Twisted Tower

Super fun game 😁

This is an awesome game.

Fantastic game from start to finish. While not very long (~6h on my first run, <4h on my second), it had me so enthralled that I finished both runs in a single sitting. I loved the Bioshock-esque setting and building of intrigue combined with the wacky yet incredibly satisfying combat, seamlessly blended with the boomer shooter style puzzle solving and key hunting used very effectively during periods of downtime. The story and its reveals are very well paced, only adding to the intrigue and it kept me playing to discover the plot. While the twists are somewhat signposted (provided you're looking for them, as though you're replaying Bioshock), the final reveal is no less shocking as it is disturbing. Just a great game for both people who grew up with boomer shooters and those who are relatively new to the FPS scene, especially for the stupidly low price, and well worth the wait. It's fun, it's wacky and you'll be thinking about it long after you've finished it.

For 15 bucks you have a solid blockbuster of a game that draws heavy inspiration from Bioshock and modern mascot horror. Solid level design and music, loved the roller coaster bits and i typically hate roller coasters in IRL if thats telling you something. Four hours of gameplay with alternative pathways for your next playthrough make this a worthwhile purchases.

There were times when I was playing this game where I had to stop and say "this game design is ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ brilliant." Environmental design is flawless. You aren't given a quest marker, but you cannot get lost, because the maps have been carefully designed to direct the player to where they need to go next. This is the opposite of yellow paint -- it is the lost art of making environments that players can read. To add on to the above, the environment also tells you what kind of enemies you will be encountering, what kind of weapons or items you will find on the level, to say nothing about environmental storytelling. There is physics elements that serve no real purpose. Why? Because you can, if you want to. Player movement has a lot of agency in mind. There are many upgrades for player movement regarding puzzles, platforming, and combat. Movement is fun to do, combat is fun to do. Weapons are diverse enough that each one changes how you fight, particularly when you unlock their unique upgrades. So as you progress throughout the game, the things you can do keep expanding. Difficulty on Normal felt very tightly balanced. You can die pretty easily, but it isn't terribly hard to survive if you are paying attention. It is right in the middle of "you need to focus, but not sweat", and honestly, getting that balance right is harder than many people realize. The story is not at the level of Bioshock, but it is pretty good. Voice acting is considerably better than expected. Bravo on the opening cutscene lasting just long enough to give us the premise and then dumping us into the gameplay. Audio and music is fantastic. Each enemy has a sound cue so you have a split second to change weapons or prepare for that encounter. Weapon impact sounds visceral. I could talk about many other little details and smart design choices, but this review is long enough. Highly recommend.

Great performance, snappy controls, immersive story, great artwork and audio. 6/6