2018

Finished the game, but not anywhere near mastery. Cute art, cute puzzles, cute story.

Exit/Corners is an ontological visual novel that can be completed in under 20 hours (maybe under 15 if you're speedin'). It feels much like a smaller scale 999 (from the Zero Escape series). The characters are dynamic and lovable, and their backstories are all well-integrated throughout the game. Each of the 29 chapters has an average of 1 logic puzzle, which can be optionally skipped. The hint system is built into the game flawlessly, providing in-universe hints that also reveal more about the characters and world itself. Sometime it can feel as if you need to "grind through" the dialogue before finding a useful hint, but it's an important realization to come to that every piece of dialogue IS gameplay, and can be used or considered for later reveals and world-building. For an indie game with a small team, Exit/Corners was a massive first project that hit the mark. Worth a play.

Primarily a text based game with some no-brainer puzzles and monochromatic graphics for each character. Storyline had the potential to be interesting, but the presentation of the ending(s) and reveals are underwhelming at best. Takes less than an hour to buzz through.

This game was wonderful from start to finish. Learning the mechanics at the start is interesting, and I almost always made new discoveries, even when reviewing seen-before content. Surprisingly, even the "grind" in the last hour or two of gameplay is enjoyable, and the feeling of getting on a roll figuring things out is unreplicable.

If you aren't concerned with completing every single ending, the game is fun and well put together, however, the completionist ending takes some work. Some puzzles/endings are obtuse, and I doubt I could have found them without Googling/Mass Button Smashing. Expect to spend about two hours on it (more if you don't intend on just a little cheating).

While technically a puzzle game, the real meat-and-potatoes of the game is the dialogue and "life advice". The art is adorable, too. Worth a play if you have 30-45 minutes to spare.

A Mortician's Tale can be completed in under an hour, and while some mechanics can be repetitive and slow, it does bring to light some thoughts surrounding death. This game is not made for riveting gameplay, but it does present some interesting technology and issues in the "death industry".