i’ve had a push and pull relationship with this game but i must say it did pull through at the end and i left it with a positive feeling overall.

i will say the speedrunning gameplay and platforming felt REALLY REALLY good and very satisfying to master most of the time.

i think pretty handily the most significant weakness of the game is how disconnected the storytelling through the actual written narrative and the gameplay are. in a game like sekiro, the separation between dramatic storytelling and mechanical storytelling in the game are practically nonexistent. noah caldwell gervais wrote about this in his really brilliant souls inheritors video, but the struggle and effort put towards completing the game creates the drama of the narrative.

however, in neon white, the gameplay feels totally disconnected from the story. they don’t even contrast or compare in interesting ways. it’s just so weird i haven’t seen anything like this before haha. the story itself is like an older 2000s anime exploring this pretty cool world of the afterlife and forgiveness. but the gameplay itself is like all about optimizing your tools and strengthening your skills to improve your speed. these two concepts are not at odds but not complementary either, they’re just so unrelated.

while i eventually found myself drawn at least to white and red, the game and the story just never seemed that cohesive or connected.

pondering between a 7 and 8 rn because the levels and gameplay are
exceptional.

fantastic start to the year!!

after playing half life last year, it’s safe to say i was sold on the valve shooter formula. portal is a very concise game but its able to pack the same creativity, strong atmosphere, level design, and fun gunplay that was present in half life in a better overall package. there is not as much jank here, which is much appreciated.

honestly not sure i should’ve played this so long after portal 2 (nearly 4 years) so i can’t really make an accurate comparison, but just based off these initial impressions, it feels just as good to control and maneuver as portal 2. the story was different in that i feel like there was more environmental storytelling here than actual narrative beats and exposition. love that decision

portal 2 is just one of my favorite games ever so it’s no surprise i enjoyed the first one to this degree. excellently done valve, please make games again.