really fun! a simple mechanic that hides a lot of depth, plus some clever level design! tore my hair out a bit at the levels that required really precise timing but that's just puzzle games baby. took me several levels to realize i could jump because i was enjoying the bomb jumping so much. great work!
jessefivey
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an astonishingly deep work about family, trauma and intimacy. it's rare to find art that so deftly portrays the difficulties those who have been abused and ostracized face connecting even with each other. this is a game rich with that sorrow, and spoke to a deep part of me that has felt Fallow since i was very young.
if that describes you as well, take heart. this game's thematic conclusion may imply that the intimacy you crave will forever be out of reach, but it isn't true. trauma makes things hard, yes, and ada rook certainly understands that better than many, but true connection is not impossible. even if the walls trauma has built around you seem impenetrable, they can be dismantled. it is possible to heal.
i didn't know that ada rook had a background as a professional musician until i'd almost finished the game but it certainly comes through in the game's impeccably tense, aching and beautiful soundtrack. and the sealed door provides access to almost an entire additional game, a wide and bewildering world where dreams, memories and the physical interweave to add incredible depth to isabelline's already breathtaking, heartbreaking story. don't neglect to find the combination. (there's no secret ending in there though, at least not one that i found)
my only criticism of the game is that some of the puzzles are too hard, the answers gated behind unintuitive tricks and secrets. if you find yourself stuck in alburn manor, remember that the direction of your movements also matters.
i can't recommend this game enough to anyone queer and/or trans, anyone who's ever felt like they didn't fit in the world, anyone who's been abused in the broad sense or the specific sense. just be aware that the ending might awaken a pain in you that you thought you'd forgotten. ideally, play it with someone you love.
absolutely brutalized me. bawling in bed with the lights out at 1am playing this game. the way the narrative unfolds bit (heh) by bit is devastatingly effective, and the simplicity of the game's presentation belies the depth of its emotional themes. dr. signal's strange machine honestly helped me find my hope in the dying world we're living in now; no small feat. i can't wait to see what you do with these narrative design chops next.
This game is one of those perfect little experiences where all the pieces fit so seamlessly together that it's impossible to imagine them separately. Of course I did have to play it twice because I couldn't help myself but to jump into the ocean at the end and sink to the bottom of the skybox. Recommended!
BIT RAT : Singularity community · Replied to [bucket drum games] in Thread for comments, questions, feedback, etc!
I just finished Singularity and adored it! One question, one bit of feedback: Is there a way to rescue the rats who are trapped? It seemed like there were hints in the dialogue about that but I couldn't figure anything out. My only other frustration was that you automatically release your host human when using the error buffer! I get that you don't want players to be able to abuse the feature, but it sometimes left me in situations where i accidentally turned a conduit the wrong way, and the typo cost me a huge amount of work to rebuild my connection to the host's starting chamber. Is there a happy medium to be found? For instance, undoing moves doesn't release the host as long as those moves are in the chamber the host currently occupies? Just a thought. Thanks for your great work!
i like this game's concept and aesthetic a lot but i feel like it suffers from a lack of interface feedback. having a "gutter" between tiles that doesn't respond to clicking makes gameplay more frustrating, as does the pause when the board is refilling during which my clicks are also ignored. finally there's no way to deselect a tile i've accidentally clicked without selecting another tile, which leads to accidental swapping.
if the controls had a bit of polish i could see myself coming back to this game a lot. let me know if you ever make any of these changes and i'd be happy to try it again and leave a rating!