A literal life time ago I was chatting with a friend when they showed me the trailer for this and Soma. Both looked amazing, and our general take away was that 2012/2013 was going to be lit. Then 2012/2013 came and went. Eventually it was 2015 and we got Soma, and it was in fact amazing, but I never forgot the other game with similar things going on. It wasn't out yet. Since then I've moved like 6 times, changed jobs, got engaged, lived a whole life time. I never forgot though. I'd look into it now and then, what ever happened to Lunar Software and their game I was looking forward to? Then one unassuming day in 2025 it just released. No warning, no fanfaire, no hype train. It simply moved from not existing to existing.

I must say I am so glad that it exists, and that now you can all play this game. What would have been like the grandfather of retro futurism psychological horror gaming. If this game released when it had wanted to, it would have been a serious contender. Playing it today, you can see the ideas it had have been done better in a few other games, and that's really the thing to keep in mind going into Routine. You have been here before, and you have done this before, sometimes better, sometimes worse.

The game is no joke though, if you're into games like Alien Isolation, and Soma, you are going to love Routine. What this game really excells at is not holding your hand. Some people pine for the yellow paint, or require a guide, but Routine is laid out in a way that it tells you exactly how to overcome it, if only you would actually stop for a moment, and look with your eyes, and think about what you are seeing. That puzzle people say "How was anyone supposed to know that?" Routine left you a literal note with detailed instructions on what to do and where to do it. There was a point where I had made at least 3 laps through an area, before I stopped and thought to myself "No, there is something I am simply overlooking" and sure enough my next time around I took a bit more time, and found exactly what I needed. You can beat routine, if you let it do it's intended thing. The scenario guys did a fine job here.

The sound design in this game is amazing as well. Everything you interact with sounds so chunky and crunchy and good to use. You can tell exactly where enemies are and what they are doing just by the sound alone. The sound guys did a really great job here.

The plot may be a little hard to follow. It starts out with a few questions, and a few answers, but by the end of the game you may feel you have more of one than another. If you really think about it, it's pretty clear, but no so clear that I could explicitly say "This is exactly what happened" Story guys, you did a good job

Basically, I think that if you chose to play Routine, you will be pleased.