The Gardens Between

 Switch
The Gardens Between Image
Metascore
79

Generally favorable reviews - based on 23 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
7.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 33 Ratings

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  • Summary: Best friends Arina and Frendt delve into a series of vibrant, dreamlike island gardens peppered with everyday objects from their childhood. Together they embark on an emotional journey that examines the significance of their friendship: the memories they’ve built, what must be let go, andBest friends Arina and Frendt delve into a series of vibrant, dreamlike island gardens peppered with everyday objects from their childhood. Together they embark on an emotional journey that examines the significance of their friendship: the memories they’ve built, what must be let go, and what should never be left behind. Lost in a mysterious realm where cause and effect are malleable, the friends find that time flows in all directions. Manipulate time to solve puzzles and reach the apex of each isle. Follow the duo as they unpack and explore their significant moments spent together, lighting up constellations and illuminating threads of a bittersweet narrative. … Expand
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The Gardens Between - Official Nintendo Switch Trailer

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 23
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 23
  3. Negative: 0 out of 23
  1. GamingTrend
    Sep 19, 2018
    95
    The Gardens Between is a masterpiece of minimalist storytelling, weaving a wordless tale of friendship and time. By drawing upon a few, nearly-universal childhood events, it allows the player to fill in the story with their own emotions and memories, creating a shockingly moving, personal experience. Featuring a gorgeous, surrealist style and challenging but fair puzzles, this is a must-have title for anyone who enjoys puzzle games.
  2. NintendoWorldReport
    Sep 19, 2018
    90
    The Gardens Between is one of the bigger surprises I've played on Nintendo Switch. The title proved to be a smartly designed puzzler that anyone quickly can understand. Solutions are found by using logic in tandem with the rules of the world. The flow of time plays a major role in all of this and a keen eye can help you all the way through. The only error I can see here is that The Gardens Between ends on a weird note. This is something that could've been expanded upon, but the developers left us guessing. The complaint is rather minor in the grand scheme of it all as the experience is one that shouldn't be missed.
  3. Meristation
    Sep 27, 2018
    85
    A beautiful narrative-driven puzzle game which pays tribute to friendship in childhood and the importance of shared memories.
  4. GameSpot
    Sep 19, 2018
    80
    It may only take two to three hours to see everything The Gardens Between has to offer, but the warm and fuzzy feelings from start to finish ensure that your memories of playing it will live on.
  5. USgamer
    Sep 19, 2018
    80
    The Gardens Between is a great example of a puzzle game with the most simple of mechanics, showcasing how much can be stretched out of so little. Its light story of friendship is sweet (if not a bit too saccharine). It complements the core mechanic of controlling the passage of time, and well, the inevitability of how no matter how much you'd like time to stand still sometimes, it'll move along regardless.
  6. Nintendo Force Magazine
    Feb 26, 2019
    75
    I was impressed with the concept. I just craved more of it and was left with a melancholy feeling myself once the memories ceased. [Issue #37 – January/February 2019, p. 19]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. Gameblog.fr
    Sep 19, 2018
    60
    The Garden is a very beautiful and moving game that lacks some fresh ideas after a few minutes of the game. Its mechanics are cool but it's too bad it lacks challenge and never tries to renew its formula during the entire adventure...which is only 3 hours long.

See all 25 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 16
  3. Negative: 1 out of 16
  1. dugan
    Jan 19, 2019
    10
    Challenging without being frustrating, beautiful visuals with a compelling story line. This is a puzzle gamers must have game. The design ofChallenging without being frustrating, beautiful visuals with a compelling story line. This is a puzzle gamers must have game. The design of the puzzles and the satisfaction of solving them made my jaw drop. As a puzzle gamer, I totally recommend this game!… Expand
  2. spam3040
    Feb 2, 2022
    10
    Wow this game was excellent. I loved the characters and the way they interacted with the levels considering how little direct control you haveWow this game was excellent. I loved the characters and the way they interacted with the levels considering how little direct control you have over their movements. The puzzles were clever, consistency changing, and occasionally even mind bending where I had to reimagine the rules the level in order to solve them. The story was a nice ode to fleeting childhood friendships and the infinite imagination you have while playing with your friends at that age. The levels themselves showed the player the the silent, melancholy story taking place after each set of levels through the use of larger than life set pieces like giant slides and video game consoles. Can't say I'll play a game just like this ever again.… Expand
  4. kokernutz
    Sep 23, 2018
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Perfect length for me - under 3 hours. Good ramping of difficulty - mostly easy with some more difficult puzzles scattered throughout. Good mood/atmosphere. Wonderfully detailed levels. Great music. For some reason that level towards the end with the jacket and the big drain really messed with my head on an emotional level.… Expand
  5. RedPixel
    Aug 30, 2019
    9
    Excellent puzzle game with about 3-4 hours of play (so, on the short side). The two characters work together to solve the puzzle, though theyExcellent puzzle game with about 3-4 hours of play (so, on the short side). The two characters work together to solve the puzzle, though they move in tandem in the sense that the controller moves them forward or back together (though sometimes they move at different paces and over different terrain). The characters move backward and forward in time, and can at times move parts of the environment forward and backward in time, so there are sort of two things to focus on while solving the puzzles. Beautiful game, including the music, and a sweet little background story. The puzzles are reasonably challenging while also being constrained... there's only so many actions you can take. Although I played it through, it's also a game where you could just work on one puzzle and then put it aside for another day. (There's not a lot to remember about how this world works.)… Expand
  6. Mintendo
    Jan 23, 2020
    8
    A relaxing puzzler with beautiful art and design. While I could predict where the story was going, it was still a touching experience toA relaxing puzzler with beautiful art and design. While I could predict where the story was going, it was still a touching experience to complete the game.… Expand
  7. SuperkenGaming
    Sep 20, 2018
    7
    The Gardens Between
    A short charming puzzle
    The Gardens Between is a puzzle game where you play as 2 friends spending their final day    The Gardens Between
    A short charming puzzle
    The Gardens Between is a puzzle game where you play as 2 friends spending their final day together…
    And you control both of them…
    However not separately…
    The gardens Between takes place across 19 levels and is a little less than 2 and a half hours long…
    Here you’ll be doing increasingly challenging puzzles involving a lamp…
    The controls and Idea is simple... you can move forwards or backwards which will rewind time or progress time… and both characters move simultaneously... so there is no back and forth nonsense going on here exactly…
    there is a bit.. but it’s more of lining things up, passing the light onto the little box helpers in levels, or figuring out codes or ways to line up the environment to get past…
    All with the end goal of getting the light to the end…
    getting over the different environmental obstacles in your way trying to stop this from happening
    nothing ever too difficult which I appreciate…
    it’s a quick little charming brain teaser…
    and I felt the gameplay consistently changing things up slightly as the game goes on while keeping the goal the same…
    but slowly new obstacles will be thrown at you which will carry onto the problem solving of levels throughout..
    There are so many unique and memorable puzzles here…
    this is definitely a game puzzle game fans should give a shot…
    There’s not much of a story and things won’t necessarily challenge you…..
    But there is something special and enjoyable here in the Gardens between
    I give the gardens between
    a 7.5/10    … Expand
  8. bnan_j
    Jul 17, 2023
    0
    Just one of those cheap, generic looking "indie" games that makes you guess what the developers have programmed into their OWN game and callsJust one of those cheap, generic looking "indie" games that makes you guess what the developers have programmed into their OWN game and calls it "puzzles". Not even worth the dollar it is during eShop sales… Expand

See all 16 User Reviews

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99
#99 Most Discussed Switch Game of 2018
83
#83 Most Shared Switch Game of 2018

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