believe the amount of bad reviews this game is getting from user reviews on this site. Personally it is a well deserved 10/10. Don't let the bad reviewers put you off this game, they are idiots plain and simple. Rant over lets start this review!

    From the moment I stepped out of the opening cave and saw the island for the first time, my jaw dropped, the colour palette and setting is absolutely gorgeous and this stays true throughout the entirety of the game.

    As for the most important part, the puzzles, they had me hooked from the very beginning, the vast majority of the puzzles are mazes and require you to start at a certain point and end at a certain point, but the mechanics are always changing the further you get into the game, so the puzzles always feel different and exciting.

    This game is not for those who get frustrated easily, it is challenging and on several occasions I felt totally stumped as to what on earth I had to do. But sometimes the best solution is to leave the puzzle behind and come back to it at a later date, I usually found that by doing this the solution came to me a bit easier when I came back to it. The feeling of absolute elation you feel after solving a puzzle that has been causing you a lot of difficulty is absolutely immense and on quite a few occasions felt just as rewarding as beating the difficult bosses on Bloodborne!

    This is by far the best puzzle game I have ever played. I literally can't stop thinking about it and when I leave the game, I instantly want to start playing it again. If your into puzzle games and don't mind getting frustrated at it's difficulty you should definitely pick this game up!    … Expand
  22. rez
    Feb 2, 2016
    10
    The Witness is a masterpiece, though it's not for everyone. If you enjoy games which reward exploration and experimentation, there's a lot to love here - but even then, the game asks a deal of patience of its audience. You will often come across puzzles which you are ill-equipped to solve. The brilliance in the design is that all of the puzzles are entirely solvable with the mechanicsThe Witness is a masterpiece, though it's not for everyone. If you enjoy games which reward exploration and experimentation, there's a lot to love here - but even then, the game asks a deal of patience of its audience. You will often come across puzzles which you are ill-equipped to solve. The brilliance in the design is that all of the puzzles are entirely solvable with the mechanics available to players from the start of the game; the only real limit on the player is their knowledge of the rules. There are no explicit tutorials, but the knowledge is available to be discovered across the game's beautiful island setting.

    If that sounds a bit vague it's only because I want to respect readers in the same way that the game respects its players, allowing them to explore and discover for themselves the many secrets of the island.

    As you might expect in a game from the designer who brought us Braid, the narrative is very much open to interpretation. This is a game wherein nothing is explicit, and if you require that external drive you may feel rather lost. It helps a great deal to to come into this game with a willingness to think, to be confused, and to keep exploring all the same.

    It's worth noting that colourblind and/or hearing impaired players may have difficulty with some of the game's puzzles, as they rely on an array of sensory clues. I encourage those affected to do more research before diving in.

    It took me about 25 hours to reach the end of the game, completing a fair deal of the optional puzzles along the way - though I suspect the remaining ones could easily take another 5-10 hours to get through, if not longer.

    I abstained from turning to the internet for advice the entire way through, and I strongly recommend that other players do the same. The game tells you everything you need to know if only you persevere - and the sense of achievement that comes from overcoming these challenges alone is great. Trust the game; it is fair, and it does want you to succeed.

    All in all this is one of the most impressively designed games I've ever had the pleasure of playing. There is sharp intent behind every aspect of its construction - to a level that often feels absurd - and the result is an incredibly unique and fulfilling experience.    … Expand
  23. Euknowia
    Feb 2, 2016
    5
    The Witness markets itself on being, at least somewhat, a stereotypical Brainiac’s game. It seemed tailored to meet a debatably naïve and rather pretentious misconception of intellect, though even in that delusion I thought it to be lacking. Apparently it takes several easy ten second puzzles to convey rules that could be derived from one mildly challenging puzzle, which I think wasThe Witness markets itself on being, at least somewhat, a stereotypical Brainiac’s game. It seemed tailored to meet a debatably naïve and rather pretentious misconception of intellect, though even in that delusion I thought it to be lacking. Apparently it takes several easy ten second puzzles to convey rules that could be derived from one mildly challenging puzzle, which I think was either an implementation arising after speculating it’s audience's assessment capabilities and measuring their enjoyment accordingly, or filler. For me, it was failure either way. If the puzzles were intended to be rewarding in and of themselves, or if they were to spark my curiosity, then a good portion of them needed to be much more challenging (i.e. cut out the redundancy). On the other hand, some of the more “challenging” puzzles were only tedious- and did not require any pragmatic definition of the term “critical thinking” to be solved. That said-- there were a few puzzles (mainly near the end) that I did enjoy and which also felt interactive enough to justify its placement within a virtual world as opposed to belonging in an amateur made puzzle book. Difficulty levels might have addressed some of my dissatisfaction with this.

    Aside from the graphics, this game was unexceptional as “art.” Ignoring the necessary discussion at properly identifying my interpretation of the term “art” because that dives deep within the whirlwind of philosophy of aesthetics- I will note briefly that the game had no music (which I think it desperately needed), poor voice acting, and both the dialogue and story was dripping in purple prose. It was the kind of thinking conveyed from the cliché art student poorly illustrated in your general cheap comedies (i.e. like wearing a GoPro and pretending to do strange things). Though I don’t think the game took itself that seriously, mocking those typecasts hardly makes for an engaging story.

    Overall- the game had pretty graphics, and a few of the interactive puzzles were genuinely fun. Aside from that a good portion of puzzles were redundant (refinement problems), a few others were unnecessarily tedious (interactive problems), and the story was rather shabby. I’d wait for the price to drop on this one, even if you are a bit of a sucker for puzzles.    … Expand
  24. teflonminne
    Feb 2, 2016
    10
    I've had my mind blown to shatters more times than i can count playing through this absolute, undeniable MASTERPIECE that is The Witness. This is THE best game i've ever played, and i've been a heavy gamer since -89. The staggering amount of love and attention to detail that is present is simply... amazing. I'm at a loss for words, and i get more and more sad that i'm getting closer andI've had my mind blown to shatters more times than i can count playing through this absolute, undeniable MASTERPIECE that is The Witness. This is THE best game i've ever played, and i've been a heavy gamer since -89. The staggering amount of love and attention to detail that is present is simply... amazing. I'm at a loss for words, and i get more and more sad that i'm getting closer and closer to finishing everything that is known to exist within the game.

    I cannot find one single tiny thing wrong or bad with it, not a one. This is a unique, singular experience that i wished i could experience again, and again.

    I would even venture so far as to say that this game has made my life better just by me playing it, listening to all audio logs, experiencing this multitude of awakenings when i reveal a new pattern, learn a new rule, figure out a new puzzle just to find another treasure trove of complexity inside. And throughout the experience i'm constantly reminded in various subtle forms to take it slow, be patient, appreciate the journey more than the goal, which is exactly what i hold most dear after all of this..

    Some has expressed a disliking of the end (even the "secret" end), i on the other hand found it to be EXACTLY what it should have been. The goal was never the ending, if you stared at the goal the entire time you missed the whole thing. If you failed to experience the now, each moment, you actually missed out.

    I tip my hat in deepest thanks to Jonathan and the rest of the team at Thekla. Thank you for this amazing journey. 10/10.    … Expand
  25. Roagie
    Feb 2, 2016
    4
    Puzzles become quite tedious after a while and become more of work and less fun. Figuring out the mechanic or gimmick of an area's puzzles is fun, but once you do you must then solve MANY of them and it becomes work. After about the 3rd puzzle in an area, I find myself repeatedly saying 'what a pain in the ***'. That is not my idea of fun nor a good game.
    On the plus side, the game is    Puzzles become quite tedious after a while and become more of work and less fun. Figuring out the mechanic or gimmick of an area's puzzles is fun, but once you do you must then solve MANY of them and it becomes work. After about the 3rd puzzle in an area, I find myself repeatedly saying 'what a pain in the ***'. That is not my idea of fun nor a good game.
    On the plus side, the game is beautiful and has interesting environments and intriguing structures, nooks, and crannies to explore.
    Final verdict, this is basically Myst 2016, but much more tedious and dredging.    … Expand
  26. soccerzz5
    Feb 1, 2016
    0
    Worth $10 and no more, bored after 3 hours playing, a regular world full with regular puzzles doesnt worth the money those guys are asking for, for that money you can buy almost every AAA game at retail.
  27. extremeprey
    Feb 1, 2016
    8
    THI- The Witness

    When I first heard of this game I was generally excited. It was meant to be a sort of spiritual successor to Myst however in the end it didn’t really come off as that but rather a sort of fan boy waving his no. 1 foam hand at Myst’s general direction. Whilst it manages to pull a few brownie points here and there it still suffers from trying to be something that it’s    THI- The Witness

    When I first heard of this game I was generally excited. It was meant to be a sort of spiritual successor to Myst however in the end it didn’t really come off as that but rather a sort of fan boy waving his no. 1 foam hand at Myst’s general direction. Whilst it manages to pull a few brownie points here and there it still suffers from trying to be something that it’s not.
    The Witness takes place on a mysterious island with various sections you can go over to and explore. Sound familiar? Well here’s the problem: whereas Myst had the advantage and amazing idea of making each section the puzzles The Witness falls flat on its arse and cracks the ground. All of the puzzles consist of line mazes on monitors scattered about the place and the only variation between each section are the environments and the symbols used in the puzzles. You see depending on the symbols shown in the mazes the rules of the maze change e.g. if there’s a tetris like block then you have to go around the block in the shape of the tetris image on it. After solving the first 12 you begin to wonder what over exciting puzzles there are on the island and stat exploring to find some only to be brought with the unfortunate car crash that is reality. All the puzzles are the same. The map is fairly large and beautiful to look at but it doesn’t make up for the lack of other types of puzzles making the game more comparable towards the talos principle. The main objective is to complete seven major areas in order to unlock the area’s beacon. With this the beacons’ rays point towards a central mountain which you climb up to reveal a small box with seven locks on it. So your objective is to complete required amount of puzzles to unlock the final area of the game which fair enough is better safe than sorry territory.
    One of the things I was looking forward to most is the finding out this game’s story as Myst had quite an inventive one which you have to read up on or look at things with more detail in order to theorise what could have happened to the island’s inhabitants. The Witness does gain some points by giving you bonus puzzles you can complete in order to find a puzzle solution. You can take these solutions to a windmill in the game and underneath it there are a series of vaults. Each vault has a video and in order to get in you must apply the solution to a puzzle acting as a lock. The reason why I like these videos is because they don’t actually give you lore but rather suggestions on how to see the island. Using the first video as an example it tells you task questions and not theorise until you are sure about your answer. As far as I can tell all of the inhabitants haven’t left but rather were turned to stone. Why? No idea but I would think that it would have something to do with the windmill due to several statues across the island seem to be facing it. I haven’t finished the bonus puzzles yet but this idea that the truth is in there has enticed me to continue playing.
    With lots of hours put into the game I can say that it’s meant to played in sessions rather than in one go which to be honest goes against my code for this sort of game. You see I expected to be captivated by the game and whilst the graphics alone do this it doesn’t take long for boredom to kick in. I got pissed at a few puzzles for not introducing the rules in a simple manor but rather throwing one at you and seeing how long it takes for you to look up the puzzle rule online.
    Overall I was disappointed but not unhappy with the game. Let’s just say it underperformed.    … Expand
  28. ODM
    Feb 1, 2016
    7
    OK.. so.. I very possibly jumped the gun with my early review on this game and feel I need to amend and append now that I've played the game almost to the end.

    I'd initially called the game out for various reasons a bit too soon; I'm not afraid to admit this, which considering my background as a lifelong gamer and veteran game developer I'm slightly ashamed of.. schoolboy error in    OK.. so.. I very possibly jumped the gun with my early review on this game and feel I need to amend and append now that I've played the game almost to the end.

    I'd initially called the game out for various reasons a bit too soon; I'm not afraid to admit this, which considering my background as a lifelong gamer and veteran game developer I'm slightly ashamed of.. schoolboy error in truth.. anyway..

    I went back to the game after my initial review which I scored the game a 4, mainly for the art (I'd just like to say that No game is worth zero or a 1 and anyone scoring a creative work, lower than a 2 imo just isnt worth listening to regardless how bad it might be.. just my view), the reason I went back to the game was a bit of a mystery to me, was it the draw of the challenge of the puzzles, was it to fully explore the rest of the island or was it simply to try and get my £30 worth out of it..

    For some unexplained reason I was drawn back and soon started to 'lock in' to the experience whereas previously it felt sterile I was now feeling more at home on the island and was being pulled along.

    I still have issues with the variety of puzzle types but I was starting to enjoy the quirky nature and the way that JB was asking me to observe all around me in order to solve some of the islands puzzles.

    I was already in love with the art from before even playing the game and was also beginning to enjoy the exploratory nature of the game; even the puzzles themselves were starting to become less irksome now that I'd discovered the primer..

    So this is a follow up to put the balance straight and give a fairer score (all subjective of course and some will still hate this game).

    If I have learned anything.. and I already knew this so was learning it all over again.. it's to play a game through before jumping in with an opinion.

    The Witness is one of those games that you need to first overcome a few obstacles and then it begins to make a bit more sense.

    Having said all of that I still find certain things about the game to be a bit pretentious, such as the videos that you can find as puzzle rewards as well as the audio log tapes. I can listen to Feynman all day, but I don't want to have his philosophies thrust in front of me as a conduit for someone else's views on life and the universe.    … Expand
  29. GreenMachineG
    Jan 31, 2016
    9
    Amazing game! Puzzles galore, if you aren't patient or determined I would not advise playing, but this game is so deep and complex that you can't stop playing. Beyond a masterpiece! So many secrets!

    10/10
  30. MNecromancer
    Jan 31, 2016
    10
    This is the best designed puzzle game I've ever played. There's no nonsense in this game, just a very complete experience.

    For me, the best puzzles can't involve rote memorization or having to backtrack to a different area to get a key or something. The best ones just give you all of the tools you need and then you need to stare at it for a few minutes to work it out. If a game's really    This is the best designed puzzle game I've ever played. There's no nonsense in this game, just a very complete experience.

    For me, the best puzzles can't involve rote memorization or having to backtrack to a different area to get a key or something. The best ones just give you all of the tools you need and then you need to stare at it for a few minutes to work it out. If a game's really good, I might even pull out a notebook to work on a serious business puzzle. That's the type of puzzle that The Witness offers.

    If there's a puzzle you can't figure out, try exploring a bit more, you'll get it eventually. I just beat it and the only times I got stuck were because I had made some random assumption about how a puzzle worked. The only ones I didn't like were the tone puzzles because I can't hear tones worth a damn.    … Expand
  31. Tgooding01
    Jan 31, 2016
    3
    I was looking forward to this, I really wanted to like it - but I don't.

    Any feeling I had of victory was quickly replaced with frustration. I wanted a game that takes time to crack and that makes you think. This is a sequence of maze puzzles which become increasingly complex with a language that you're meant to figure out - which is easier said than done. Instead of feeling empowered I    I was looking forward to this, I really wanted to like it - but I don't.

    Any feeling I had of victory was quickly replaced with frustration. I wanted a game that takes time to crack and that makes you think. This is a sequence of maze puzzles which become increasingly complex with a language that you're meant to figure out - which is easier said than done. Instead of feeling empowered I was left thinking "this isn't fun".

    My final point on this is the price - as an indie game this is very expensive.

    This is certainly not Myst or Riven. Sorry.    … Expand
  32. Tricksy_Raist
    Jan 31, 2016
    5
    If you're on the fence about this game, I encourage you to read both the glowing and the harsh reviews as objectively as you can (as long as you can identify the trolling for trolling's sake; those should always be discounted without hesitation). If you're after a lovingly crafted landscape, and tons of increasingly difficult maze puzzles, then this game could be for you. Other reviewsIf you're on the fence about this game, I encourage you to read both the glowing and the harsh reviews as objectively as you can (as long as you can identify the trolling for trolling's sake; those should always be discounted without hesitation). If you're after a lovingly crafted landscape, and tons of increasingly difficult maze puzzles, then this game could be for you. Other reviews will elaborate more on both of these features, and you'll see why some loved what they found and others hated it. Personal filters make for some very polarizing reviews, so I also recommend that you watch gameplay videos wherever possible so you can see as best you can what you're actually getting.

    As for me, while I do admire the developer's efforts, I have to admit that the only feeling I'm left with on this game is buyer's remorse. I feel that the price we're being charged with is being justified by the developer's sense of his own worth. I would have much rather kept the $40 in my pocket, downloaded Flow for free on my phone, and read a good Bradbury novel.

    After getting burned on Fallout 4 and SW: Battlefront, I'm anxious that I'm going to start getting used to that feeling of impotent regret that some of these very anticipated titles have been inspiring. And Faith, if you let me down this coming May, I may just have to hang up my controller for a while.    … Expand
  33. ignore78
    Jan 31, 2016
    4
    This is not a game. This is a mobile game puzzle game with a nice 3d layer. The puzzles is not fun at all. it is just connect dots after dots after dots after dots. And then you walk and walk and walk, and look at the nice graphics and thinking, wow this looks nice. then you see a square. Aha! more dots to solve.
  34. DarylH
    Jan 30, 2016
    9
    The Witness is the very essence of what a puzzle game should be, taken to the next level. The puzzles are an ingenious combination of try-it-yourself tutorials and head scratching brain teasers, and you'll often find yourself scribbling notes and paths or taking screenshots in order to solve puzzles. Whilst I had assumed the primary mechanic of drawing lines would quickly grow tedious, itThe Witness is the very essence of what a puzzle game should be, taken to the next level. The puzzles are an ingenious combination of try-it-yourself tutorials and head scratching brain teasers, and you'll often find yourself scribbling notes and paths or taking screenshots in order to solve puzzles. Whilst I had assumed the primary mechanic of drawing lines would quickly grow tedious, it doesn't. Instead, just like Braid before it, the mechanics built on top of this simple interaction are diverse, creative and use the digital world in a way completely unlike any game before it.

    My criticisms mostly target the island itself. It's beautiful beyond belief. The colours really stand out and make this an inviting place to spend time in, and the environments are diverse and well placed. However, the island often feels cold, and the stiff walking controls and lack of short-ledge dropping can make it cumbersome to move around in if you're quickly working to a destination.

    The genius that made Braid such a masterpiece is clearly evident here, and the team has made a puzzle game that others can only aspire too. If you're looking for the next Portal challenge, this is it and then some.    … Expand
  35. Patrickstul
    Jan 30, 2016
    9
    Yes, the game is not for everyone. Yes, the game makes you think. Yes, sometimes you start to get angry. But the structure itself is a breakthrough in the world of computer games. That is how it is conceived in terms of the logic of forcing developers to make the slope. Thank you for 40 hours. This island still holds a lot of secrets.
  36. yloquen
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    An amazing game, not meant for everyone, but its target audience will devour it. Stranded on a picturesque island, you must solve puzzles via a deceptively simple interface. It’s true The Witness consist only of maze puzzles - in the same sense in which languages consist only of words - if you’re willing to learn the words of the language the game slowly teaches you, the satisfaction whenAn amazing game, not meant for everyone, but its target audience will devour it. Stranded on a picturesque island, you must solve puzzles via a deceptively simple interface. It’s true The Witness consist only of maze puzzles - in the same sense in which languages consist only of words - if you’re willing to learn the words of the language the game slowly teaches you, the satisfaction when you uncover its intricacies can be immense. The puzzles are roughly divided in two types - those whose solution is derived from abstract logical rules and those which require observation of the environment. Sometimes both combine in a very elegant way.

    As for the difficulty - I found that a good strategy was not to give up too easily but also not to try too hard - if you get stuck - change the area - there’s plenty to choose from and you don’t need to solve all the zones to get to the endgame.

    In an interview , the developer said that the theme of the game was epiphany and I think that he has achieved his goal - I doubt it has competition when it comes to the "Eureka!" moments, and I'm not talking only about discovering the solution to a particular problem - I'm talking about moments when your whole perspective shifts.

    Some of the flaws I found - I think the game would have benefited from a dedicated story as opposed to the sparse audio logs with an eclectic selection of quotations located randomly around the island. There were some puzzles particularly towards the end that were visually nauseating. These minor flaws do not detract from the singular experience of The Witness - if you have an inkling you might like it - I advise you to try it.    … Expand
  37. badducky
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    My experience playing the witness:

    First 3 hours: Ok I'm solving puzzles on an island, nothing special. All of these puzzles are solved on an touchscreens by drawing a line through a maze. Isn't this going to be repetitive? And why did it have to be on an island? Beautiful graphics though. After 8 hours: Some of the puzzles are becoming more and more interesting... Still don't    My experience playing the witness:

    First 3 hours:
    Ok I'm solving puzzles on an island, nothing special. All of these puzzles are solved on an touchscreens by drawing a line through a maze. Isn't this going to be repetitive? And why did it have to be on an island? Beautiful graphics though.

    After 8 hours:
    Some of the puzzles are becoming more and more interesting... Still don't really get why there is so much high praise for this game...

    After about 12 hours (for me):
    Holy ####! Did that just happen???? How ... how did they program this?? I can't believe I did not see this!! This island is not just eye candy, it's much much more than that!!!

    So, if you like solving puzzles (hard puzzles, get a pen and paper because you will have to take notes), if you can be patient and if you have the willpower to try to do this on your own, you are in for something special...    … Expand
  38. JoeB777
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    This gave me not be for everyone. But if you like puzzles, or think you might like puzzles, and appreciate innovative and intricate game design. And want to try something that is truly different from what you've done before, then take a look. To speak for myself: it's my game of the year.
  39. VonSeux
    Jan 30, 2016
    3
    the art of doing the same thing over and over and over again; a pluzze game with only one kind of pluzze, you really must have so much free time to enjoy this....works wonders as sleep inducer
  40. tronhound
    Jan 30, 2016
    10
    I feel like it's difficult to say much about this game without spoiling the experience, but I will say that it is simply one of the most finely crafted games ever made. The island and the puzzles are a joy to explore, it's clear that the development was driven by a person with a deep love for gaming and an extraordinary vision, which was executed flawlessly.

    The gameplay is entirely    I feel like it's difficult to say much about this game without spoiling the experience, but I will say that it is simply one of the most finely crafted games ever made. The island and the puzzles are a joy to explore, it's clear that the development was driven by a person with a deep love for gaming and an extraordinary vision, which was executed flawlessly.

    The gameplay is entirely based around line puzzles and unravelling the mysteries of the island, if you don't like puzzle games that's fine - the game is not for you. But if you do like solving puzzles, this game is unlike anything else and an excellent example of the kind of challenge and narrative that can only be delivered through a video game.

    The Witness is an instant classic.    … Expand
  41. mageprince2011
    Jan 29, 2016
    0
    Honestly, The game is horrid absolutely horrid. No game mechanics besides badly designed puzzles. No atmosphere just nice graphics. No story whatso-ever. And the game itself can be completed in 4 hours. That's 10 dollars an hour that's insane. for 40 bucks you might as well save that money and buy battlefleet gothic or GTA. this game is horridly overpriced and the creator is a whiny asshatHonestly, The game is horrid absolutely horrid. No game mechanics besides badly designed puzzles. No atmosphere just nice graphics. No story whatso-ever. And the game itself can be completed in 4 hours. That's 10 dollars an hour that's insane. for 40 bucks you might as well save that money and buy battlefleet gothic or GTA. this game is horridly overpriced and the creator is a whiny asshat who is a ginormous snob. Half of these 10/10 reviews are just making a Last Name Pun to Johnathon Blow, people literally have no taste in anything these days and will do anything for the least bit of attention from devs.… Expand
  42. MisterZorin
    Jan 29, 2016
    6
    Beautiful game, but after 4 hours of endless puzzles that are basically the same I grew tired of it. This game could really use background music and some sort of common thread to follow. Because right now I'm solving a lot of puzzles without knowing the goal. This made me lose interest in it.

    Don't get me wrong, I like games that try to be different. But this just doesn't do it for me.
  43. davedrummer88
    Jan 29, 2016
    9
    Whereas I preordered "Everyone's Gone to The Rapture" and was utterly disappointed, I waited, read reviews and bought "The Witness" and am enthralled. It is, to cite another user review, divisive, but it is a masterclass in simple ideas culminating in an experience as "art." My simplest sell on the game is the gorgeous, supposedly superficial (and gorgeous) world is integral to itsWhereas I preordered "Everyone's Gone to The Rapture" and was utterly disappointed, I waited, read reviews and bought "The Witness" and am enthralled. It is, to cite another user review, divisive, but it is a masterclass in simple ideas culminating in an experience as "art." My simplest sell on the game is the gorgeous, supposedly superficial (and gorgeous) world is integral to its experience: to use perspective to find clues in its environs, and to use its great expanse of freedom as a buffer to frustration. Can't solve that tough puzzle? Wander to another. Its mechanics will percolate into your subconcious while you try your hand at another. While "Portal" makes you feel clever for signposting the solution, "Witness" proves your own smarts because you earned it. Keep a smartphone camera and paper & pen handy!… Expand
  44. nightmancomes
    Jan 29, 2016
    10
    The amount of work went into this is astonishing. People need to realize that it's not a game that you are supposed to rush through, finish as fast as you can. You should play it from time to time, you can finish it in 6 months if you want to, playing it whenever you feel like giving your mind a challange, giving yourself something to think on. Stop crying because it's too hard, becauseThe amount of work went into this is astonishing. People need to realize that it's not a game that you are supposed to rush through, finish as fast as you can. You should play it from time to time, you can finish it in 6 months if you want to, playing it whenever you feel like giving your mind a challange, giving yourself something to think on. Stop crying because it's too hard, because you can't finish the game in 2 days. This game is not made to be rushed through in 2 days, or a week, you just take your time and enjoy the admiring work went into making these beatiful puzzles. I also think it would make a great game to play with your friends, everyone putting some input and solving puzzles together sounds like it would be fun.… Expand
  45. Sheep_198
    Jan 28, 2016
    8
    Excellent game design, addicting, leave you think about it all day long, good exercise for brain. Nice colour and findings throughout. PS4 need more of those fun and creative games.
  46. Litholis
    Jan 28, 2016
    10
    While its gameplay and aesthetic are (deceptively) simple, the progression path in how a player learns the rules and parameters of gameplay is where the Witness really excels. One of the most rewarding experience I have in video games.
  47. BlackMambav6
    Jan 28, 2016
    4
    Biggest gaming disappointment since Destiny...

    I have been following this game since 2012 and I thought it was going to have me pulled in like Limbo, but this game is HUGE letdown. One major complaint I have that other people have been pointing out, where is the music?! Some good minecraft-esque would've made this game a lot better. As for gameplay, to be honest it's a big overwhelming!    Biggest gaming disappointment since Destiny...

    I have been following this game since 2012 and I thought it was going to have me pulled in like Limbo, but this game is HUGE letdown. One major complaint I have that other people have been pointing out, where is the music?! Some good minecraft-esque would've made this game a lot better. As for gameplay, to be honest it's a big overwhelming! It doesn't need to be linear, but more focus wouldn't make this game better imo. I was wandering the island, seeing puzzle after puzzle with no sense of guidance. It's also really frustrating that you need to solve a puzzle just to solve another puzzle. It's also really annoying to know that I am trying to beat this area but I don't have the necessary information to complete it. For example, imagine being allowed into a dungeon in Zelda, but you can't beat it because you need some prerequisite from another dungeon. I may pick this up again and see if my opinion changes, if that's the case that I'll change my review accordingly, but for right now it's a big disappointment. Some people may like the design of this game, but it's not my cup of tea.    … Expand
  48. EmSeta
    Jan 28, 2016
    2
    The island is beautiful, and the atmosphere is almost magical. But seriously, hundreds of variations of line drawing puzzles – that's my only way of interacting with this world? After only 30 or so of them I felt like I was trapped in some never ending sudoku nightmare.

    For the first time ever, I wish I could get a refund through the PlayStation Store. What a letdown, especially after    The island is beautiful, and the atmosphere is almost magical. But seriously, hundreds of variations of line drawing puzzles – that's my only way of interacting with this world? After only 30 or so of them I felt like I was trapped in some never ending sudoku nightmare.

    For the first time ever, I wish I could get a refund through the PlayStation Store. What a letdown, especially after the fantastic Braid.    … Expand
  49. TixyLix
    Jan 28, 2016
    5
    I just don't get it, I played about 3/4 hours and I'm bored.

    The world is static and lifeless, there is no interaction with it what so ever, you cannot even do basic things like jump up or down... so you have to walk around what feels like a theme park ride line. It's annoying solving a puzzle, having to go back and not being able to jump down as a shortcut because you're glued to the    I just don't get it, I played about 3/4 hours and I'm bored.

    The world is static and lifeless, there is no interaction with it what so ever, you cannot even do basic things like jump up or down... so you have to walk around what feels like a theme park ride line. It's annoying solving a puzzle, having to go back and not being able to jump down as a shortcut because you're glued to the ground.

    I have no idea why the world is even there, it has no purpose, no mechanics, no gameplay. This could have just been a series of maze puzzles on IOS, it didn't need to be a £30 3D PC/console game. There is no story to pull you through, nothing to make you want to do the puzzles, it's nowhere near the levels of Portal 2 with it's amazing story.

    Every puzzle is also the same basic idea, just draw a line around a maze, they may add some different rules, but you're are essentially just doing abstract mazes. It becomes so boring and you just wish'd there was so variety to them....

    Myst this ain't, not even close.    … Expand
  50. justwoe
    Jan 28, 2016
    10
    What a wonderful game. The mapping of "real" world - the island - to the puzzles is hugely satisfying every time. The Witness treats learning, gaining knowledge, and mapping it to make sense of the world around you as it's basic material. It gets to the core of learning like no other game. Very much recommended (but obviously I'm into this sort of thing).
  51. DarthPadme
    Jan 28, 2016
    10
    After seeing only negative reviews on the front page for this game, I felt I needed to chime in.

    This is a thinking man's game. If you cannot appreciate meticulous detail, subtle hints, painstakingly hidden environmental details, or are not inclined to perfectionism, this game is not for you. Many reviews I've read apparently have a hatred for puzzles, which is 95% of what this game is    After seeing only negative reviews on the front page for this game, I felt I needed to chime in.

    This is a thinking man's game. If you cannot appreciate meticulous detail, subtle hints, painstakingly hidden environmental details, or are not inclined to perfectionism, this game is not for you. Many reviews I've read apparently have a hatred for puzzles, which is 95% of what this game is about. If you are easily frustrated and despise the idea of learning interesting new mechanics, well, why did you think paying $40 for this game was a good idea?

    If you require instant gratification, this isn't the best use of your time and money.

    However, if you're like me, and have a deep appreciation for brain-benders and don't mind being stumped on a dozen different puzzles at once, you need to get this game. There is a perplexing draw to the whole experience - the promise of an overarching puzzle within a puzzle within all of the other puzzles you're solving. It's not just about navigating several hundred mazes. It's about what you learn, what you feel, how you think, and the way you process the sights and sounds of this precisely engineered world. There are times where you will break the fourth wall for yourself and think, "How did they program that?" yet remain in awe of the task you've just completed.

    That's really what I appreciate about this game. I haven't felt this satisfied with a gaming experience since the original Dark Souls. I'm reminded heavily of that game's brutal difficulty when going into it as a brand new experience. This game draws multiple parallels despite being a wholly different genre. In Dark Souls, after defeating a notoriously difficult boss after numerous attempts, the feeling of victory is nearly unrivaled - that is, until you play The Witness, and solve a series of puzzles over the course of an hour that leave you feeling like a genius. It will require plenty of intuiting, and the occasional figurative slamming of your head against a wall, but nothing in this game requires brute force. It is all learned, it all builds upon itself, and it all, majestically, simply, cohesively... works.

    Some of the later puzzles will really test your ability to navigate intimidating labyrinths as you plot every scrupulous step. I was stubborn in my tackling of such puzzles, as I never wrote anything down or made diagrams until much later. Side note, I would recommend writing things down and making some diagrams. Maybe take a picture of your screen. Or don't, like me!

    It doesn't hurt that I'm playing on a 55" 4K TV with a 980 Ti. The attention to detail, regardless of the painterly overtones, is not lost on me. While plain from a distance, up close is where the magic truly shines. The color grading and art direction going from different zones of the island are incredible, evoking a totally different feel within seconds of traversal. Were I not to enjoy the puzzles, this game would still be a joy of a sight to behold.

    This game is this generation's Myst, no doubt about it. Playing this felt like I was touring Jonathan Blow's synapses, and getting a glimpse at how beautiful the human mind can be. Without flattering the developer too much, I think of this game as a genuine gift to gamers worldwide, and its fastidious creation over the last 7 years or so is without a doubt a labor of love.

    So, I have a lot of high praise for this game, but it's not quite perfect. If I were to complain about anything, it would be the lack of exposition, and the really-quite-terrible audio logs: Strewn and hidden about the world are different tiny recorders you can activate, and each one is narrated by a person reading a quote by someone who sounds really full of themselves, and loves hearing themselves speak about things that sound smart but are in fact common knowledge. There are quotes from religious authors, astronauts, Albert Einstein... and they're all grating, and frankly, weird. After I time I stopped activating the logs because they were intrusive and annoying to my experience. I actually hate this aspect of this game, but thankfully it's optional. I didn't find my first one until about an hour or two in, so it was a cool surprise, which rapidly devolved once I realized how utterly lame they were. I'm sure they thought this was a good idea, but in practice, I thought it was pretty awful.

    There hasn't been a single puzzle I haven't enjoyed solving (except for the really easy ones which are not challenging). I don't think you can ask much more of a game that entirely revolves around such, but the developers really did go above and beyond, and made the otherwise mundane into a masterpiece. Bravo.

    9.5/10, but giving it a 10 on Metacritic to balance out the feeble-minded simpletons who lack the intellect to appreciate ingenuity, or otherwise dislike Jonathan Blow for being smart and successful.    … Expand
  52. ishadow
    Jan 28, 2016
    5
    You will love this game, or you will hate it. There's little in between. It's like contemporary art. If you think a one color painting or a photo of a potato is an awesome art, you will like The Witness.

    This game is just boring and repetitive. It's hard, but in bad way. You will often find locked doors with puzzle mechanic you don't know, or panels that require some unique patterns    You will love this game, or you will hate it. There's little in between. It's like contemporary art. If you think a one color painting or a photo of a potato is an awesome art, you will like The Witness.

    This game is just boring and repetitive. It's hard, but in bad way. You will often find locked doors with puzzle mechanic you don't know, or panels that require some unique patterns found elsewhere. It's a pen and paper game, or at least take your phone and take a photo of a screen. And it's repetitive. Panels, panels, panels.
    Controls are clunky. Player character walks to slow, and you have to press run button all the time to WALK a bit more faster. Interacting with panels is also flawed, both gamepad and mouse+keyboard feel just wrong.
    On the other hand, island is beautiful and open world exploration is good. Following cables and searching for puzzles is nicely done, game just breaks when you start solving panels and there's just about it. Panels, panels, panels.

    This game reminds me a Talos Principle in a few ways, but The Witness is inferior in every aspect. Talos Principle had good puzzles, great story and introduced new gameplay mechanics through all the game. The Witness is just boring after 50-60 panels, there's virtually no story, just a plain island filled with panels.

    I haven't finished this game yet and I'll probably wont. Looking forward to play XCOM 2 in a near future:)    … Expand
  53. Niall79
    Jan 28, 2016
    10
    This will be held up by some as further proof that “Jonathan Blow is pretentious”. Try to ignore that bunch.

    What he’s delivered here, along with his team, is the perfectly integrated puzzle game, where the puzzles tell you something about your surroundings, and your surroundings in turn inform you about the puzzles. The basic mechanic is deceptively simple, and there are such a variety    This will be held up by some as further proof that “Jonathan Blow is pretentious”. Try to ignore that bunch.

    What he’s delivered here, along with his team, is the perfectly integrated puzzle game, where the puzzles tell you something about your surroundings, and your surroundings in turn inform you about the puzzles. The basic mechanic is deceptively simple, and there are such a variety of iterations on the theme it never gets tired.

    The game teaches you how to play through example rather than tutorial. In other words, it shows but never tells. It can be frustrating when you can’t see what it’s trying to teach you, sure, but the sense of accomplishment when you put it all together can be near euphoric.

    His decision to use the words of others rather than his own is a brave one. For me, after working long and hard on some of the trickier puzzles, I was primed for deeper thought, and found the word of these thinkers all the more affecting. For others, no doubt, it will be just the evidence they were looking for that “Jonathon Blow is pretentious”…    … Expand
  54. Mauge
    Jan 28, 2016
    4
    Hi, just want to say that if you like talos principle and think you like this game too and buy this, you may regret it. Dins a way to test it somewhere before purchasing. (i just lost 37 euros)

    You can't jump, walking is slow, the game bases it's puzzles on maze like puzzles which come tedious very quickly. Sometimes you find cassettes which try to deepen the feel of the game, but    Hi, just want to say that if you like talos principle and think you like this game too and buy this, you may regret it. Dins a way to test it somewhere before purchasing. (i just lost 37 euros)

    You can't jump, walking is slow, the game bases it's puzzles on maze like puzzles which come tedious very quickly.
    Sometimes you find cassettes which try to deepen the feel of the game, but doesn't succeed,
    this game has no depth like talos principle has.
    First thought what i had after trying witness is that the guy that made braid is being adored so much that people don't see the flaws in The Witness.
    Btw, where is the music of this game? Some kind of soundtrack might have given some feel to the game.
    The puzzles are often like: "Take the solution of another maze and turn it around and then it is a solution to another maze." So first you try to remember the twists and turns of the original maze. but just end up taking a picture with a smartphone and "cheat" the solution from that.
    And im really sorry for this tho im just trying to be truthful but in my opinion the game isn't even beautiful although everyone is saying that it is, it's somehow cold and uninteractive, there just isn't enough interaction with the world. The fact that your moving is so restricted (you usually cant jump from any legde, even the smallest ones.) lessens the interaction even more. I could talk for a long time still but i think that the key flaws became obvious already. Braid was good and original, but come on people, this isn't.    … Expand
  55. JadedBuddhist
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    The Witness is fantastic. If you liked braid you'll love The Witness. The reason for the polarizing scores is some people don't like puzzle games. This game is a puzzle gaming masterpiece! Expect to figure things out yourself without hand holding.
  56. asterafe
    Jan 27, 2016
    7
    This game is wonderful and beautiful. The graphic of this game is too nice to focus the puzzle, outer environment match with the puzzle and its hints. It something like Darksouls or Bloodborne, There is no advice, really hard to find hints and method to solve the puzzle, several tutorials. not everything define exactly. So if the player like the solve puzzle this game is one ofThis game is wonderful and beautiful. The graphic of this game is too nice to focus the puzzle, outer environment match with the puzzle and its hints. It something like Darksouls or Bloodborne, There is no advice, really hard to find hints and method to solve the puzzle, several tutorials. not everything define exactly. So if the player like the solve puzzle this game is one of masterpiece, but if player think the game need to guide and indicate something important, this game is worst game. What I want to say; this game is best game with puzzle game player, worst game with action game player.… Expand
  57. seppuku4kstew
    Jan 27, 2016
    2
    The Witness is weaponized indie edgestentialist prostitution. $40 to wander to and from unengaging, unrewarding identical puzzles that belong on children's menus at restaurants is how you win Game of the Year in 2016. Is the island nice to look at? Yes. So is pre-Kanye Kim Kardashian. The one and only extrinsic motivator in this autism simulator, is to become the smug master ofThe Witness is weaponized indie edgestentialist prostitution. $40 to wander to and from unengaging, unrewarding identical puzzles that belong on children's menus at restaurants is how you win Game of the Year in 2016. Is the island nice to look at? Yes. So is pre-Kanye Kim Kardashian. The one and only extrinsic motivator in this autism simulator, is to become the smug master of tedious puzzle island and reach the RickRoll-esque ending, which spectacularly invalidates all of your hard work and exploration. I'm willing to upgrade this review to a 5.0 only if I receive a refund and an indentured servant for the time and money I wasted giving this pile of **** "game" a chance.… Expand
  58. Amambay
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    Polarizing -- Divisive. That's what The Witness is. Much like Myst, its spiritual predecessor, The Witness is a game that you'll either love or hate, and either way you wouldn't be wrong. You see it in the reviews, almost entirely positive or negative.

    With regard to production values, The Witness was put together by a perfectionist, who spent the last seven years with a small team of    Polarizing -- Divisive. That's what The Witness is. Much like Myst, its spiritual predecessor, The Witness is a game that you'll either love or hate, and either way you wouldn't be wrong. You see it in the reviews, almost entirely positive or negative.

    With regard to production values, The Witness was put together by a perfectionist, who spent the last seven years with a small team of artists and programmers making sure the game was exactly as he wanted it. Still, what you think of the graphics and technical aspects of the game will also depend on your opinion of the game overall.

    As you likely already know, The Witness is a game about solving puzzles, set on a vibrantly colored and mysterious island, void of any characters other than the player, the puzzles, and the island itself. The puzzles are all variations on the same format of finding the correct way to solve a maze, and by successfully doing so opening up new areas, opening doors, and activating contraptions.

    The Witness reminds me very much of 1993's Myst. A deserted island, a lone character solving puzzles, mysteries to be discovered and solved with no explanation or introduction. If you loved Myst, you'll love The Witness. If you hated Myst, then, well, you know what you'll think of The Witness.

    If you're the type of person who enjoys quietly solving puzzles to solve mysteries, The Witness is a game for you. If you demand action, a story with a wide cast of characters, a vast open world to adventure, then The Witness is probably not for you.

    Don't get The Witness hoping to find something that isn't there. The Witness wasn't made to appeal to everyone and sell in huge numbers. It was made for the kind of people who enjoy what I've described. If you don't like Heavy Metal, don't buy a Heavy Metal album... if you don't like Hip Hop, don't buy some Hip Hop... and if you don't like quiet puzzle solving, don't play The Witness.    … Expand
  59. Winterspark
    Jan 27, 2016
    4
    You just get the feeling this game is too smug and superior for its own good. Its the video game equivalent of some eastern European oscar winning art film about a disabled gay refugee overcoming adversity in deepest Siberia or the like. I am sure its a wonderful technical achievement on some level but to be quite honest, its video game and I want a reasonable combination of rewarding andYou just get the feeling this game is too smug and superior for its own good. Its the video game equivalent of some eastern European oscar winning art film about a disabled gay refugee overcoming adversity in deepest Siberia or the like. I am sure its a wonderful technical achievement on some level but to be quite honest, its video game and I want a reasonable combination of rewarding and fun, rather than going hunting for it amidst some sterile puzzles.… Expand
  60. WeekBoxDone900p
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    The Witness is a breath of fresh air, it's a beautiful work of art. this is a open-world puzzle adventure game with a very mysterious story. this game runs at 1080p 60fps on the PS4 and it has about 30+ hours of gameplay only $39.99 on the PSN Store.
  61. WryMouth
    Jan 27, 2016
    1
    Boring Game with Puzzles, at most cute grafix but nothing special. Wii U could be running this at 1080p. Needs little more options and detail. Play it when its free.
  62. bearcav
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    The Witness is the Dark Souls of puzzle games and a revival of classic head-scratchers like Myst.

    This game is polarizing - just look at the critic reviews to see that. You either love banging your head against really tough puzzles until you get that awesome feel-good revelation, or you don't. I'm in the former camp, and I'm enjoying this more than I've enjoyed just about any other game    The Witness is the Dark Souls of puzzle games and a revival of classic head-scratchers like Myst.

    This game is polarizing - just look at the critic reviews to see that. You either love banging your head against really tough puzzles until you get that awesome feel-good revelation, or you don't. I'm in the former camp, and I'm enjoying this more than I've enjoyed just about any other game in years. There's zero handholding, constant twists and turns as to how puzzles can be solved, great use of the environment incorporated within the puzzles, amazing visual design, and all of this runs at 60fps the whole way through.

    I can't even begin to describe how gratifying it is to figure out one of the tougher puzzles in this game. If you don't know that feeling, or you just aren't a puzzle fan, don't buy this. For me, it's a 10, but it's strictly your-mileage-may-vary, which is welcome in an age of risk-averse game design that too often coddles the audience. Totally worth it if you're up for a challenge.    … Expand
  63. tobr
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    The Witness is a multilayered game, with a lot more gameplay than meets the eye. The difficulty varies from puzzle to puzzle - from the trivial to the wicked. The maze puzzle panels might seem off-putting at first glance, but they are a kind of vehicle for the gameplay. Many of them can barely even be called "puzzles", because their purpose is not exactly to be hard to solve.

    This is a    The Witness is a multilayered game, with a lot more gameplay than meets the eye. The difficulty varies from puzzle to puzzle - from the trivial to the wicked. The maze puzzle panels might seem off-putting at first glance, but they are a kind of vehicle for the gameplay. Many of them can barely even be called "puzzles", because their purpose is not exactly to be hard to solve.

    This is a game that rewards patience, curiosity and observation, and not with glittering candy, but with thoughts and ideas.    … Expand
  64. Kadasma
    Jan 27, 2016
    10
    For the casual observer: "Oh this is just a stupid puzzle game wtf is even the point of the open world, don't understand the puzzles, how is it connected to the world? this game sucks 0/10"
    For the mindful and intellectual observer, this game combines art with logic rarely seen in video games. Let me iterate the game's art aspects, the island was designed to offer various viewpoints which    For the casual observer: "Oh this is just a stupid puzzle game wtf is even the point of the open world, don't understand the puzzles, how is it connected to the world? this game sucks 0/10"
    For the mindful and intellectual observer, this game combines art with logic rarely seen in video games. Let me iterate the game's art aspects, the island was designed to offer various viewpoints which could serve as standalone paintings, the environment and architecture is just so beautifully rendered. It serves as a peaceful backdrop for its challenging puzzles. For every puzzle you couldn't solve, you'll always be greeted by a beautiful. The Witness respects your intelligence and time.    … Expand
  65. Huffyupp
    Jan 27, 2016
    6
    After about four hours, I grew tired of the endless iteration on the same basic mechanic. The world is beautiful, but the puzzles are so disconnected from any real physical process or interaction with the setting that it really does just feel like a couple hundred puzzles you might find in a free to play phone game, plopped into a nice landscape. Bottom line: When I solved a puzzle, IAfter about four hours, I grew tired of the endless iteration on the same basic mechanic. The world is beautiful, but the puzzles are so disconnected from any real physical process or interaction with the setting that it really does just feel like a couple hundred puzzles you might find in a free to play phone game, plopped into a nice landscape. Bottom line: When I solved a puzzle, I didn't feel intelligent. I didn't really feel anything except relief, until the next puzzle, and repeat that 600 times.… Expand
  66. Agarwel
    Jan 26, 2016
    9
    Great puzzle game. One that can proudly stant next to other big classics like Portal or Talos Principle.

    But The Witness is working little bit different. This game is about exploration of the world and its mechanics. Basically you are thrown into the world and you dont know anything about it. Or about the puzzles and how are you supposed to solve them. you muset explore the game and    Great puzzle game. One that can proudly stant next to other big classics like Portal or Talos Principle.

    But The Witness is working little bit different. This game is about exploration of the world and its mechanics. Basically you are thrown into the world and you dont know anything about it. Or about the puzzles and how are you supposed to solve them. you muset explore the game and find your way. This is something that can easily frutrate some players, if they dont understand this. Because at the beggining of the game you will encounter many puzzles that you have absolutelly no idea how to solve. This is on purpose and you are not ment to spent five hours trying every possibel solution by random trial and error. You are supposed to move forward (the game is open world, so you dont get stuck on a single puzzle) and by solving other puzzles, you will start to understand some new rules. Then, when you return to old unsolvable puzzle, you will know exactly what to do. In this way it really reminded me agme Antichamber.
    Basically every rule is introduced to you by very simple puzzle. And then with series of puzzles with slowly increasing difficulty. These sets of puzzles will make you understand some specific rule. But not every game mechanics is introduced in the tutorial area. But some crazy puzzles (mixing several rules in devilish ways) are near the begiining. If you encounter them, dont throw the game aawy, just continue.

    What really surprised me is variability of the puzzles. If you have seen the trailers and screenshots you may have a idea there is one type of puzzle. But this is not exactly true. There is one interface to solve the puzzles (you need to draw a line in a maze). But the rules and methods how to find the correct shape are constantly changing or introducing new elements. (please note that it is not just about introducing new elements and making the puzzles more and more complicated. Some areas are dedicated to completely new type of puzzles, completelly throw away everything you know and focus on some puzzle type unique only for that area)

    The game contains puzzles of all difficulties. Each area starts with some simple ones (showing you what to expects) and ends with really difficult ones, that usually requires you thinking out of the box. And to bring out the paper and pen. If you combine this with open world nature of this game (if you get stuck somewhere, you can move somewhere alse), this game should bring enough content to anybody regardless of their skill. Even if you will be able to solve just the easier puzzles, you can spent really lot of time inside the game before running out of solvable puzzles.

    The length of the game also seems great and above average. On one hand the game is small. You can explore the whole Island (except some locked areas) in few minutes at the very beggining of the game. But I dont think this is a bad thing. You will be running there and back again all the time (returing to previously unsolved puzzles and areas). And small size of the Island means, there is no annyoing backtracking. It just means the game is packed with content and there is something to do on every step you take. You can imagine the open world game where they deleted every "filler" empty area.
    But considering how many areas I solved, and how many I just visited on my trip around island and long long I spend inside the game I estimate this game will take you longer than 25 (probably over 30) hours to finish. And that is not bad at all.

    So from me, the game is really recoomened if you like puzzle games. It is designed to make you feel really stupid ("I have no idea what to do in this puzzle") and then make you feel really smart when you understand the puzzle some time later. Especially because it does not tell you directly what is expected. But it will give you enough small hint for you to understand yourself.    … Expand
  67. obstropolos
    Jan 26, 2016
    10
    The Witness is a stunningly beautiful and deviously difficult game. I was afraid that I had hyped myself up far too much after playing his excellent puzzle-platformer, Braid, which was his claim-to-fame in the world of indie games. However, I'm thrilled to say that The Witness does not disappoint!
    Beware of reviewers who say that the game mechanic is completely the same throughout the    The Witness is a stunningly beautiful and deviously difficult game. I was afraid that I had hyped myself up far too much after playing his excellent puzzle-platformer, Braid, which was his claim-to-fame in the world of indie games. However, I'm thrilled to say that The Witness does not disappoint!
    Beware of reviewers who say that the game mechanic is completely the same throughout the entire game. They most likely have not explored enough to reach the more interesting parts of the island. The Witness becomes even more intriguing as you start interacting more and more with your environment. I really love the idea that "the only key is knowledge": although this means you'll spend a lot of time sitting in front of panels, thinking, "I wonder what that does," the reward once you finally have all the knowledge necessary to solve it is unbeatable.
    To be fair, though, it is a rather heady game. Don't expect any hand holding, and expect to be frustrated.    … Expand
  68. porhawj
    Jan 26, 2016
    0
    this game is so annoying to solve damn puzzles that got me frustrating and thinking while solving puzzles. i really hate puzzle games like this.. Jonathon Blow must be puzzle solving freak
  69. keefkeef
    Jan 26, 2016
    9
    This is the game I've been waiting for. After a year of open world RPG's, collectathons, and futuristic FPS games, along comes something a little more subtle, a little more cryptic, and a lot more satisfying. The Witness starts you off with little plot, perhaps no plot depending on your perspective, and immediately allows you to delve into its beautiful world. You solve puzzles, simpleThis is the game I've been waiting for. After a year of open world RPG's, collectathons, and futuristic FPS games, along comes something a little more subtle, a little more cryptic, and a lot more satisfying. The Witness starts you off with little plot, perhaps no plot depending on your perspective, and immediately allows you to delve into its beautiful world. You solve puzzles, simple at first, to further explore the island and your purpose on it. It builds slowly, but soon enough you will encounter more and more daunting puzzles. When you solve them, I imagine you will take a deep breath and feel a wave of satisfaction...then move on to the next. This is the game. Sounds simple and it is. Don't be fooled! This isn't another ps plus indie game, no no, it has all the markings of a AAA game. Beautiful world, incredible level design, challenging puzzles, and a length that rivals any RPG on the market today...if you're willing to take the dive. And all for 40 bucks. Can't recommend this enough, it is a breathe of fresh air and something truly special.… Expand
  70. MuskelErwin
    Jan 26, 2016
    1
    the game was interesting for like an hour. after that, you only play with variations of the same game mechanic. therefore imho it quickly became pretty boring. visual style is "okay", but nothing special.
  71. inaneHELLRAISER
    Jan 26, 2016
    2
    Do you like stating at boards with dots on them not having a clue what your suppose to do because the mechanics of the game are not explained to you? well then this game is for you! The beautiful minimalist graphics are the one redeeming factor for this game but they are not enough to keep you playing. No direction, boring puzzles, and horribly designed. First disappointment of 2016 andDo you like stating at boards with dots on them not having a clue what your suppose to do because the mechanics of the game are not explained to you? well then this game is for you! The beautiful minimalist graphics are the one redeeming factor for this game but they are not enough to keep you playing. No direction, boring puzzles, and horribly designed. First disappointment of 2016 and boy did it ever disappoint.… Expand
  72. DeezR
    Jan 26, 2016
    9
    A puzzle game like nothing before, when viewing from trailers it looks like a beautiful world, and some mobile puzzles. What's the connection? But there's a great connection between the puzzles and the island. Biggest puzzle game breakthrough since portal.
  73. Allthat
    Jan 26, 2016
    10
    The Witness is a puzzle game that essentially revolves around only one type of puzzle. Although there are variations to it, you’ll basically spend your time going around solving finger maze puzzles. However there is an environmental element to the puzzles where you’ll find solutions in the world around you. That in my opinion is a really clever implementation by Jonathan Blow (the geniusThe Witness is a puzzle game that essentially revolves around only one type of puzzle. Although there are variations to it, you’ll basically spend your time going around solving finger maze puzzles. However there is an environmental element to the puzzles where you’ll find solutions in the world around you. That in my opinion is a really clever implementation by Jonathan Blow (the genius who made Braid). But don’t let finger puzzles put you off... play this game, the world of The Witness is absolutely breathtaking and there is a good story behind all the puzzles even though it is quite subtle.
    In my honest opinion this game is better than The Talos Principle and is on par if not better than the original Myst Games. However my biggest concern is the price, 40 dollars is just too much for an indie game with only one mechanic. The game itself however is an absolute joy and possibly one of the games of the year.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

14
#14 Best PS4 Game of 2016
24
#24 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2016
23
#23 Most Shared PS4 Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 82 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 71 out of 82
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 82
  3. Negative: 2 out of 82
  1. GameSpew
    Apr 15, 2016
    80
    The sound from completing a panel is extremely satisfying, and I’ve followed it with a victory dance more times than I’d like to admit.
    Read full review
  2. IGN Denmark
    Apr 6, 2016
    85
    Built immensely smartly, the puzzle elements are both captivating and creepily addictive.
    Read full review
  3. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Mar 31, 2016
    90
    A best-in-class puzzler that in no way caters to the lowest common denominator. Punishingly difficult. Extremely rewarding. [April 2016, p68]
See all critic reviews »