This game is a masterpiece. More than that, it's special. Here are a few reasons why I think that way: 1) Nothing about this game should have "clicked" for me. Literally nothing. A sad and grim story? Not for me, I like my escapism light-hearted, thank you. Turn based combat? Tired of that, chief. Surrealistic visuals? Saw the first teaser like a year ago, was convinced this one was a "pass" from me. Et cetera. — When a game manages to beat all your pre-existing negative biases against it and climbs all the way to the top of your favourites list, you know it's something special. 2) Out of all my friends whom I'd managed to convince to give it a shot, not a single one ended up disliking the game. I'm in a mid-sized gaming clan. That's quite a few people. Most actually loved it, even if it wasn't their usual genre, their usually preferred narrative tone, or even if they weren't initially into single player games at all. 3) This game single-handedly re-awakened my passion for games. I'd enjoyed (and beaten) more single-player games in the months since finishing E33, than in three years leading up to it. 4) It stayed with me— it has been months since I've beaten the game, yet I still keep thinking about the story. I still listen to the music, and I still watch videos about interesting theories, video essays etc. Not just that, but my fascination isn't waning (I just bought a second copy of the game here on gog, that's how strong my passion still is). So if you're reading this review to figure out if you should give this game a shot— you should. There is no other game worth giving a shot to if not this one.
