OneShot: World Machine Edition

 Switch
User Score
8.2

Generally favorable reviews- based on 17 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 17
  3. Negative: 2 out of 17

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  1. Speegey
    Dec 24, 2022
    10
    Shoebill, this is one of the best games i have ever played, Shut up. World machine edition doesnt exactly encasulate the pc experience, but it nonetheless is still a great game and all the additions like a friends menu add a lot more substance to the game and make the game much more immersive.
  2. TForThe
    Jan 18, 2023
    10
    Good game but plz add more dialouge for the tall clock lady that knows everything abt time
    She knew that is 11:00 Good game overall
    12/10
  3. shoebill
    Nov 4, 2022
    5
    I'm lost by the positive reviews for this game. I didn't find it successful at any of the core aspects that make a good adventure game, and I wouldn't have recommended it even if it were free. This sounds really damning, but it's not meant to be. Nothing was bad, but nothing was good, and I am certain I will not remember a single thing about this game in 6 months.

    The premise of the    I'm lost by the positive reviews for this game. I didn't find it successful at any of the core aspects that make a good adventure game, and I wouldn't have recommended it even if it were free. This sounds really damning, but it's not meant to be. Nothing was bad, but nothing was good, and I am certain I will not remember a single thing about this game in 6 months.

    The premise of the game is that you play a PC game player, who in-game is playing the game OneShot. Your interface is essentially the Windows desktop, with OneShot playing on a windowed screen within it. (Importantly, you can full-screen it.) There's not a ton going on in this meta-world, though, other than occasionally needing to step back into it for a puzzle to unblock the OneShot game world. I found the meta setting pretty overhyped and underutilized. To be fair to the game, You are a Game Player / You are On a PC was a less common (but not unheard of) trope when OneShot first came out in 2014, but with the standard set by more recent games like Doki Doki, There is No Game, and Hypnospace Outlaw, I kept waiting for more from the meta-world. The puzzles you solve there are almost railroaded, and there isn't a lot of evolution or surprise.

    Now over to the game-within-a-PC-window itself. OneShot is a top-down 8-bit-style adventure game. You play as Niko, a vaguely humanoid child who wakes up in a derelict house. Your first mission is to get Niko out of the house through some basic adventure puzzle-solving: find the items, put the items in the right slot. Niko then emerges into a post-apocalyptic world and begins a quest to bring the sun (a large lightbulb) to a central tower in order to put it back in the sky. This starts the core part of the game, where you move through a series of medium-sized areas, solve some fairly linear puzzles, and talk to the local inhabitants. The game is zero-combat, which is something my withered reflexes appreciated.

    At this point, the lack of characterization in the world both undermines the aesthetic experience and the gameplay. Each discrete "level" has one primary color, and after moving through 4-5 screens, you will realize each screen looks a lot like the last. In an adventure game, this is particularly problematic. There are a few puzzles that are clever, but an equal amount that are difficult because "I swear I already went this way." You're largely wandering a same-y purple moonscape, until you're wandering a same-y green moonscape in the next level. I wouldn't mind wandering around lost if the act of wandering was pleasant, but it's mostly dull, which is not helped by the muted synth soundtrack. For me, it didn't convey much feeling. The one shining star (or sun, if you will) in the world-building was the dialogue, which is generally cute and funny. Each of the levels are populated by several NPCs that flesh out the world and its story. None of them have a ton of depth, but they're fun exchanges that help the monochrome world feel more alive. Niko also frequently talks to the player character. Your mileage may vary with Niko, but I didn't enjoy him as a character. He's expressly a child character. I think he's written very well as a child. But young children aren't always the most interesting or sympathetic, and Niko came across to me as whiny and drab; his only interests that I can recall are his mother, pancakes, and complaining about looking like a cat.

    One of the selling points of OneShot appears to be its replayability. The game warns you multiple times you'll have to make irreversible and difficult decisions. This is massively overplayed - there are very few major choices. There was one part in which I refused to help an NPC because I thought it would be a major inflection in the story...and it was just something I needed to do. So, few game-changing decisions, but regardless, the game does change on a replay. I honestly found the game so forgettable on my first playthrough that I couldn't bring myself to do a second. One playthrough took me around 6-7 hours, by my reckoning. That could be a bit off, as I put the game down for a month in the middle of that.

    I always try to figure out if there is any kind of player that should play a game, even if I didn't like it myself. It's a struggle with this one. I thought the target audience was exactly me - indie adventure players who like a dash of darkness in the story. But if you have experience with any similar games before, OneShot won't measure up, even compared with other simple games like Miwashiba games. I suppose what I'll leave you with as a recommendation is that this would be a decent game for pre-teens who are getting into this kind of game for the first time. Still, there are better.    … Expand
  4. curzon_dax
    Apr 15, 2023
    7
    It's a pretty good game for the most part; it has cute art and good puzzles and a cozy environment; it should be enjoyed by all into adventure games of this type but there two big caveats. First: the mapping in general is between cumbersome and lazy; most world graphics are copy pasted dozens of times and the geometry is very repetitive to the point of just having to scan the map in aIt's a pretty good game for the most part; it has cute art and good puzzles and a cozy environment; it should be enjoyed by all into adventure games of this type but there two big caveats. First: the mapping in general is between cumbersome and lazy; most world graphics are copy pasted dozens of times and the geometry is very repetitive to the point of just having to scan the map in a mechanical manner to cover it all without making a mistake at just checking it all. Secondly the game takes itself way to seriously in terms of wanting the player to restart the game; they added an alternative long ending after it was released on stream which implies you really love replaying a large part of it; they should have kept it at the original design [happy endings aren't always necessary in good stories anyway].… Expand
  5. Aekd
    Mar 6, 2023
    9
    The game would have been a 10 out of 10, however the slow sections lost my attention span, so it loses some scores, The solstice route is 10 out of 10 the first route is like a 7

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
92

Universal acclaim - based on 6 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 6
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 6
  3. Negative: 0 out of 6
  1. Cubed3
    May 8, 2026
    90
    OneShot: World Machine Edition is an unbelievable triumph of video game storytelling and adventure game design. It's simple enough that anyone can pick it up and figure it out, but it has enough depth to keep it interesting. Its strength lies in its atmosphere, storytelling, and the emotional connection players have with the characters, especially Niko. It’s an incredible experience that takes around five hours to complete, with even more time for those who explore the alternate endings, all for just a few dollars and often available on sale.
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  2. Pure Nintendo
    Oct 27, 2022
    95
    OneShot: World Machine Edition is an awesome game with memorable characters and an interesting story that will challenge your brain and make you think. If you like Undertale, puzzle games, or a great story, then I highly recommend checking out OneShot!
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  3. Nintenderos
    Oct 4, 2022
    90
    OneShot: World Machine Edition is still the modern classic it already was. This time improved and expanded to current generation platforms so that more people can enjoy it. We are very satisfied with the experience we have found playing it, and we strongly recommend any fan of games like OMORI, Yume Nikki or Undertale to give it a chance.
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