Magrunner: Dark Pulse

So yeah, this is Portal but with magnets. And worse characters. Also not as good. But it's fine. Just a decent puzzle game. Definitely worth a try if you got it for free on GOG and/or Steam.

Reviewing at halfway through. Not sure if I'll be able to get through the rest of it. Pros, game has good graphics and environmental storytelling. The progression of the horror matches well with the steady decline of your surroundings, and the puzzles are designed as such that it's easy to pick out the interactables from the scenery. There is a decent amount of tension in some areas, and the music is good at fostering an uneasy but focused atmosphere. The puzzles are unique and have some challenge for a mid-level player, but not too much that you'll be stuck for hours. Even though it's clearly a Portal clone, it does well to establish its own mechanics and identity so that it doesn't feel like you're playing a cheap knockoff. Cons, the physics are cumbersome, making the game feel like a massive chore to play and making platforming difficult. The puzzles frequently involve long sections of carefully navigating slow-moving platforms, meaning that a single poorly executed jump can waste huge amounts of time as you have to retread your steps--this is particularly frustrating because it discourages experimenting to find the solution. The mechanics of the Mag-glove are also boring. It's mostly boxes and platforms. It's just not variable enough to carry an entire game, even with the minor tweaks that Gamaji (a Studio Ghibli character in a Lovecraft horror? Really???) makes to the glove as you progress. I'd be willing to put up with the clumsy gameplay if the story was good, but both the story and characters are uninteresting and underbaked. Special mention goes to the protagonist, whose generic commentary effectively kills any enjoyment of the horror. The Lovecraft elements also feel very forced; Lovecraft's horror is best as a subtle, slow build to a final terrifying revelation. This feels more like just copy-pasting in the monsters and cults without putting in the time to build them up properly That said, I'd recommend giving it a chance if you catch it on sale.

It's said that the Portal games are polished to perfection - puzzles tuned to ensure you don't get lost etc. etc. None of that is present here - sadly - the puzzles are one-note, one-solution things which often rely on something between luck and guesswork to solve. It's a shame - it looks fine, the story is fine etc. - but the puzzles will repeatedly drive you insane by wanting something just a BIT further to the left or just trying something again and again until it works. Shame but as-is I can't recommend it because frustration > fun even with Cthulu on the loose

A fun game. Not crazy long, not crazy hard. I think this was a bug though, the character kept reacting to words and writing he saw but I didnt. If that was part of the game definitely a down point because I was just confused as to what he meant.

This game is really great and is - obviously - a portal-clone, but with magnets instead of portals. This leads to very amusing and hard riddles, always successfully balancing between solvable and challenging. Give it a try if you like puzzle-games. But if you like Lovecraft: The setting itself is great, but some parts are pretty boring thanks to a more than stupid AI. The story itself is also not mentionable in my opionion, but the gameplay is absolutley good. One of the few indie-games which are worth the price.