Pneuma: Breath of Life

 Xbox One
User Score
6.8

Mixed or average reviews- based on 61 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 61
  2. Mixed: 30 out of 61
  3. Negative: 7 out of 61

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  1. theTRUTHson
    Jun 8, 2015
    8
    Don't let anyone make you miss this game. If you like puzzle games in beautiful environments, this game is for you. The narrator can get a bit too chatty but if you listen to what he says, it is always relative to the puzzle you are solving. It's a short game but personally I have no problem with that. I liked all the puzzles except for one, and really liked the overall atmosphere. HopeDon't let anyone make you miss this game. If you like puzzle games in beautiful environments, this game is for you. The narrator can get a bit too chatty but if you listen to what he says, it is always relative to the puzzle you are solving. It's a short game but personally I have no problem with that. I liked all the puzzles except for one, and really liked the overall atmosphere. Hope there is a sequel.… Expand
  2. Game_Pad
    Feb 28, 2015
    7
    Intriguing, philosophical, frustrating but mostly wonderful.
    Pneuma is a bit of an anomaly. Looking at it through the perspective of a 'puzzle' game, it's pretty standard (although set in a beautiful, immense temple indicative of ancient Rome), but as a whole package, this game is something special.
    Some of the puzzles are fairly straight forward, but many others are extremely    Intriguing, philosophical, frustrating but mostly wonderful.
    Pneuma is a bit of an anomaly. Looking at it through the perspective of a 'puzzle' game, it's pretty standard (although set in a beautiful, immense temple indicative of ancient Rome), but as a whole package, this game is something special.

    Some of the puzzles are fairly straight forward, but many others are extremely frustrating! But that's a good thing because the last thing you want, when playing a game like this, is to be able to walk through completely unchallenged. Another good point is the variety of puzzles, yes almost all of them are to do with looking at things and changing your perspective to adjust the puzzles, no two puzzles are the same which adds a new challenge to every single puzzle.

    Throughout the game, you play as some sort of unseen thing that believes himself a god. This god you play as has a voice, of course, which adds a lot of interesting, occasionally humorous, subtext to the game. The voice acting is marvellously done and really does feel like he (yes, the Pneuma god 's a he... and English!) is experiencing this world for the very first time. Not only does the voice acting add a running commentary to your actions and progress through the game, it also brings up many philosophical questions for the player to ponder over.

    The world of Pneuma is truly beautiful and boasts some impressive visuals. Built using Unreal Engine 4, the marble and gold that lines most rooms glimmers and shines like nothing I've seen before! The outside areas aren't quite as stunning as the inside areas, but they are still fairly impressive. The game is also exceptionally serene and calming compared to a lot of gun-in-hand, jetpack jumping and occasional tea-bagging games we see coming out at the moment, and it makes you wish you could be there in real life throughout the entire 2-4 hours play-through.

    Things, however, do start to get a little weird later on in the game. Not only does your god character start saying things like '...what if my movements aren't my own? Does that mean I'm still me? Or perhaps I am merely a spectator?', but the endless idea that 'Well I AM a god, so why can't I walk through walls?' or 'Why do I have to do these puzzles if i'm the all powerful?'. However things soon become clear as you reach the final area. Suddenly, the game that was about solving problems whilst listening to and ever-talking god becomes a project that explores the meaning of humanity and the idea of existence! It all becomes very, VERY weird! But, after the final monologue, and we are returned to the title menu, it all makes a lot of sense!

    I, for one, really did love this game! Yes, it may be short for a £15 game, but the visual design is spectacular I i'm a sucker for these more 'philosophical' games. Even if your not into the whole 'meaning of life' stuff, the game is fun! And if your just looking for quick achievements, 8 of the 11 are achieved just by completing the game (7 100G, and 1 150G) which could give you 850G in just a couple of hours! Either way, it really is worth giving it a go!    … Expand
  3. ITZZZPERRY
    Dec 22, 2016
    9
    Pneuma: Breath of Life is more of a graphical showcase than a game, as they are amazing. Its environments are the prettiest I have ever seen in a game. The puzzles are also intricate, and the ending blew my mind.
  4. Gnasher1001
    Nov 2, 2015
    6
    I like a good puzzle game, and overall, Pneuma is a potentially good puzzle game. The puzzles start off incredibly easy, then get slightly easy, then easy, then the game finishes. Oh. It is satisfying, in that how quickly you complete it will make you think you're a (puzzle) god, as our protagonist thinks he is for most of the game. You're not though. This game is very easy, and you'llI like a good puzzle game, and overall, Pneuma is a potentially good puzzle game. The puzzles start off incredibly easy, then get slightly easy, then easy, then the game finishes. Oh. It is satisfying, in that how quickly you complete it will make you think you're a (puzzle) god, as our protagonist thinks he is for most of the game. You're not though. This game is very easy, and you'll have at least 850 gamerscore in less than 2hrs. There was one puzzle that stumped me, which was awkward even when knowing what to do.
    It's pretty, as long as you don't look closely at some objects, and the end is interesting....at best.
    If you got it free in November 2015 Games with Gold or you get it for an incredibly low price, it's worth it, just don't expect any long experience or absolutely any replayability.    … Expand
  5. Molloy12
    Nov 6, 2015
    3
    Pneuma is a stunningly beautiful game in sight, but disappointingly ugly in play.

    The game makes players control a character who constant dialogue about being a God gets annoying after the first chapter (which takes about 5 minutes to complete). As you move through the world looking at things to open doors, and pushing buttons, solving brainless puzzles you realize what this game is. An    Pneuma is a stunningly beautiful game in sight, but disappointingly ugly in play.

    The game makes players control a character who constant dialogue about being a God gets annoying after the first chapter (which takes about 5 minutes to complete). As you move through the world looking at things to open doors, and pushing buttons, solving brainless puzzles you realize what this game is. An easy 1000 G. The main game play can be completed in about 2 hours without a walk through, leaving only 3 achievements worth 150G combined remaining which may take additional help to complete since there is very little mention of them in the actual game. Of all the chapters the only 2 offering an actual challenge or any longevity are the final 2 chapters before the epilogue. The game is so simple up to that point that you almost feel sad for the developer who put such effort into the visuals, then cut short on sound and play. Overall this game is not worth the price for it's entertainment value, however for the month of November it is free on Xbox One with "Games With Gold" and may be worth the 2 hours for those of you who want some simple achievements.

    Visuals: 8/10 Very nicely put together. Mildly repetitive.
    Sound: 2/10 Infuriating, annoying, empty but mildly comical
    Difficulty: 4/10 Very little challenge at all aside from the near end point.
    Story: 2/10 Bland, interesting at points, but mostly straight line.
    Replay: 1/10 Other then a possible 3 missed achievements, 0 replay value.

    Total: 17/50 (3.4/10)    … Expand
  6. Wolvz
    Dec 20, 2015
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Puzzle walking sim. Light on the puzzles, heavy on the walking. Some people have already stated that this game is 'visually Stunning'. It's not, clipping graphics, bad shading, terrible rendering is masked over by the bright & light palace setting that fools people into thinking its a pretty game. Walk up to a bush or a box and look at it and it's ugly with no depth.

    But that's not the core of this game, the puzzles are. They range from ridiculously easy - a whole level dedicated to 'looking at the eyes' to horrendously impossible. The worst quzzle requires you to get to the final chapter, look at a painting, then quit go back to an older chapter, play that through again until you find another painting, then quit again going to yet again go to another chapter. Over and over. This replaying of older levels happens for no reason than to drag out the already short story. Another puzzle requires you to look at a sun-dial until to does a full rotation in about 20 seconds, if you look away or up it starts again, that one is great fun. Wow amazing puzzle designing.

    The character is annoying. Continually speaking garbage to himself or us which ever way it's meant to be. He walks slowly in each puzzle never with any suspense or sense of urgency.
    It's not a terrible game it's just not much of a game at all. There are plenty of great indie games out there with worse graphics and smaller production scales. And there's been much better Walking Sims. Try Stanley Parable for an example of better versions of these.    … Expand
  7. TheQuietGamer
    Nov 15, 2015
    8
    A brief first-person puzzle game with light exploration elements. In the game you play as God. Or do you? It raises some interesting philosophical questions. The narration is quite amusing and at times pretty deep.

    The puzzles themselves aren't really hard at all. Yet, they are still fun to solve thanks to the unique mechanics. The length of the adventure is the main downfall. It only    A brief first-person puzzle game with light exploration elements. In the game you play as God. Or do you? It raises some interesting philosophical questions. The narration is quite amusing and at times pretty deep.

    The puzzles themselves aren't really hard at all. Yet, they are still fun to solve thanks to the unique mechanics. The length of the adventure is the main downfall. It only takes a few hours to beat. Seeing everything has to offer won't take much longer. After that there really isn't much of a reason to give it a second go. Even as someone who really enjoyed the game it's hard to justify why anyone should really pay the price of $19.99 when the content is so slim.

    Yet, those who do take the chance on it are likely to find a charming game with solid puzzles and surprisingly deep themes. It's overpriced for the content, but the adventure is still worth taking for those with extra cash to spare. It surprised me in many ways and I do recommend giving it a shot.

    I give the game an 8.5/10.    … Expand
  8. HSuke
    Dec 23, 2018
    8
    I got this free via Xbox One GWG. I quite like puzzle games, but this one just didn't do it for me. Unlike Portal, where there's a set of laws that govern its universe, everything in Pneuma is somewhat random. You have to guess and check to figure out what anything does, and often, the results make little logical sense. Most of the puzzles are quite easy. A few of them are really dumbI got this free via Xbox One GWG. I quite like puzzle games, but this one just didn't do it for me. Unlike Portal, where there's a set of laws that govern its universe, everything in Pneuma is somewhat random. You have to guess and check to figure out what anything does, and often, the results make little logical sense. Most of the puzzles are quite easy. A few of them are really dumb (e.g. stand and stare at something for 25 seconds). There's not much of a story. The art is quite pretty, and the soundtrack is atmospheric at best. Loading times between levels are insanely long. The game itself is really short (2-3 hours to 100% complete it with all 8 secrets). Nevertheless, because it was so short, I don't feel like I've wasted time playing it.… Expand
  9. BetterCallSalt
    Nov 2, 2015
    6
    I'm not really a fan of puzzle games but decided to give this a play purely down to the fact that it was free. The game itself isn't the most challenging and was pretty simple even for me who doesn't play these types of games. There is a back story to the game but I myself found it pretentious and annoying for the most part. Other than that, the game doesn't look the worst and the setting,I'm not really a fan of puzzle games but decided to give this a play purely down to the fact that it was free. The game itself isn't the most challenging and was pretty simple even for me who doesn't play these types of games. There is a back story to the game but I myself found it pretentious and annoying for the most part. Other than that, the game doesn't look the worst and the setting, which is very similar to that of ancient Roman architecture, is quite pleasing to the eye (Although this is the only setting pretty much throughout the whole game. Overall, if you like puzzle games and you can get the game for free or extremely cheap then give it a go.… Expand
  10. ShrimpSantos
    Nov 4, 2015
    9
    Great great game. For anyone that likes to think and not only move and shoot, this is a great game with an exciting narrative and a great ending. On the technical side, there are some problems like low resolution textures, some frame drops and extremely long loading screens.

    In any way, this doesn't prevent the author of this puzzler of telling a great story with some clever puzzles. I    Great great game. For anyone that likes to think and not only move and shoot, this is a great game with an exciting narrative and a great ending. On the technical side, there are some problems like low resolution textures, some frame drops and extremely long loading screens.

    In any way, this doesn't prevent the author of this puzzler of telling a great story with some clever puzzles. I recommend everyone to at least give a try to this game.    … Expand
  11. Crocsx
    Nov 17, 2015
    7
    Pneuma is a wonderful game. It's a very simple puzzle game, not very challenging, but very beautiful (Unreal Engine 4 and those texture give this game some stunning visuals), with interesting mechanics and a good "game feeling". But Pneuma isn't just that, the funny and interesting part is brought by the character you control.

    You basically play a god, or something else? Who know? Maybe    Pneuma is a wonderful game. It's a very simple puzzle game, not very challenging, but very beautiful (Unreal Engine 4 and those texture give this game some stunning visuals), with interesting mechanics and a good "game feeling". But Pneuma isn't just that, the funny and interesting part is brought by the character you control.

    You basically play a god, or something else? Who know? Maybe you are the god?
    T philosophical questions. The narration is quite amusing and at times pretty deep. This god (Pneuma?) you play as a voice, made by the "award winning voice actor 'Jay Britton', who did a pretty good performance. It's a pleasure to progress trough the (sadly not very challenging) puzzles and ear Pneuma discovering himself and the world and bringing up many philosophical and intriguing questions until the end where.
    The more you progress, the more the dialogue will be deep of meaning, until the final scene.

    Maybe it is a bit expensive for what it is, but it's definitely worth the try !    … Expand
  12. MissSlxyer
    Nov 30, 2015
    8
    Pneuma is a great puzzle game, the graphics were good too! 8/10 because I found the game a little bit repetitive with the puzzles but it's still a great game.
  13. peterson0
    Mar 14, 2017
    9
    One of the best indie games I've ever played. Beautiful environments, with an amazing philosophical story that makes you think your whole life. The main and only character, wonderfully portrayed by Jay Britton, talks a lot, and everything he says is important for the game or relative to the current puzzle. This game definitely deserves more relevance than it has, unfairly unknown. EveryoneOne of the best indie games I've ever played. Beautiful environments, with an amazing philosophical story that makes you think your whole life. The main and only character, wonderfully portrayed by Jay Britton, talks a lot, and everything he says is important for the game or relative to the current puzzle. This game definitely deserves more relevance than it has, unfairly unknown. Everyone should play it.… Expand
  14. zNeverSleeping
    Oct 29, 2020
    8
    ---{Graphics}---
    ☐ You forget what reality is
    X Beautiful ☐ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{Gameplay}--- X Very good ☐ Good ☐ It‘s just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{Audio}--- ☐ Eargasm ☐ Very good X Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{Audience}--- X Kids X Teens X Adults X All    ---{Graphics}---
    ☐ You forget what reality is
    X Beautiful
    ☐ Good
    ☐ Decent
    ☐ Bad
    ☐ Don‘t look too long at it
    ☐ MS-DOS

    ---{Gameplay}---
    X Very good
    ☐ Good
    ☐ It‘s just gameplay
    ☐ Mehh
    ☐ Watch paint dry instead
    ☐ Just don't

    ---{Audio}---
    ☐ Eargasm
    ☐ Very good
    X Good
    ☐ Not too bad
    ☐ Bad
    ☐ I'm now deaf

    ---{Audience}---
    X Kids
    X Teens
    X Adults
    X All

    ---{Difficulity}---
    ☐ Just press 'W'
    ☐ Easy
    X Significant brain usage
    X Easy to learn / Hard to master
    ☐ Difficult
    ☐ Dark Souls

    ---{Story}---
    ☐ No Story
    X Some lore
    ☐ Average
    ☐ Good
    ☐ Lovely
    ☐ It‘ll replace your life

    ---{Game Time}---
    ☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
    ☐ Short
    X Average ☐ Long ☐ To infinity and beyond ---{Price}--- ☐ It’s free! X Worth the price ☐ If u have some spare money left ☐ Not recommended ☐ You could also just burn your money ---{Bugs}--- X Never heard of ☐ Minor bugs ☐ Can get annoying ☐ ARK: Survival Evolved ☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs    … Expand
  15. Rebelgut
    Jul 12, 2019
    2
    This game feels like a complete waste of time. It all seems so lifeless. There isn’t much incentive to solve the puzzles and the entire game feels like it’s lacking a depth element. The game feels so redundant and empty and the voice of your player constantly is going on and on about nonsense... practically destroying your sense of thought. This game seems like it was unfinished when theyThis game feels like a complete waste of time. It all seems so lifeless. There isn’t much incentive to solve the puzzles and the entire game feels like it’s lacking a depth element. The game feels so redundant and empty and the voice of your player constantly is going on and on about nonsense... practically destroying your sense of thought. This game seems like it was unfinished when they released it, as if something is missing.… Expand
  16. ericstorm195
    Dec 30, 2019
    10
    I give this a perfect ten because the puzzles are good. Some hard one some easy ones. But that’s not what you pick this game up for. You pick it up for the dialogue. It’s an elaborate commentary on life and God. The symbolism is everywhere for this being about Christianity as there are lots of biblical images scattered throughout the game. But other than the character you control isI give this a perfect ten because the puzzles are good. Some hard one some easy ones. But that’s not what you pick this game up for. You pick it up for the dialogue. It’s an elaborate commentary on life and God. The symbolism is everywhere for this being about Christianity as there are lots of biblical images scattered throughout the game. But other than the character you control is nothing to break grounds but his journey from thinking he’s god to the end is something that’s made me play this game over and over again. And the final puzzle he leaves the player with is something I think about a lot.… Expand
  17. Setorth
    May 21, 2020
    9
    Beautifull "unreal engine 4" graphics, immersive atmosphere, charismatic main char and a very excite plot.

Awards & Rankings

58
#58 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2015
26
#26 Most Shared Xbox One Game of 2015

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
63

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 14 out of 17
  3. Negative: 1 out of 17
  1. Brash Games
    Jan 31, 2016
    70
    To me Pneuma: Breath of Life felt more like a taster of what could have been a huge puzzle game. Not to say the game wasn’t a success, from what we can see the game works very well with new innovative puzzles – I just wish there could have been more!
    Read full review
  2. games(TM)
    Apr 12, 2015
    60
    Breath of Life will have its fervent champions, but it won't go supernova. [Issue#159, p.113]
    Read full review
  3. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    Mar 28, 2015
    60
    Pneuma is let down by its waffling and insistence on shoving questions about the nature of reality down your throat. [Apr 2015, p.83]
See all critic reviews »