A Rose in the Twilight

A Rose in the Twilight is best described on the surface as being an undeniably bleak, somewhat charming, but consistently creative 2D puzzle platforming experience.

A Rose in the Twilight's dark and atmospheric tone contrasts well with the budding story of friendship between two unlikely individuals but it's the well-crafted and clever puzzles built on just a few simple mechanics that make it a must-play for any puzzle game fan.

A Rose in the Twilight’s story and style earn it much more praise. Rose’s past drives a tale of imprisonment that is as dark as what she must do to escape. Every memory she relives becomes a ghost that haunts her and the player alike -- ultimately a much deeper, cerebral experience than other PlayStation Vita titles.

This is the sort of game that needs to be experienced, rather than played — and if you’re looking for the perfect time of year to do that, it’s right now, so you’d better hurry up and get on it.

A Rose in the Twilight is a title with a dreadfully oppressive atmosphere that stars a tragic heroine whose trials and tribulations are heartbreaking to experience. It features solid, albeit sometimes frustrating puzzles and an abundance of backtracking. It’s a title with a niche appeal, but to those that can appreciate a dark fairy tale and have the stomach to suffer through some disturbing imagery as well as some obtuse puzzle designs, this might be a flower worth cultivating.

A rose in the twilight is a delicious niche puzzle platformer, with a just right difficulty curve, a heartbreaking story and a bleak and fascinating visual style. This alone should be enough for Vita owners, hungry for new games, but beware: it's not a game for everyone, slow and difficult as it is. We loved our time with it nonetheless.

A Rose in the Twilight is a worthy spiritual successor to The Firefly Diary and one very intriguing puzzle platformer on its own with a unique and eerie atmosphere.

A Rose in the Twilight is a really interesting puzzle game that properly utilizes each character’s specific abilities and uses its aesthetic to highlight key points of interest while setting a specific mood. The way everything ties back into the narrative that the game is trying to tell is done really well and makes for a really enjoyable journey, through both the good and bad times that both Rose and giant share.

As a spiritual successor to Firefly Diary, A Rose in the Twilight excels in nearly every way. The simple art style of the game makes the gruesome events of the game even more striking, and you feel for this mysterious, troubled girl and her equally mysterious golem companion, as they traverse death traps and monster mazes in search of answers. It’s a carefully constructed narrative that never once feels hindered or neutered by the lack of direct dialogue. Despite a few encounters that were too vague for my tastes, the puzzles and challenges you face in the game are satisfying and difficult in just the right way. It all comes together in a wonderful package with a few stray flaws, but they hardly end up detracting from an otherwise beautiful experience.

It is not the next Braid, but is a very good puzzle platformer, with a very interesting setting and well-designed gameplay.

A Rose in the Twilight does a lot of things well. It crafts a story and a world that makes me care deeply about its central character, it’s visually spectacular when it’s not killing you with its hard-to-distinguish artwork, and it touches on moods and feelings that most other games don’t even attempt to venture into. For as much creativity as there is to be found throughout those aspects, there isn’t nearly enough in the actual gameplay. If the first half played more like the second half, it would have been an outstanding experience in spite of its short length.

Quotation forthcoming.

A Rose in the Twilight has plenty of good ideas - but they're buried under slow gameplay, a scattered plot, and some frustrating design. Despite all this, there's a solid puzzle-platformer with some touching moments to be found here; and although it's not one I can recommend wholeheartedly, it's fun enough for the price that it's worth checking out.

A Rose in the Twilight is a challenging puzzle game with the appearance of a tale which will be very rewarding to the players. It lacks some features, but it is worth a try.

A Rose in the Twilight is a gorgeous yet gruesome game filled with lots of clever puzzles. And although it won't take you too long to explore the setting, there are collectibles as well as a fun speed run mode to keep you busy. The pure innocence and bravery of Rose in the face of the castle's cruelty makes for a haunting journey - one that'll stick in your mind for some time.

Despite some notable missteps, this peculiar mix of macabre storytelling and 2D puzzle-solving still has an interesting story to tell.