In Arkady and Boris Strugatsky’s philosophical science fiction novel Roadside Picnic, scavengers investigate hazardous zones that exist outwith linear space-time in order to steal extraterrestrial artefacts for profit. The scavengers - known as stalkers - develop seemingly illogical and nonsensical methods of navigating these zones: throwing wing nuts into streams; lying face-first in grass; whistling at rocks. Paratopic emulates Stalker in many ways, but allusions to the film and its source novel are most immediately felt when attempting to move around the game’s most paranormal environments. Certain sections require a divine sense of the invisible and immobile in order to be navigated smoothly, and knee-high ledges frequently kneecap progression. This isn’t the first time an interactive arthouse experience has irritated me in this way, but I’m coming up blank when considering methods of guiding a player that don’t literally or figuratively involve train tracks. The game developer, acting as a stalker for tourists on a gameside picnic, has an impossible task in attempting to build a controlled environment that doesn’t violate the laws of nature with leading green drapes or obstructively instructive red exit lights. In its best moments, Paratopic evades this problem by timeboxing activities and strictly limiting the scope of interactivity, but when you want the player to explore open forest, it’s easy for trees to obscure the woods. Perhaps impatience was at play for me here - like the lady in the apartment, I was hungry to consume another juicy videotape and got lost in the zone, another tainted soul with a wish left ungranted. The irony of this game being a constant feature among the piles of Nintendo eShop £0.89 shovelware is not lost on me.