Penrose

I was so excited to find this on Steam for my sister, and then came to check back in on the app. To my horror, my star rating for an older, broken version had never updated. Allow me to resolve this by reviewing in both places, because Penrose is one of my favorite games in the world. I’m about to sound really pretentious, so I have to emphasize upfront that Penrose has something for anyone who loves stories. It’s very accessible without being shallow. This game deserves to be so much more widely known. For a very simple, largely text-based interface, the graphic design is immaculate, allowing for quiet immersion in the story and excellent sound design. This might sound silly, but as a person with ADHD sensory issues, I have to point out the actually-for-once perfect dark mode color choices. On that same note, this is the only game I will never play without the background music on. It’s mournful and mysterious and never grating, setting a perfect ambience to the story. The writing is clean and economical while remaining engaging and lovely. Purpose-driven yet immersive. Some may respond negatively to the mystery and the requisite imagination the story demands, but in the age of Content, Penrose is a work of artisanal craft and a standout journey. Exploration is so hard to blend with narrative even in a fully rendered 3D environment, and yet this interactive novella manages to inspire a sense of cohesion and discovery with an elegance one almost never encounters in interactive media. It’s an experience that has stayed with me for years and always will.

This is my prime example of video games being used as an artform. This game is, and I will absolutely not exaggerate this, beautiful. Doublespeak, I first found you playing stacklands online. Please, never stop creating your games; they're incredible.

I genuinely cannot think of a game that has affected me this deeply in a long time. It is an experience that can only exist as a game and I think that makes it even more beautiful and profound. It had me feeling at times like a genius and at other times a monster.