This game drew me in with its fantastic aesthetic and sealed the deal with the demo (give it a try). It's smart, generous, and diverse in its level design, using simple textures wonderfully lit by the lighting engine, which casts dramatic shadows across the brutalist, dystopian cityscape you pass through.
The world feels deep, mysterious, and endless, much like the sublime soundtrack by 1000 Eyes and Konstantin Schimanowski. Think Burial, but without the beats and with a lot more open space. It evokes a sense of deep, ethereal calm, while also providing a romantic warmth and pulse to an otherwise hauntingly barren yet strangely gorgeous world.
Everything seems very well thought out and tested. The devs also seem to have both feet firmly on the ground narratively, and don't indulge themselves too much in flexing their philosophy knowledge when writing the NPCs you encounter on your more walk-sim-like runs. It's very much an invitation to fantasize and freely associate about the world you're rushing through, and that kind of restraint deserves some serious credit. Hats off.
The gameplay is what you make of it. In some levels, I enjoy a slow traversal, taking in the view. In others, I'll ride my cheeks through the sound barrier to get that gold medal. There's no progression system; you're just a guy who runs, jumps, and slides through this dystopian megastructure, and it feels absolutely amazing.
Living out the power fantasy of being Neo in The Matrix, running along the wall in the lobby scene, has been an obsession of mine in gaming for decades. Just like in the 3D Prince of Persia games and GunZ: The Duel, the wall-running here is bloody excellent.
This game is fantastic, and it's incredibly cheap for what it offers.
