User Score
7.5

Generally favorable reviews- based on 853 Ratings

User score distribution:

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  1. Jun 12, 2023
    7
    It's great in parts, but (for me) too difficult/obscure in others, which made it frustrating. There's no way that I would have been able to complete it without looking up the wiki
  2. May 11, 2023
    6
    Interesting and atmospheric puzzler in which you wander an island populated by people frozen in place, solving puzzles presented on screens to progress. It starts very well but soon when the narrative gets less linear it becomes far less obvious as to what you are supposed to do next, resulting in too much aimless wandering. A nice idea well implemented, but many will find it overly andInteresting and atmospheric puzzler in which you wander an island populated by people frozen in place, solving puzzles presented on screens to progress. It starts very well but soon when the narrative gets less linear it becomes far less obvious as to what you are supposed to do next, resulting in too much aimless wandering. A nice idea well implemented, but many will find it overly and unnecessarily frustrating. Expand
  3. Apr 23, 2023
    10
    Jogo lindo, vai te quebrar muito a cabeça até que você entenda como funcionam os puzzles, mas viu, cada puzzle criativo...recomendo.
  4. Feb 24, 2023
    9
    The puzzles are excellent and a little (but not unreasonably) tough. I strongly recommend against using a guide, atleast for the ‘main’ and ‘side’ content.

    There are some optional (and easily overlooked) bonus puzzles. These are obviously distinct from the main/side puzzles. You will get a few of them on your own or by accident, but 100% completion is very unlikely. Frankly there’s not
    The puzzles are excellent and a little (but not unreasonably) tough. I strongly recommend against using a guide, atleast for the ‘main’ and ‘side’ content.

    There are some optional (and easily overlooked) bonus puzzles. These are obviously distinct from the main/side puzzles. You will get a few of them on your own or by accident, but 100% completion is very unlikely. Frankly there’s not much thinking involved in these bonus puzzles and there is no reward for completing them. So I recommend (for your own sanity) that you ignore them altogether.
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  5. Feb 16, 2023
    2
    El no tiene sentido es aburrido y poco entretenido los puzzles repetitivo definitivamente la peor experiencia de juego no lo vuelvo a tocar ni loco nunca habia jugado slgo que me hiciera cabrear al final del juego recomendado 0% no tiene por donde cogerlo los puzzles estos
  6. Feb 3, 2023
    7
    Great game, although there are puzzles that can be tedious without a guide, but because I'm not very good at it
  7. Nov 11, 2022
    7
    This is a beautiful art, with outstanding graphic design and world design. And like Kentucky Route Zero, let down by an incomprehensible narrative. This game raises so my 'why' questions it does not explain in a way that gives any sense of enjoyment or closure.
  8. Jul 21, 2022
    10
    beautiful world design, phenomenal game design. finding areas you don't know how to solve, finding the tutorial areas, and going back to solve the original puzzle is extremely satisfying. getting every laser to unlock the mountain, and then finding THE CHALLENGE. a phenomenal puzzle game, offers a challenge but not insanely difficult (besides a few puzzles: **** the sound puzzle on thebeautiful world design, phenomenal game design. finding areas you don't know how to solve, finding the tutorial areas, and going back to solve the original puzzle is extremely satisfying. getting every laser to unlock the mountain, and then finding THE CHALLENGE. a phenomenal puzzle game, offers a challenge but not insanely difficult (besides a few puzzles: **** the sound puzzle on the shipwreck) and i don't think there is a better one in existence Expand
  9. Apr 22, 2022
    7
    The puzzles present an infuriating dichotomy: some are an absolute joy to figure out and solve; others are diabolical and downright obnoxious for you to find out what to do and solve them. As far as puzzle games go, its an alright one, although not worth the 15$ that you would have to pay to play it (I got mine for free via playstation plus). Also, for platinum/achievement hunters lookingThe puzzles present an infuriating dichotomy: some are an absolute joy to figure out and solve; others are diabolical and downright obnoxious for you to find out what to do and solve them. As far as puzzle games go, its an alright one, although not worth the 15$ that you would have to pay to play it (I got mine for free via playstation plus). Also, for platinum/achievement hunters looking for easy pickings, I would advise you to stay away: there is an absolutely insane achievement that is truly not worth your time and effort. If you're looking for a good logic game with balanced puzzles that are both fun to solve and test your mind, I would recommend definitely trying it out at some stage, as it can be frustrating but genuinely gratifying to figure out what you have to do and solve the puzzles, but maybe try playing something like Portal 2 instead before you truly delve into the puzzle genre. Expand
  10. Apr 5, 2022
    6
    It's a good game, but... it's very stressful, it makes it difficult for me to progress through the levels since my head almost hurts.
  11. Dec 2, 2021
    9
    If you like a peerless challenge, The Witness will knock your puzzle socks off, offering a steady progression from the immediately obvious, through moments of frustration & revelation, all the way to the mind-bending and apparently impossible final test, making the a-ha moments all the more satisfying. All presented in a compact but pretty world with a unique art style and a diffuseIf you like a peerless challenge, The Witness will knock your puzzle socks off, offering a steady progression from the immediately obvious, through moments of frustration & revelation, all the way to the mind-bending and apparently impossible final test, making the a-ha moments all the more satisfying. All presented in a compact but pretty world with a unique art style and a diffuse narrative that's revealed gradually, obliquely, and impressionistically as you climb up the difficulty ladder.

    Even reliving my playthrough to write this review, five years later, is a moment of very happy memories.
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  12. Nov 20, 2021
    7
    This game is fully packed with puzzles. Puzzles are the best thing in this game but they also bring this game down for me - some of the puzzles are amazing, very creative and require a lot of out of the box thinking - however puzzles in this game are somewhat evenly distributed between creative ones, totally obscure and puzzles that are just chore to solve and not fun at all - sometimesThis game is fully packed with puzzles. Puzzles are the best thing in this game but they also bring this game down for me - some of the puzzles are amazing, very creative and require a lot of out of the box thinking - however puzzles in this game are somewhat evenly distributed between creative ones, totally obscure and puzzles that are just chore to solve and not fun at all - sometimes you learn a mechanic and it's fun to solve next puzzles based on it, each puzzle gets more complicated or includes some twist on the mechanic - but going further it gets old and too tedious and there is no more sense of awe and discovery like before. As for the story it's decent but didn't keep me involved. Overall it's a good game worth a buy. It's quite similar to The Talos Principle but not in its league. Expand
  13. Nov 17, 2021
    5
    Не залетела игра. Головоломки какие-то однотипные, сюжета как такового нет, поиграйте в портал, если нравятся подобные игры. 5/10
  14. Sep 17, 2021
    2
    A relatively simple line puzzle concept is overused under the guise of an open world game. Solving puzzles is not really rewarding, causing one to wonder at the end of the game what exactly one has "witnessed". Games should be fun and should not feel like a repetitive chore. The world created is beautiful and it is a shame that the level of interaction of the player with the world is so low.
  15. Aug 6, 2021
    10
    A game that teaches you how to intuit, be creative and develop critical thinking. It's also a game that teaches you that it's okay to not know something. I find these teachings to be invaluable.

    The Witness contains some very basic mechanics, but the way you use those mechanics can get imaginative, tricky and downright complex in all the best ways. Almost all of the puzzles are quite
    A game that teaches you how to intuit, be creative and develop critical thinking. It's also a game that teaches you that it's okay to not know something. I find these teachings to be invaluable.

    The Witness contains some very basic mechanics, but the way you use those mechanics can get imaginative, tricky and downright complex in all the best ways. Almost all of the puzzles are quite intelligent too. The underlying narrative, although not the main focus, is pretty intriguing with some extremely interesting philosophical points that make you want to explore more of the mysterious and undeniably beautiful and varied island.

    The exploration aspect of the island is of equally high quality. You constantly find puzzles that you simply can't figure out how to solve or ones that contain unrecognizable symbols. The game teaches you that it's OK to walk away and try it later, once you have more clues as to what the symbols mean. But the most important thing that's happening here is that through different puzzles, you can build intuition that will help with different kinds of puzzles.

    Hence, figuring out what to do with some difficult or alien puzzles also has to do with building up your intuition. This aspect of problem solving is usually reserved for high-level non-gaming stuff, such as college-level courses and it's a delight to find that the gradual building of problem-solving intuition is a major factor in a game. Most games are all about building short-term intuition (which is not as related to critical thinking as long-term intuition) and/or smarts.

    It also teaches different ways thinking, since a good amount of the puzzles require out-of-the-box and abstract thinking. Sometimes it's not about piecing clues together to reach a unique logical conclusion (although this is a part of it too); it's also about developing different ways of thinking so that you can use educated guesses and then test those against newer and more difficult puzzles and then refining the initial guess. It almost sounds like the scientific process behind research!

    It's an intelligent but difficult game. Stick with it and you'll be rewarded. And even if you don't complete it (it's huge), you'll still have experienced one of the most original and creative pieces of art that gaming has to offer. Truly eccentric.
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  16. Aug 2, 2021
    10
    It's just fantastic, it's how difficult a game should be, I had a great time with all these crazy puzzles, and even when I finished the game there were still too many secrets to discover, I fell in love with this game.
  17. Jul 12, 2021
    7
    In general if you like riddles and puzzles this is a fantastic game, although the games not for me and my brain. Done very well.
  18. Jun 4, 2021
    7
    I've heard and read lots of praise for this game. I do not entirely agree. The puzzle concept is fine, and there is some genius involved in shaping it up from time to time, situation to situation. The graphics and lore are interesting, with an almost cell-shaded environment that is well suited for the game. There is true satisfaction in completing The Witness, but one might ask: is itI've heard and read lots of praise for this game. I do not entirely agree. The puzzle concept is fine, and there is some genius involved in shaping it up from time to time, situation to situation. The graphics and lore are interesting, with an almost cell-shaded environment that is well suited for the game. There is true satisfaction in completing The Witness, but one might ask: is it balanced?

    The main issue is that, after the first few minutes, the user is left alone understanding puzzles. The concept introduced at the beginning of a "stage" is not enough to finish the stage itself. That happens often, and the open world structure does not facilitate this. By amplifying the sense of satisfaction and adventure, game progression is left behind. Gameplay cycles are this way broken into pieces, leading to frustration, which the absence of action furtherly widens.

    A very good puzzle game. I would have preferred a more scalable approach.
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  19. May 31, 2021
    10
    If you like puzzle games, this is a masterpiece.

    It may not be fun to watch (for example, like Portal sometimes is), but for the person engaged with it...wow. So much of the fun takes place inside the person playing it. Which -- I mean, I get that sounds obvious, but... I would get up Sunday mornings, make myself some tea, and stare at a grid for an hour, and I LOVED it. For my
    If you like puzzle games, this is a masterpiece.

    It may not be fun to watch (for example, like Portal sometimes is), but for the person engaged with it...wow. So much of the fun takes place inside the person playing it. Which -- I mean, I get that sounds obvious, but...

    I would get up Sunday mornings, make myself some tea, and stare at a grid for an hour, and I LOVED it.

    For my money, best puzzle game ever made. I wish I could erase my memory and play it again.
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  20. May 30, 2021
    5
    Created by Jonathan Blow, the man behind the excellent Braid, The Witness allows players explore an open world environment solving puzzles in order to unlock the secrets of the island on which they find themselves.

    The game itself essentially revolves around one type of puzzle in which the player must correctly draw a line, or lines, on a grid. There is an impressive level of variety to
    Created by Jonathan Blow, the man behind the excellent Braid, The Witness allows players explore an open world environment solving puzzles in order to unlock the secrets of the island on which they find themselves.

    The game itself essentially revolves around one type of puzzle in which the player must correctly draw a line, or lines, on a grid. There is an impressive level of variety to these puzzles, and they’re all very clever, but for me personally it still wasn’t enough to support a game with a run time of at least twenty hours. Each new type of puzzle is often introduced by what amount to tutorials, with the game allowing players to solve simple examples before upping the complexity. All too often however you’ll find that you need to solve 20-30 of the same puzzle type before being able to move on, and this is made all the more frustrating when the game decided it wants you to repeat the previous puzzle after making a mistake. Once you do solve a set of puzzles and unlock a new area your reward is then a load more puzzles to solve!

    I don’t want to be too critical of The Witness as it’s clear an incredible amount of time and effort has gone into it. I can’t help but feel that a bit of editing to reduce the number of times you repeat each type puzzle, and reducing the overall run time, would have made it a more enjoyable experience however...
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  21. May 15, 2021
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is a very inventive and interesting puzzle game. The game prides itself in being able to innovate on the same basic mechanic in so many interesting ways. Sadly, there are some puzzles that are just too obtuse and awkward to solve. To give you an example, there's a series of puzzles where you have to stand at just the right specific spot so that the glare of the sun shines on the puzzle, showing the solution. This isn't a puzzle. It doesn't require critical thinking, just aimless experimentation. The Witness has way too many puzzles like this that bring it down.

    Of course, there are so many other incredibly designed puzzles and environments that make up for those mistakes. It isn't a game for everyone, but I enjoyed it.
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  22. May 11, 2021
    4
    The problem with the Witness is that it has such a simple and pure gameplay mechanic, that there is no margin for error. This is true for both the player and the developer. And while the developer expects perfection from the player--the developer has made glaring errors in judgement and some absolute garbage puzzles. These puzzles come up randomly, and they ruin the experience. I am goingThe problem with the Witness is that it has such a simple and pure gameplay mechanic, that there is no margin for error. This is true for both the player and the developer. And while the developer expects perfection from the player--the developer has made glaring errors in judgement and some absolute garbage puzzles. These puzzles come up randomly, and they ruin the experience. I am going to break down one of these puzzles below so that you know exactly how much thought I've put into this.

    The game uses nothing but the simple mechanic of drawing lines as both the entire gameplay loop and as the method for communicating how the mechanic works. The first couple dozen puzzles are magical discovery in this regard. You learn the rules through deduction and careful attention.

    However, the problem occurs when the developers intentionally breaks more than 1 existing rule at a time, and they do so without warning.

    Gameplay Spoiler Below:
    For example, in the Marsh area, inside the light blue staircase, you are introduced to a somewhat new mechanic: 4 blue squares grouped into a larger square. So far, the rules for the tetris square puzzles are such:

    -you must draw the outline of all yellow shapes depicted
    -the yellow tetris blocks must be inside the outline that represents that shape.
    -You can fuse the outline of two shapes together so they create one large shape, as long as all the contributing yellow blocks are included inside the larger outline.
    -You cannot "morph" the shape of any depicted tetris block. If its a long skinny block, you can't rearrange the squares so that it is an "L" shaped block.
    -You cannot overlap any same-colored squares while fusing shapes. They must fit like a puzzle.

    Then we are introduced to Blue squares. Blue squares are never depicted as tetris blocks, (until the fateful and horribly designed puzzle.) These are the rules:
    -A blue square can be used to delete a yellow square. The blue square must be included in an outline with a yellow tetris image in order for it to delete part of that tetris shape. You can delete any square you like.
    -If all yellow squares are deleted by blue squares, you can create any shape at all, as long as all the necessary blocks are included in the shape to produce "nothing". If the entire set of squares produces nothing, outline no shapes and proceed directly to the goal.

    We have seen some blue "tetris" blocks, in which I mean that two or more blue squares form a larger shape.
    Example: https://cdn.gamer-network.net/2016/usgamer/p7_16.jpg

    All of the solutions to these fulfill the rule of "you cannot morph shapes made form 2 or more colored squares". As such, the player MUST assume, if they are to beat the game as the developers have taught us, that the rule stating you cannot "morph" the shape of any depicted tetris block applies to both yellow and blue. At no point in any of the previous puzzles are we given an easy to solve puzzle which communicates the idea that blue squares are allowed to be morphed. Through logical deduction, the player is forced to make an incorrect conclusion ABOUT MULTIPLE RULES, which I will detail below.

    Then, the developers give you this utterly horrible, completely illogical, red-herring infested trash pile of a puzzle. Second puzzle in from the right, with the group of 4 blue squares:
    https://cdn.gamer-network.net/2016/usgamer/p7_17.jpg

    Look at the solution. You are meant to split the 4 blue squares into singletons and then apply them to individual pieces of two different yellow tetris blocks, and after you do that, THEN you place the augmented yellow blocks on the bottom row. Or perhaps, you OVERLAP the two L shapes so the tall parts meet in the middle, then split the blue shape in half, and delete the short-side of each L shape.

    Any way you try to think about it, this puzzle follows none of the established rules, and to make matters worse, it is only ever used once during this entire set of puzzles. A complete logical fallacy that breaks mutliple rules in the midst of a series. These types of infuriating and utterly senseless roadblocks make the game an absolute chore to play. There can be no enjoyment while I constantly wonder whether the developer is being a total jerk to me or not.

    I am so glad I got this game for free. This is definitely not worth $40. It has not been peer-reviewed.
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  23. Apr 28, 2021
    1
    I enjoyed the puzzles and the world. But if you are a story lover this game is pointless! I was disappointed about the ending, I wanted the stone people to come to life and there to be a super cool story. But no you do puzzles and they give you nothing. If I wanted to just solve puzzles I can easily find an app to do so. So disappointed. I feel like I wasted my life playing this game. AlsoI enjoyed the puzzles and the world. But if you are a story lover this game is pointless! I was disappointed about the ending, I wanted the stone people to come to life and there to be a super cool story. But no you do puzzles and they give you nothing. If I wanted to just solve puzzles I can easily find an app to do so. So disappointed. I feel like I wasted my life playing this game. Also if you had a concussion, post concussion syndrome, sensitive to lights or easily get dizzy this is not the game for you. It hurts the brain. If you want to improve this game have a story, don’t use bright lights and spin stuff around. Expand
  24. Apr 27, 2021
    9
    This game is beautiful and a must play if you enjoy puzzles and brain teasers. It does get very hard and some of the puzzle types are hard to understand with just in world clues. I had to start cheating eventually but I did finish the cheat proof “challenge” at the end. The philosophical stuff was a bit beyond me but this is a lovely way to kill 30 minutes to an hour if that’s all you haveThis game is beautiful and a must play if you enjoy puzzles and brain teasers. It does get very hard and some of the puzzle types are hard to understand with just in world clues. I had to start cheating eventually but I did finish the cheat proof “challenge” at the end. The philosophical stuff was a bit beyond me but this is a lovely way to kill 30 minutes to an hour if that’s all you have or just want a break from a more intense game. Expand
  25. Apr 15, 2021
    5
    While I respect the ideas and concept of the creators of The Witness and the style and gameplay are fun at first - line puzzles, as complex as they may be, can only take you so far.

    A lot of the logic behind the puzzle solutions is poorly or not communicated at all and while that may be fun for a while, towards the end you start hitting a Souls-like difficulty curve which is represented
    While I respect the ideas and concept of the creators of The Witness and the style and gameplay are fun at first - line puzzles, as complex as they may be, can only take you so far.

    A lot of the logic behind the puzzle solutions is poorly or not communicated at all and while that may be fun for a while, towards the end you start hitting a Souls-like difficulty curve which is represented through puzzles which are more or less "the creators of these puzzles can solve them and so should you" levels of obnoxious and hard.

    The Witness is a decent game if you have a ton of free time and enough patience to play it but it fundamentally fails at being a good game. Most of the praise comes from pseudo-elitist journalists who think that if they don't get it - it must be genius. Unfortunately in this case, it's just bad game design.
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  26. Apr 5, 2021
    10
    i've played through the witness twice now. not knowing of the secret ending or hidden cave. people rarely put this much effort in to games anymore. you don't expect this many easter eggs.... sure, if you can't handle critical thinking, variable analysis, and creating algorithms, you might not be able to solve every puzzle, and may not even beat the game. especially for thei've played through the witness twice now. not knowing of the secret ending or hidden cave. people rarely put this much effort in to games anymore. you don't expect this many easter eggs.... sure, if you can't handle critical thinking, variable analysis, and creating algorithms, you might not be able to solve every puzzle, and may not even beat the game. especially for the colorblind.. but there are plenty of old games i never got to beat. not ashamed to admit, that i'd get tired of a puzzle after a while, forgetting a rule or feeling like i gave it my best, looking up a solution. sometimes concluding a puzzle as impossible because i forget a rule, though i ran every possibility and concluded the only solutions, only to find out, i forgot one silly rule... the second play through i only used a cheat on 4 puzzles, solving majority by myself, completing the game in around 20 hours. but you spend a lot of time getting lost and just exploring, enjoying, and being surprised. after 5 years, its still one of the best experiences i've had. pushing my brain to new levels of understanding, rethinking my own choices, and self doubt to find solutions to these puzzles i'd never think naturally like. its clearly well cared for by someone who really wanted to make a game that separates itself from the same old cut up and dlc sales tactic. majority of people probably can't get the most out of it... which is a dangerous idea, that you aren't catering to the majority of simple people out their. its genuinely a game for an intellect... plain and simple. however, the more you adapt, and push yourself, the more satisfying it is to solve things you never thought you could. separating you from the pack of quitters. its not a game for an epic ending. its a game to grow with. so when you quit, you know what sort you are. when you do get to finish it. you feel qualified to understand the others that did as well. a group of people who enjoy puzzles and analysis. algorithms, variables. if you can beat this game quickly, you most likely have an eidetic vision and memory of some kind. though, i've found myself having to write out a few solutions cause there were too many possibilities to all hold in my head. making it something you know you care about because you are willing to go that extra step. simply put. a great game, not for everyone. but don't be afraid to cheat so you can get to the next level and enjoy creative artistry used in it... you'll never have an excuse to truly get stuck. Expand
  27. Apr 5, 2021
    1
    I am a hardcore gamer, raised in the 80s. You can tell, I have seen some s***.
    But man! This game is the most boring game I ever played! My score for this game is 1 instead of 0 just because of this cool introduction tunnel. You want some indie emotional s***? Get Limbo, Inside or AAA Death Stranding
  28. Apr 1, 2021
    5
    Única coisa realmente impressionante é o visual, tanto da ilha como dos puzzles, mas de resto é bem meh e não vai muito além disso. Tentou ser interessante com os áudios e vídeos mas só acabou sendo chato.
  29. Mar 29, 2021
    0
    Όλο βλακειες βάζει η sony δωρεάν..Οκ,το πιάσαμε,το φθηνό κρέας το τρώει ο σκύλος
  30. Feb 15, 2021
    8
    This is NOT a game for everyone. The solutions for some of puzzles can feel insane to do without looking them up, but almost every puzzle has meticulous detail, subtle hints, and cleverly hidden environmental details. Almost every puzzle feels satisfying to solve, and many left me feeling "how did they program that?"

    That being said, I do feel that making all the puzzles grid based
    This is NOT a game for everyone. The solutions for some of puzzles can feel insane to do without looking them up, but almost every puzzle has meticulous detail, subtle hints, and cleverly hidden environmental details. Almost every puzzle feels satisfying to solve, and many left me feeling "how did they program that?"

    That being said, I do feel that making all the puzzles grid based limits the game's potential a bit. The amount of reused/filler puzzles isn't insignificant either, which is disappointing for a 40$ game (more on that in a bit).

    The game has NO respect for the player's time. A simple raft takes 2 minutes to reach its destination.
    This is annoying to me because the game claims to respect player's intelligence and time in the description, when it does no such thing.

    I think The Witness is pretty good game, but costs 20$ too much. The game isn't too long, and it reuses so many puzzles that it simply does nothing to earn the 40$ price tag. If you've enjoyed games like Riven, Myst, Outer Wilds and the lot, I recommend waiting for a good deal, and grabbing it then.
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Metascore
87

Generally favorable reviews - based on 82 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 71 out of 82
  2. Negative: 2 out of 82
  1. 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.
  2. Apr 6, 2016
    85
    Built immensely smartly, the puzzle elements are both captivating and creepily addictive.
  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]