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Repressed’s strong art style and promise of interesting and unique puzzles is undermined by dull, empty moments and too much use of trial and error.
Indie developers have often used platformers to try out and tell interesting stories . game such asBraid(with thatstunning twist ending ) andThomas Was Alonehave been able to produce impactful storytelling experiences , calling on genres and toy styles that have sometimes been forgotten in the AAA space . Repressedis another attempt to get players thinking , albeit this time in the 3-D platforming genre rather than its traditional 2D stochastic variable .
Repressedcomes from developer Sigur Studio , and act a recondite honkytonk into the subconscious . The musician is a shadow within their own mind , explore a landscape of remembering to try and uncover their own history . All the while , their psychologist chimes in with a commentary , as the closed book begin to spread out .
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Most obvious thing to note aboutRepressedis that it is visually very dramatic , with a idolatry to Angle thatfans ofControl ’s designwill appreciate . The game is primarily monochromous , with platforms made up of white and black performing for the cavernous depths of the mind . The only sparks of colour come from flashes of Bolshevik , marking computer memory or synergistic button . It ’s definitely centre - catching , in particular the room the player shadow ’s caput can change look on the memories they have of late discovered .
This artistic option is more than just a stylistic one , as this black and white is actually an intrinsical part of the gameplay experience . The black shadows are an empty void , a driblet into which the musician will pass if they make a awry step . Navigating the public ofRepressedmakes for some interesting gameplay moments that generally match up with the motif of the game as a whole .
Repressed ’s gameplay works well when it come to call up outside of the box , and working on how to rearrange the public and its shadow . This could intend pushing a button to move chopine , making a previous shadow now accessible . instead , it could be using one of the tools to turn out the humans , removing some tail altogether and make new pathways .
At its bestRepressedmakes the player apply the infinite made available through the use of the television game medium . If something looks impassable , a shift of the television camera slant might actually reveal a new pathway or ramp that was previously hidden . A button on a far - away platform could be accessed by move further by and above , permit the player ’s shadow to reach down onto the political platform below .
Repressedsuffers when it comes to pacing and balance . It ’s not difficult , and players will get through it in no time at all , but there are moments where the actor will be left walk with nothing much to do other than love the reductivism on show . give how barrenRepressedis , that novelty can fatigue off quickly .
There ’s also far too much trial and mistake within its puzzles , particularly when it comes to revolving the humanity to shift shadow around . The instrumentalist ’s activity can often bear upon on arena of the function that are out of opinion , intend that the consequence of turning the world is n’t discovered until the participant has walked away from their means of essay again . Developers never need player to get puzzles right first time , and players themselves will find taxing puzzles more rewarding to solve , but there ’s a deviation between that and stretch out the reality with even more walking .
From a story perspectiveRepresseddoesn’t quite hold in up either : Sea of Solitudeit is not . The core concept , of travelling the tangle of the subconscious to uncover pent-up computer storage , is an interesting one , but in practice it all seems a snatch too generic . There ’s a lot of violence and sadness to be establish in the dark recesses of the mind , but it ’s never handled with enough depth or care to truly engage the player . More memories can be reveal with repeat playthroughs as the thespian tries to find all of the cue stick strewn across the chapters , but they might be wonder if there ’s much point in doing so .
It ’s a shame , becauseRepressedends with the most cohesive conjugation of its mechanics , via a concluding chapter that tests the player on everything they have learned alongside the added tension of dangle floor tiles . This gain in challenge also up the excitation , but these moments are unfortunately brief across the running of the biz .
Repressedis a unique melodic theme with clever visuals , and that can go a long way in picture game . When it come to gameplay , though , Repressedis very patchy with esteem to putting out top tier up calibre puzzler , with foresightful stretches of amble through the ether . impart to a write up that does n’t do anything fresh within its hidden memories , Repressedfeels like something of a missed opportunity .
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Repressedis uncommitted for PC . Screen Rant was provided with a personal computer download codification for the design of this review .
