Recent reviews by PuzzleProgrammer

I'll start by saying that out of the hundreds of games I've played, this game sits in my top 5 (I may however be biased as a fan of puzzle games).

At first, the art style scared me away. But once I actually started playing, I quickly grew to love how it forces contrast and makes each scene stand out.

Each death you investigate is a full scene with plenty going on, and no exposition ever felt forced to me. I loved how the game essentially tells the story in reverse due to how you discover things, which helps keep the mystery of "but why, but how" alive even as you actively experience events unfold.

The music worked with each scene, complimenting the chaos or lack thereof as it unfolded, and the tunes that played for different events like locking in guesses and following wisps keeps you engaged. The voice acting was also great, and each voice went a long way to understanding the tone of the scene and who said what long before you even get to see anything unfold.

While some deduction was fairly simple, others will give you plenty of trouble as you slowly connect the dots and piece together who was where and when. I feel that this, combined with the fact that you don't necessarily need to fully complete the book, allows people to enjoy the narrative regardless of skill level. This is a great approach, since it keeps the game enjoyable for those less versed in puzzles, while also providing a good challenge for those who always crave harder challenges.

I often worry about the replayability of games like these, but after taking a few years break and coming back to it, I was pleased to find that although I remembered most of the plot points/twists, I was again stumped when it came to filling out some parts of the book. My first 100% save has about 16 hours logged on it, and my recent completion sits at just over 8.

My only complaint is how many times I ended up re-listening to the start of The Doom, part 2 :P