Subsurface Circular

 Switch
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 37 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 37
  2. Mixed: 8 out of 37
  3. Negative: 2 out of 37

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  1. dbuendia
    Mar 18, 2018
    6
    Music and Art is great. But expected something more from the story (my fault probably). It's not bad, but I felt the conclusion was a bit weak.
  2. eforall
    Mar 29, 2018
    7
    For the price, it is a great game that will keep you entertained throughout. There are a few puzzles that seem like a sudden vertical ramp in gameplay although they also add a welcome switch up from the text based conversations. The game does a good job of convincing you there is a much bigger world outside of the train carriages.
  3. Tortor
    Oct 25, 2021
    5
    Not an outright terrible experience but I found it all feeling kinda bland.

    Sitting in a single room and reading text message conversations was not very exciting. Even when a supposedly exciting moment would occur nothing really happens on screen to give the idea of a tense situation. It's super static. The world building was cool, i definitely got a sense of the world and what the    Not an outright terrible experience but I found it all feeling kinda bland.

    Sitting in a single room and reading text message conversations was not very exciting. Even when a supposedly exciting moment would occur nothing really happens on screen to give the idea of a tense situation. It's super static. The world building was cool, i definitely got a sense of the world and what the conflicts were on about. Characters felt like empty husks and there just to play a role to get plot moving. Felt absolutely nothing for them. The plot was a standard short story but didn't feel like it did anything new or exciting with it, attaching a game to it felt kinda gimmicky. This book was also could have really benefited from a prolog. The story just ends and no choice feeling like it mattered.    … Expand
  4. Switchindiefix
    Apr 8, 2018
    7
    All in all, for it’s price point of €6.99 there probably isn’t a better quality indie title on the eshop. The story is well written and the puzzles are clever and intuitive. If you’re a fan of older BioWare games I think you’ll really enjoy Subsurface Circular.

    The game looks and runs great in both handheld and docked mode and during my 3 hour play through, I was always entertained and    All in all, for it’s price point of €6.99 there probably isn’t a better quality indie title on the eshop. The story is well written and the puzzles are clever and intuitive. If you’re a fan of older BioWare games I think you’ll really enjoy Subsurface Circular.

    The game looks and runs great in both handheld and docked mode and during my 3 hour play through, I was always entertained and interested in the developing story. Personally, I found the ending the weakest part of the game but that may differ from player to player.

    I hope Bithell Games makes another short game in this world as it is extremely fleshed out and intriguing. Maybe something from the humans’ prospective!    … Expand
  5. nusco
    Jun 17, 2018
    5
    Subsurface Circular takes two bold bets. The first: it's a game meant to played in one session, the gaming equivalent of watching a movie. The second bet: it tries to bring an extremely niche genre, conversation-based interactive fiction, into the mainstream. It does that by adding pleasant, although nearly static, graphics to the text–but it's still a text game through and through.Subsurface Circular takes two bold bets. The first: it's a game meant to played in one session, the gaming equivalent of watching a movie. The second bet: it tries to bring an extremely niche genre, conversation-based interactive fiction, into the mainstream. It does that by adding pleasant, although nearly static, graphics to the text–but it's still a text game through and through.

    You've got to respect this game for what it tries to do. The result of this experiment, however, is disappointing. I enjoyed the game while it lasted, but I never felt any sense of agency. The options you're given mostly feel like they'll all eventually result in the same outcome. Even the final choice, which is the game's only visible attempt at branching the storyline, feels inconsequential. Subsurface Circular seems to be aware of its own shortcomings, and it attempts to throw a couple of light logical puzzles in the mix, which end up feeling pointless and contrived.

    All in all, that lack of interactivity and the contrived storyline make Subsurface Circular feels like a missed opportunity.    … Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 22
  3. Negative: 1 out of 22
  1. Gaming Age
    Jul 17, 2018
    100
    As someone who’ll take a concentrated dose of exceptional storytelling over an endless slog of repetitive tasks and quests, I can’t say that the brevity or the lack of replayability bothers me all that much. All I really want is to hear/read an incredible story — well, that, and a genuinely great follow-up to Thomas Was Alone. Luckily, Subsurface Circular delivers on both.
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  2. Everyeye.it
    Mar 28, 2018
    77
    Subsurface Circular is a fascinating and unconventional project that, despite running out within a couple of hours, still manages to leave a mark in the memory of the players.
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  3. IGN Italia
    Mar 22, 2018
    80
    This "Mike Bithell short" is an intriguing, little, adventure. Gameplay wise is as simple as efficient and is visually refined and well polished.
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