Fez

 Xbox 360
User Score
6.2

Mixed or average reviews- based on 376 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 219 out of 376
  2. Mixed: 30 out of 376
  3. Negative: 127 out of 376

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  1. futaihikage
    Apr 27, 2012
    4
    FEZ on the whole, presents an atypical approach to its world design by presenting a pixelated 2D world in 3D terms. The concept of turning 2D to 3D isn't new; this concept can be seen in Paper Mario (by Nintendo) and Crush (by Sega). What is new is the use of pixels instead of completely flat polygons. This is a credit to Renaud Bèdard's programming ability, even though he'sFEZ on the whole, presents an atypical approach to its world design by presenting a pixelated 2D world in 3D terms. The concept of turning 2D to 3D isn't new; this concept can be seen in Paper Mario (by Nintendo) and Crush (by Sega). What is new is the use of pixels instead of completely flat polygons. This is a credit to Renaud Bèdard's programming ability, even though he's new to the game programming realm, the world he coded for FEZ with those pixels is warm, cute and somewhat inviting; however, its not very engaging. There's nothing that draws you personally into FEZ's world and you don't get the same sense of imminent danger that the game wants to present to you.

    FEZ's story is that he has to find smaller bits of larger cubes in order to keep his world from disappearing. But you don't get a sense of that at all in the game's world, from the initial explanation of the story at the beginning of the game nor at the end of the game. None of the non-playable characters give you that sense either. So, since there are no time limits, "lives", or much of a story, you end up with an experience that has only the following three elements left: The 2D world that's viewable in three dimensions, exploration and puzzles.

    The 2D spin-able world looks nice. The color palette has a nice range of colors, but your eyes will beg for more. AT least mine were like that, I definitely desired to see more depth and variations in the color choices as I played the game. The creators of this game wanted it to be some kind of love letter to old games in the past, so you're only getting a color palette that's a bit better than what the original Nintendo Entertainment System could display. Moving around FEZ's world feels a bit slow due to how the main character moves and I did have one or two issues with the game play itself. After playing for an hour or more, when I went to spin the world to get another perspective to see what I had to jump on next, this action seems to happened slower and slower with each passing minute I played over that hour. When that started to happen, jumping became a minor issue as the movement would stutter. Like many other users, I did experience the crash back to the Xbox's Home screen. Fortunately, I felt that these didn't make the game unplayable, as you can quickly get back to where you left off if you restart your Xbox if these problems start occurring. I'm hoping a future patch will clear these issues up. The map isn't very helpful in finding where you are and where you've been, so I mostly skipped it in favor keeping track of places with that notebook I was using to keep puzzle hints.

    As for the puzzles, which outside the 2D/3D thing, is the core of FEZ, there's not much I can say without giving away hints or cause spoilers to appear in this review. The puzzles do range from the very easy, like pushing a block onto a switch to some more obtuse and abstract puzzles where being observant is the key to figuring out the answer, which allows you to get another cube piece. I think Brain Lord for the SNES had harder puzzles to figure out. But I can't really compare those two games since they are different experiences all around in navigating to the next puzzles with in the game world.

    Finally to the exploration aspect of the game; which I thought was a bit tough to do. Most puzzle platformers give you something to draw you into the experience. Since many of these games like FEZ rely heavily on puzzles, most of them bring you into the experience by using sound effects or music. Unfortunately for FEZ, the music is a selection of soft ambient tunes; they were so soft at times, it felt almost nonexistent to me. The chiptune sounds aren't bad in the slightest, they are wonderfully composed pieces. But having something with a bit more pep or using music to add to the tension would have gone a long way in making the game more enjoyable while you're wandering around collecting cubes and solving puzzles.

    How to wrap up this review? I think all in all, this is a wonderful tech demo and not a fully fleshed out game. I didn't experience the mind numbing brilliance that many other reviewers had seen when they played FEZ. However, it has a nice pixelated world spinning mechanic, some soft ambient music and puzzles that will keep you coming back, especially if you're a perfectionist. I don't think this game was fully realized and it feels lacking in some aspects. Buy this game if you're looking for a game you can slowly complete with you don't have anything else to play or on rainy days. There's no pressure, from the main character or his world. Think of MYST for PC in terms of puzzles and pressures to complete the game, mix in ambient chiptunes, a "retro" graphics engine and you have FEZ.    … Expand
  2. ZacOfTheZombies
    Apr 13, 2012
    4
    The game promises revolutionary gameplay the likes of which would change the gaming world. What FEZ presents is a watered down experience from an indie blender. The art style of Cave story, mixed with the gameplay mechanics of Paper Mario and Monolith. All in all, the game leaves much to be desired, especially when you can get better for free.
  3. StarlessBB
    Apr 13, 2012
    3
    I really can't give this one the pass. The game is extremely boring, there's never a sense of challenge. Perhaps there were some puzzles I had hit that made me rack my head but for the most part the game is just jumping and rotating.
    What we have here is just another indie platformer. Average chiptunes soundtrack, gimmick trying to carry the game, and trying to have some sort of charm.    I really can't give this one the pass. The game is extremely boring, there's never a sense of challenge. Perhaps there were some puzzles I had hit that made me rack my head but for the most part the game is just jumping and rotating.
    What we have here is just another indie platformer. Average chiptunes soundtrack, gimmick trying to carry the game, and trying to have some sort of charm. It's a cookie cutter indie game. I'd pass it up, there's a flash game called Sky Island that has the same gameplay and that one's free. And also has enemies so there's an actual threat to you.    … Expand
  4. Sno
    Aug 14, 2013
    2
    Overall a terrible game. Not fun at all and not to mention phil fish is a douche. The game is extremely boring and all the oh so revolutionary concepts in the game were used many times before. Not worth buying
  5. kelanflyter
    Apr 26, 2012
    4
    Fez is a game that could have been good... but it's not the case. Graphics are maybe 16bits, but lazy ones. Same thing for the soundtrack. Controls are unsensitives, and worst af all, the game concept is a bad copy of the Crush's one (Crush is a Sega game retailed on PSP and 3DS).
    I love retro gaming, i'd be pleased if more of retro games were coming, but good ones, not like Fez.
  6. ShaggyHermit
    May 9, 2012
    2
    This game could be fun...if it ever worked. In the intro alone there was a fatal error that caused the game to crash and restart. I tried again, only to have it crash on me a second time. Within 30mins of attempted game play, Fez crashed twice, chat windows would randomly change location and size (while trying to read the same sentence), and the graphics glitched out. It's a shame reallyThis game could be fun...if it ever worked. In the intro alone there was a fatal error that caused the game to crash and restart. I tried again, only to have it crash on me a second time. Within 30mins of attempted game play, Fez crashed twice, chat windows would randomly change location and size (while trying to read the same sentence), and the graphics glitched out. It's a shame really as the game could be fun...if I could play it.… Expand
  7. faceplant000
    Apr 15, 2012
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. There's nothing in this game that's original, and what's crammed in there from various other games is a hodge podge that isn't even remotely interesting. Aside from very simple puzzles involving the mechanic of rotating the game world, there's a language you have to learn and translate. Trying to mix Myst-like puzzles with a platformer isn't a good or interesting enough idea to make up for a complete lack of challenge. Any puzzles that are there are either simplistic or intentionally obscure. It's easy to get lost as there's no direction. Not worth buying considering the free, or better alternatives that use the same perspective shifting mechanic to much better effect.… Expand
  8. Keyamin
    Apr 19, 2012
    1
    The only thing you do in FEZ is simply change your perspective if you don't see the next block to jump on, that's it, there's nothing more to it.

    The game calls itself "retro" however it offers no challenge, there are no enemies that can hinder you and no penalty if you miss a jump, if you fall off you are brought back to the point you were standing on, and apart from it's main gimmick of    The only thing you do in FEZ is simply change your perspective if you don't see the next block to jump on, that's it, there's nothing more to it.

    The game calls itself "retro" however it offers no challenge, there are no enemies that can hinder you and no penalty if you miss a jump, if you fall off you are brought back to the point you were standing on, and apart from it's main gimmick of switching view it has nothing.

    Now normally a game like this wouldn't get a 1/10 from me but after hearing that the game has been in development for 5 years, i can't help but wonder what this guy has been doing all this time,    … Expand
  9. Suuuper_Bored
    Jun 5, 2013
    1
    Ah yes, Fez the as seen in Indie Game: The Movie. It had lots of hype for a platformer, so you know it's not going to live up to it. But, this game was way worse than even my expectations. It's incredibly slow and boring for a platformer and the sound effects/music were so distracting and annoying you can only play on mute. Anyway, Fez sucks IMO.
  10. Nabukadnezar
    Aug 2, 2013
    0
    Extremely boring and nothing happens at all times. Also extremely easy. I'm glad I didn't buy this and only played it from a friend's steam account. This is not a game for a mind that wants challenges, but rather for someone that has enough challenges in real life and only wants a method to unwind. Why does it cost more than 50 cents?
  11. Remiel_Pollard
    Sep 22, 2014
    0
    If this game was made for the sake of 'artistic expression', then we already have that with good gameplay in EVE Online. Glad I didn't spend money on this crap. I only regret exposing my PC's internals to potential depression due to installing terribad software.
  12. ArseeZorb
    Apr 13, 2012
    3
    This game honestly just didn't do it for me. The great 3D gimmick it totes also became one of the bigger headaches in the game. I'd pass this one up.
  13. JabbaTheSlush
    Apr 13, 2012
    1
    I am not sure we needed more gimmicky cheaply made games that actually cost quite a bit for what they bring. Plays like a dollar Indie game. The whole old school stuff at some point becomes so much used by games, that GOOD graphics, 3D WORLDS and SOMETHING NEW has become retro.
  14. BabuYagu
    Jun 13, 2013
    0
    Loved the game for about 30 mins then my save file was corrupted. Started again and this time after about an hour the same thing happened. Third time it only took about 40 mins. Tried once more a few weeks ago and got about 45 mins into it. Great idea, gameplay and music but completely broken. Waste of money.
  15. Zetanor
    Apr 14, 2012
    0
    Score is representative of the effort put into Fez. It offers nothing new or original. I wish I didn't waste any money on this, I could have gotten a nice hot chicken tonight.

    (it's really bad)
  16. Siglemic
    Apr 13, 2012
    2
    When I got the game, I was initially impressed by the graphics and soundtrack. Very pleasing to the eyes and ears. However, as I progressed through the game, it become very apparent that the game was just too easy. I expected the puzzles to become more challenging, but they just didn't.

    This game uses the idea of 3D and 2D very well, but it is riddled with such a myriad of bugs, you'd    When I got the game, I was initially impressed by the graphics and soundtrack. Very pleasing to the eyes and ears. However, as I progressed through the game, it become very apparent that the game was just too easy. I expected the puzzles to become more challenging, but they just didn't.

    This game uses the idea of 3D and 2D very well, but it is riddled with such a myriad of bugs, you'd almost wish it didn't have it. Sometimes, when you rotate the camera at certain areas twice, the game immediately crashes to the X360 dashboard - pretty lame.

    The game may only be 800MP, but you can enjoy a couple other platformers far superior to this in just about every aspect (Banjo series...). When I play platformers, I tend to look for a fun world to explore and some danger, or challenge, in it. This aspect would've made Fez much better, but it's just so boring. Pass this one up guys... cause, it's the worst.    … Expand
  17. explodr
    Jan 4, 2013
    2
    Easily one of the best games I've played on the XBOX 360, let alone the Arcade. Fez is an intuitive puzzle platformer that challenges players to think, which is also why you'll see so many bad ratings for it. Because people that gave this game a bad review are stupid.
  18. pogimabus
    Jul 17, 2013
    3
    Very esoteric puzzler... maybe I came looking for the wrong thing (fun game play) and failed to enjoy what is really here (ambiance and mood lighting) but this was just not my cup of tea. I found this game to be very boring once the novelty of the Escher space wore off (about 2-3 hours in for me).
  19. PulsatingBrain
    Aug 21, 2014
    4
    I got this game in a Humble Bundle and so came to it a fair bit later on than it's release. I'd read about it generally being a kind of nostalgic and finely crafted game. In response to this I would just say that I don't remember any classic platformers having zero consequence for failure, and the music sounds just like a random haze, totally unlike the finely crafted 16 and 32 bit stuffI got this game in a Humble Bundle and so came to it a fair bit later on than it's release. I'd read about it generally being a kind of nostalgic and finely crafted game. In response to this I would just say that I don't remember any classic platformers having zero consequence for failure, and the music sounds just like a random haze, totally unlike the finely crafted 16 and 32 bit stuff of 20 years ago.

    I was pretty underwhelmed by Fez, but can't really be too sad, having just gotten it in a bundle.    … Expand

Awards & Rankings

9
#9 Best Xbox 360 Game of 2012
29
#29 Most Discussed Xbox 360 Game of 2012
41
#41 Most Shared Xbox 360 Game of 2012

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Generally favorable reviews - based on 66 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 64 out of 66
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 66
  3. Negative: 0 out of 66
  1. Pelit (Finland)
    Jun 20, 2012
    91
    An interesting and fun puzzle platformer. The visually flat, but actually three-dimensional levels are very cleverly built. [June 2012]
  2. Hyper Magazine
    Jun 13, 2012
    90
    It's the most thought-provoking and fascinating game I've played all year. [July 2012, p.66]
  3. X-ONE Magazine UK
    Jun 5, 2012
    90
    Its hidden depths might be too obscure for some, but this is the kind of title XBLA was made for. [Issue#85, p.91]
See all critic reviews »