The Sexy Brutale

There are things to like here. At first, I quite liked the timed mechanic that applies to the puzzles, and the graphics have an interesting style to them. Unfortunately, as a puzzle game, it just doesn't have enough of that last element to satisfy--the puzzles are, for the most part, far too simple and straightforward. In essence, the kind of player who likes these games is going to breeze through every puzzle to be found here without breaking sweat. And too many boil down to the same exact strategy--follow people around, work out what's going on, then interrupt it, without much by way of red herrings or things to miss. It's frequently difficult to see how a player would NOT solve it. It's one of those games that ends up mildly disappointing to me, simply because it feels like the creators were only just this side of having made something genuinely excellent.

+ very interesting time travel mechanic incorporated nicely with puzzles + nice art style + soundtrack is great especially the main theme (I LOVE IT) + short but just the right lenght before it gets repetitive - movement could have been a little more fluid - no replayability Overall 8/10 its fun and memorable

Well written, aesthetically appealing (including the music and sound design especially), touching story that hits hard towards the end. Gameplay loop (literally in this case--time travel mechanics are deeply imbedded in the game) is fun and no single story wears out its welcome. Definitely not a hard game, though for me that's a good thing in a puzzle game (at least one driven by the underlying mystery and aesthetics like this one).

This is an atmospheric mystery-adventure with an art house flare and an unfortunate name. As Lafcadio Boone, a guest of the enigmatic marquis at his casino-mansion, The Sexy Brutale, you must solve puzzles to save your fellow guests from a terrible fate. For me it was a little bit Leisure Suit Larry, a little bit The 7th Guest, and a lot The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. Some of the puzzles rely on the use of masks, which are collected throughout the game and are each imbued with a special power. More significantly, events at The Sexy Brutale occur at specific times during a 12-hour period that you will relive over and over until you break the cycle of death. Unsolved puzzles get reset, but certain plot milestones do carry over. For the most part it plays much simpler than it sounds. The music is definitely a highlight, and at times I got the feeling that the game was meant to be a showcase for it first and foremost. On the negative side, the UI and controls leave something to be desired, and I found the ending to be not nearly as clever as it tries to be. The name "The Sexy Brutale" might come across as chintzy, but don't let it turn you off. I'm glad I gave it a shot.

The better part of Sexy Brutale is the story and mystery surrounding it - the urge to unravel what's going on. The puzzles themselves are weak - you need only one item to solve each section, at most. It felt like the tutorial never ended. The challenge is to find the item somewhere in the dozens of empty rooms that serve no purpose. The performance is a problem, too, as the game stutters frequently when quicly switching rooms - which happens a lot.