A Winding Path

Admittedly I did not like the first hour of the game, I was afraid it would turn into another stick guy game with generic puzzles, but it got a lot better toward the second half, mainly because the quests just became a lot more creative, and in general, the experience gave me a strong sense of escapism, granted it happened much later in the story. Also, I am questioning the use of WASD and 1234 in a game like this, I really feel like mouse UI would be a more relaxing option, I even got a finger cramp because there is a mechanic you need to constantly spam, if you are curious about hidden interactions anyway. Hunting for hidden achievements and optional trinkets is probably the strongest part of the experience, I think the side tasks for the collection were very enjoyable - and you can unlock some cosmetics hats too. As for the story, I was invested more in the second half of the narrative, for whatever reason I didn't fully grasp the intended theme of the world, it's not a familiar setting to me, but I will say that I loved the ending, it gave me a satisfying closure. I appreciate when devs try to avoid doing any meta puzzles, you know like pushing a box on a pressure plate, and this game has a little bit of that, but I do mean little, most of the puzzles are not mechanical, and you simply have to explore and interact - which in my opinion is a more enjoyable way to play a narrative game, I like the puzzles, but I prefer them in moderation, with creativity over difficulty. The few segments with the generic puzzles are very short, and they have some interesting twists on them so it's not nearly as bad. One thing that kinda annoyed me is that some characters will react to a mechanic in the game, but others will not, and it's a problem because for a curious player like myself, It forces me to spam the 'rain' on everything in the game, only to find out I had to do it like 5% of the time. I don't want to say that navigation in the quest lines was difficult, but I can see where you might have a problem if you don't read the first part of the dialogue, sometimes I thought I finished the interaction only to backtrack all the way back because I didn't do it. I want to say the game is around 3 to 4 hours, I didn't do all of the optional achievements though. Backtracking added a lot to the length, it's not too bad but noticeable, and I kinda wish we had something to mitigate it, maybe a hat that makes you.... faster. [h1] Pros: [/h1] (+) The puzzle design was a little boring for me at first, but surprisingly the creativity in the quests is what eventually won me over, and overall I really like the more casual approach to the puzzle difficulty. I just feel like it happened more toward the second half, the tasks became a lot less generic and I like the originality. (+) I think the game just handles the optional tasks perfectly, they are hidden, they are fun, and they made me think outside the box. And hey you can get some cosmetic hats with some hidden interactions. Good use of achievements. (+) Again, I didn't fully understand what the theme of the game was, but even though I was only following parts of the story here and there, I loved the ending, it was very wholesome. Also, as far as the mood, I do feel like whoever did the miscellaneous sounds did a great job, it has a good sense of escapism, and the minimalistic approach to the visuals helped too. [h1] Feedback: [/h1] [u] Nitpicks [/u] - so I don't have any objective criticism for the game, I just thought it started slow, and got a lot better toward the end. Personally, I would prefer mouse UI, I think this is a relaxing game that could use it. I kinda wish the rain had more random interactions, it happens a few times so I spammed it everywhere just in case, and 95% of the time nothing happens. On a side note, it would have been nice if you put more care into the dialogue if you already interacted with a person, sometimes they repeat the entire thing, sometimes they don't, sometimes it's not obvious what happened. [b] Overall Thoughts 7/10 [/b] I almost gave up playing the game because it was a bit boring, but I am glad I stayed all the way because it genuinely won me over. I liked the optional tasks, I liked the creativity, and most of all, just a great happy ending. Fun game with enjoyable escapism, 'less is more'... sometimes... [code]More niche games and hidden-gems: http://store.steampowered.com/curator/31294838-Hidden-Gem-Discovery/ [/code]

As this is the first review let me tell you what you get and what you dont get if the tags didnt give that away already. Obviously this is a story driven game so no complex gameplay aspects. Its focus is on immersion and story telling and my god does it deliver on these. For me audio has been way more important to immersion than graphics. I can visualize my imaginations to complete the picture but I cant do that for audio. And a winding path has one of the greatest audio designs in a any game Ive ever played. Ori and the blind forest is a popular example of a game that does very good in this regard aswell and a winding path is on the same level for me. The only thing "missing" is a narrator, you have to read the text but this is totally expectable and common for small teams and their first game (at least on steam). So Im used to it and I dont miss it at all. The gameplay is not complex but well done, keyboard and controller work both and both perfectly fine. Especially controller support is important to me as I like to play these kind of games on my couch. I was able to do so without issues. So no worries here. Its a simple game very well made and thats the right way to do it. Performance is hard to judge for me as I have a mid tier gaming pc that can handle gems like this without a sweat. But Im pretty confident you can play this on IGPs on notebooks, even older ones totally fine. 2D games usually go pretty easy on the hardware. To the important part - the Story, Character- and Leveldesign: The part Ive played so far is nice and cute but what it has really brought to live are the characters. The devs have put soo much effort into them and it shows in every line of dialogue. And this doesnt stop with the people you talk to, the leveldesign is so great, it feels like everything has character and has a little story to tell, even a rock lying around. Everything feels so relatable, so natural, so real. I can only imagine how much work this requires. The last game I played that got to this so right was Life is Strange, which to be fair is a lot more complex so its still on another level. Still I think this is pretty remarkable. The devs haven taken their time to figure out what is important for us players, nailed that decision and put all their focus on this and this makes this game something very special to me. You hardly ever see this level of dedication in popular titles and the ones that do, get celebrated for years. I think this game deserves to be celebrated aswell. So if you like story driven games and dont mind a simple gameplay, you have to check this game out.

A very sweet and relaxing game, perfect for a cozy Sunday afternoon. I love the art style, the story line, the message. Technically, it's a bit on the short side, but this one is not meant to be rushed. Take your time, play around, find all the little hidden trinkets and funny little interactions. Have some tea while you do it maybe. And some cookies if you like. Definitely has replay potential, if only to find all the little things you missed on the first playthrough and grab those last few achievements. The writing is a bit tongue in cheek sometimes but rarely gets silly. The overarching message is nice and heartfelt. I really enjoyed playing a game that isn't grim and violent and overly dramatic for once. It's a lighthearted affair, in the best sense of the word. One decision I was initially a bit irritated by at first is that the game has hardly any music (except for when someone is actually playing music in the game world). At first the world feels very quiet. The ambient sound is very good though! And since this is a game to soak in with very little action to distract you, a looping music soundtrack would become annoying real fast and would detract too much from the nice ambient soundscapes. I think the choice to not have background music for this game was exactly right. So, resist the urge to put on your own music and enjoy the (relative) silence. Very nice game, I'm enjoying it a great deal! For the price, you really can't go wrong. To the developers: Can we maybe have a sequel in the future? Maybe? Please?

A very charming puzzle game! Took me a bit over 2 hours to beat it and it felt fun and relaxing. The interesting visuals and great sound design really add to the experience.

https://youtu.be/eO40pyhoRk0 An excellent little adventure game, The art was simple but was also visually stunning, especially the town. For such a short game they established a decent amount of world building that made the game more fun to run through. So instead of doing mindless quest you knew why you were doing it, the back story behind it, and could relate to the characters. Overall it was a fun little game that took about 2 hours to beat but it could take long if your trying for 100% achievements. I have included a little gameplay with it, so you can see the start of the game, (which is more puzzle related, compared to the 2nd half of the game which has more "quests")

It's a fun little game is you want to relax. Gameplay is very easy. You still have to use your brains if you want to progress in the story.

Cumple todo lo que promete. Es una linda aventurita tipo walking simulator, bellamente dibujada a mano. Me gustó mucho toda la onda minimalista, desde la casi inexistente interfaz hasta cómo el juego se ve chiquito en la pantalla, le da un toque muy fresco. La historia es medio WTF (para bien, igual), y con pequeñas quests vas avanzando y resolviendo los problemitas de los personajes que te vas encontrando. Pensé que iba a ser más cortito, pero duró más de 3 horas, aunque mucho del juego es ir del punto A al punto B, podrían haberle puesto una mecánica de correr, posiblemente no lo hicieron para no romper la ambientación relajante y apreciativa que tiene. El final deja un buen sabor. Encima, aunque no lo marca en la página de Steam, está en español también.

I adore everything about "A Winding Path" - the simple hand-drawn art style, the black-and-white aesthetic, and the charming pencil drawings with their imperfections. The ambient environment sounds create a wonderful atmosphere for exploration. The lovely story and beautiful finale, along with hidden rewards, make for a delightful 2D adventure. Highly recommended.

This is a lovely game whose primary appeal is the characters, story, and great atmosphere. It's hard to talk about the story without giving away parts of the game. In general what I can say is that despite its short runtime, it touches upon many different themes, and across a variety of moods, from lighthearted adventuring, to corruption, however, it stays light-spirited throughout. Overall the best way I can describe the tone is heartwarming. Should you buy this? If you like games that just tell a story, and are light on gameplay, then it's an easy recommend. I've finished the main story, and will be going back in to look at some of the optional content (possibly "true ending", I have no clue).

What a beautiful game! I love the graphics, music and whole general vibe; it's very relaxing and peaceful. It makes me feel like I am in an actual storybook! I love the concept and all the interactive features. Also the puzzles really make you think. It has a charm to it that makes you want to keep playing to see what is next in the story. A must play!