Broken Reality

You know I love the concept and the presentation but what kills this game for me is how sluggish it is in certain ways. Movement speed is glacial despite large areas and a need for backtracking, there's no way to sprint, run or speed up. Certain collectibles(that are mandatory since you need to hit certain point thresholds to advance) are only visible while holding a specific tool. Sluggish switching from tool to tool which makes this further annoying. Some bits of dialogue have long, unskippable pauses for no reason. The slow movement speed also particularly hurts when the game is littered with one-way drops that will inevitably force you to loop back around when you stumble into one of them without setting a checkpoint. The gameplay very rarely requires you to activate your brain and mostly just functions as the equivalent of a "hidden object" game where you just have to click everything you can see and then you progress. I expected to like this game, but honestly it doesn't really feel like I gained anything from my time playing it. Ultimately nothing about it annoyed me enough to stop playing, it just bored me enough to stop playing.

Broken Reality is one of those games that I personally find very hard to explain, and that’s because of the special connection it builds with the player. If you’re tuned into this kind of game, it can hit you hard. If not, it might just feel like a very bizarre game with no real meaning. Visually is where it hits the most. The entire game has a vaporwave aesthetic that I love. It has that ’90s computer vibe and surreal environments that I think are amazing. It has a meaning very similar to 198X, but it leans more into exploration and getting lost in the world rather than gameplay or narrative. I don’t think it’s aiming for realism but rather for the feelings it evokes and it achieves that very well. Within that atmosphere, the soundtrack fits perfectly. It has varied tracks, relaxing, melancholic and tense. Everything feels like you’re navigating an abandoned version of the internet where every place, if you lived through that era, has a reference or a story you can connect to. and I think that’s brilliant. The NPCs, the dialogue, the levels, everything builds this sensation that what you’re experiencing isn’t real but also not entirely fictional either. The gameplay is super basic. It’s a walking simulator where you interact with a few things, but beyond exploring, talking, and solving a couple of small tasks, there’s not much else. It’s a short journey through a distorted reality. But what really stands out to me are the themes it explores: escapism, identity, and comfort. This is where it hits the hardest, or at least it did for me. Without saying it directly and with a lot of subtlety, the game talks about digital escapism, about finding refuge in virtual worlds, about trying to understand yourself, discovering who you are and what you want to be, and how sometimes you might feel more comfortable there than in real life. That’s why the game feels so close to the message that 198X tries to convey, but here it does it even better. And if you’ve ever felt something like this, if you’ve ever spent countless hours lost in the internet or in a game just to disconnect, this game will make you understand that part of yourself. Honestly, it’s a very personal and quite niche game. So please, play it, because when it connects with you, it won’t let go. It genuinely surprised me in every way, and I think it’s one of the best games I’ve ever played and one of the ones that hit me the hardest, both mentally and emotionally, because of the themes it explores, which are really important.

An online walking sim for people who want more Hypnospace Outlaw. 6/10. I refuse to give this game lower than a 6, but there is not much to it. This game consists of you walking through strange worlds at a slow pace (like most walking sims). Every level you get a new tool. While some are for movement, others are for collecting (like the things you need to progress). This means the main way you interact with the environment is to just click your mouse button. It can be that this is just not my game, as I never finished it. It will get a positive review, but just know that you need to be into this sort of game to enjoy it, as the visuals do not carry it all the way through like Hypnospace does.

沉迷在梦一样的互联网中漫游 在一步步的引导下最终苏醒拥抱现实

I like the game, absolutely love the art & aesthetic.

Wonderful art and sound design in this puzzle/collection/platformer. Had a great time exploring the levels. Couple of small glitches here and there, but nothing a quick restart didn't fix.

A gem among the other indie exploration games. With the sequel upcoming, I've decided to give this game a replay. And I have to say it is worth getting if you're into exploration/puzzle games. It is very simple gameplay wise, but the story and aesthetic makes up for it. The scenery in the game is very beautiful especially if you enjoy the vaporwave aesthetic. Every area is packed with collectibles and things to check out. I have yet to find another game that scratches the same itch as this one. Excited for the sequel : )

很棒的游戏，游玩过程很放松，视觉也很有意思

I'm not even finished with this game and I can't stop raving about it. This game is a prime example of developers *caring* at every possible turn. The colors are fantastic, the music is superb for every single scene the sound changes in. The visual landscapes are engaging and YES, this game absolutely understands the assignment. That is, if you are in a certain state of mind when you play it, you will get 10x the experience out of it. Excellent elevated consciousness fodder aside, the game is extremely deep. There's huge places to explore, there's an underlying story that keeps unfolding as you progress and the entire thing is a scathing indictment of consumer and social media culture. This game on its surface seems like a weird surreal dive into madness. And it is, it very much is. But past that, it's a game where everything was crafted with love, everything was chosen deliberately and so much time and effort are on display. This is what it looks like when developers CARE about what they are making and it shows on every single frame. I got this on a discount and I'd honestly think it was worth 30 dollars for what you get. If you love surreal, colorful mindscapes with a depth that surprises you, dive into Broken Reality. (Also they're making a second one, it's out in a little over a month and I can't WAIT.) Edit: Finished the game on 6/13/26. The ending is worth the amazing build-up. I won't spoil anything but this game gets really interesting in the third act. Please play it all the way through, you won't regret it!

Even years after playing, I find myself thinking about this game on a monthly basis. It's a forever memory I fear. Like a careless hamster trying to cross freshly poured concrete, it's there to stay.