GRcade

Hunted and alone, a boy finds himself drawn into the center of a dark project.

Since the release of LIMBO in 2010, Playdead has been working very hard on their next game, INSIDE. Expect INSIDE in the first half of 2015, debuting on Xbox.

suzzopher wrote:This looks cool, didn't like Limbo and I bought it three times

Limbo developer Playdead's long-awaited follow-up, Inside, is due 29th June on Xbox One.

It will arrive on Steam the following week starting 7th July.

To commemorate this, Limbo is now free on Xbox One. It will also be free on Steam 21st-22nd June.

Inside very clearly builds upon what made Limbo great, and in fact builds something greater. Its unimaginable twist may leave you dumbfounded, confused, and quite possibly speechless, but it will fuel heated discussion with your friends about its meaning, its message, and its intentions. It’s a short ride, but one I felt compelled to take again – including a search for its mysterious hidden orb collectibles. Play it soon before anyone spoils a single big moment for you.

This is a beautiful, haunting, and memorable game, a worthy follow-up to Limbo. Its puzzles, although rarely difficult, are engaging complements to the story. The real achievement of this game, though, is the way that it crafts its narrative: detailed environments convey the bizarre world that you travel through; introspective moments are filled with minimalist sound design and just the barest touches of music; and the things you must do to complete your journey force you to confront the realities of humanity, freedom, and existence. The puzzles might not bring you back to play it again, but the opportunity to learn more about the world alone is enough motivation to return to Inside's dystopia.

By every conceivable metric, Inside improves on the groundwork laid by Limbo. It deftly balances its elements. It could so easily have been too dark, too funny, too preachy — but it always stops just shy of going too far in any of those directions. At a glance, you could be forgiven for thinking that it hews a little too close to its predecessor. But Inside achieves something that Limbo didn't: It actually lives up to its opening moments, delivering astounding setpieces and an unforgettable final sequence. Those jaw-dropping last moments are a fitting endcap to this superbly crafted, beautiful game.

Inside has excellent gameplay, thoughtful puzzles, and deadly obstacles that are entertaining to avoid – but it feels wrong to call the game “fun.” The full experience, from its opening moments to a finale that left my mouth agape, is a strangely uncomfortable one. The world’s implied history immediately pulled me in, and it’s an experience I can’t put out of my head. My chest tightens as I recall the feeling of entering new areas, succumbing to surprise deaths and witnessing its many unexpected moments. By the end, I felt as though I had lived through someone’s horrible dream, and I couldn’t wait to do it all over again.

It feels strange to talk so little in specific about a game I'm so impressed by, and I could write a review three times as long citing examples like the first time you put on that... ah, forget it. This is less a nod to overly sensitive spoiler culture and more an acknowledgement of Inside as a work of singular creativity and meticulous design, one of those games where the more it surprises you, the more it'll impress you. I have a hard time coming up with much, other than a conclusion that left me wanting a little more, that this game could do better. It's that question of the gap between ambition and fulfillment, a gap which here is all but nonexistent. Looking at and playing Inside gives the feeling that every surface, every animation, every light and pixel were placed and replaced until they all fit together just right. You see where the six years went. I can't even picture what kind of game Playdead could make another six years from now.

Inside is a brilliantly crafted game that will keep you talking about it long after you’ve finished playing. Its moody, atmospheric world and terrific puzzle-platforming are simply the hooks to first draw you in.

The parallel to Limbo feels necessary when talking to people who haven't yet played Inside; after finishing it, it feels wholly unnecessary. Inside stands on its own merits as a superbly captivating and moving experience, one that's bound to be on your mind in the time you spend away from it. Someone once told me that the games you can't stop thinking about when you're not playing them are the truly great ones. I'm inclined to agree. Inside fits that mold even though we've seen others of its ilk before.

Playdead's follow-up to Limbo is a superior game in every way.

Combine a highly compelling visual narrative with superb puzzles and brilliant platforming, and you have Inside, one of the most intriguing, addictive, and beautiful-looking games of this generation. Its only downside is that it's quite short, but while it lasts, it's absolutely glorious.

Inside's nightmarish journey is fascinating and frightening in equal measure. This puzzle platformer is easily consumed, but digesting its disturbing world will be a contemplative challenge.

But now I’ve wandered into interpretive muddling, when what makes Inside interesting isn’t its dim woodlands, creepy factories, moody bunkers or underwater mysteries, but the craftsmanship of its puzzles and platforming challenges. This now feels like where Limbo was headed all along. I’m just grateful Playdead has been afforded the chance to bring us there.

Although not the breakthrough that was Limboback in 2010, Inside is nonetheless a beautifully-crafted refinement of that experience. The art direction is just as haunting, but in a way that's entirely its own. The amazing musical score can be transporting while at the same time oppressive. And the big finale is open to interpretation in the best way possible. I can't wait to discuss every aspect of this experience with others. I'm still thinking about being inside one of the year's most memorable games.

Buffalo wrote:Does anywhere mention how long the game is? Not hugely important, £16 price tag aside, I was just wondering if I could fit it into, say, a long afternoon.

zXe wrote:Does anyone know how many hours this game clocks in at roughly?