Braid: A good game, but not without some rather big flaws.

scotth266

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If you haven't heard of Braid, you haven't been paying attention to anything game-related of late: I mean, the game's only been trumpeted all over. However, for those of us who don't like keeping up on their news, Braid is a game made by Mr. Jonathan Blow, a rather big critic of some parts of the games industry.

The game is rather simple in premise: and the instructions you recieve are in line with that. All the buttons you'll use on your keyboard are the arrow keys to move, the space bar to jump, and the Shift key to rewind time. The controls are strangely compelling, ringing of a time in games when instruction manuals didn't have to be 32 pages long. It's like playing a NES game, and for that I give Blow a thumbs-up for actually following the motto of KISS, something that isn't as prelevant these days in games where you can have a controller with about 22 methods of input, or use most of the keys on your keyboard(looking right at you, MMOs and Crysis). It's a game that focuses on complexity through simplicity, as evidenced by the game's levels. Each set of levels (six in total) focuses on using a different time mechanic that ties into that level's story thematics. For instance, in the set named "Time and Place", where the story discusses how places evoke times and memories in our hearts, the mechanic for the level is that walking forward advances the flow of time, while walking backward does the opposite. It's a deep and compelling twist on how the story in a game can reflect the gameplay, and I admire it deeply.



Now if only I weren't so tall... then that key would be easy pickings.

Everything in Braid seems to have been constructed to give a sort of storybook feel to it, as though the game jumped out of a collection of child's fairy tales. The main character, an enigmatic man named Tim, is out to rescue a princess that was kidnapped by a terrible monster. The art helps to support the feel that the story gives: it's decidedly like a drawing in a children's book, or art from a painting of a magical world. The music also does its part to support everything: it's full of violin bits that just feel EPIC in some way, and I must say that I've never heard a bedtime song used in such a somber and menacing way in one of the earlier levels. The only gripe I really have about it is that there are so few derivations in the enemy art: there are really only two enemies you see throughout the game, repeated constantly. I can understand the desire for simplicity, but I really wanted to see MORE of the creatures in Braid. I really suppose that is my main complaint about the game really: it suffers from not having enough.

You see, while the time puzzles in Braid are very effective at being clever and difficult, anyone with decent puzzling skills will be able to beat the game in no time flat. I cleared the game in only six and a half hours, which for 15$ just feels too short, especially since Braid draws you in so well. It's a game that just needs to be longer in every sense, and once you "finish" the game you're left feeling decidedly unsatisfied.

You see, once you beat all the main levels you're treated to one last epilouge level. Up till this point in the story the entire thing has been told to you through several books: and the trend continues here. Beforehand, I was entirely willing to read about the past, but for the ending of the game I wanted something more: even just some narration added to the text would have sufficed. The game even cheats you of a proper ending too. Let me explain: up until this point, the only thing that you know that you had to collect in the game were puzzle pieces, which you use to build a set of paintings which help build a ladder to reach the final level. When you reach the end though, several of the books that you activate to read the text for the story are mysteriously empty. This is because there are several secret stars hidden in Braid that the game TELLS YOU NOTHING ABOUT. To be honest, I thought that the game was over, and that pissed me off. Why did the story here make no sense? Why was it so disjointed and broken? I couldn't believe it. Thankfully, a person posted a video up on Youtube explaining why the books were empty. I thought to myself: Hmmm. Well, if the stars are easy to get, and just require a bit of exploration, why not try and find them? Well, because I had never even seen a hint about these, I found another Youtube video that thankfully contained several levels of spoilers as to where the stars were located, for those who wished to try getting them themselves. I managed to acquire a few of these after some mild frustration, but the rest eluded me. I then spoiled it for myself: I wanted some closure from this game, no matter the price. And the horrors shocked me. You see, the rest of the stars that I had yet to obtain were not worth the investment involved in time and dedication. For an example, with mild spoilers:

There is one star in a level that requires you to sit there with the game open for two hours to wait for a cloud to travel to you, and then requires you to wait longer than that for the cloud to reach the place where the star is. THIS IS NOT BEING CLEVER MR.BLOW, THAT'S CALLED BEING AN ASS.

Another star requires you to know about it beforehand or restart the game. This one I won't spoil for you entirely: JUST DON'T connect any of the pieces in the first two paintings until you find it. Once again, Mr.Blow: DICK MOVE!



Prepare for some old-school rejections when trying to find the damsel in distress.

The stars in the end are just not worth it, and that makes the game up till that point feel soiled in some way. It's like giving you a cake that tastes excellent, but the icing supplied to frost it is the icky kind: fluffy, and it tastes synthetic to the extreme. And the only way you can eat any cake is if you frost it first.

If the ending wasn't such a load of crap, and it weren't reached so quickly, I'd give this game my highest recommendations. But the game isn't worth 15$ due to these problems. Instead, I'd say it's only worth ten. Wait till it goes on sale, and get it then: but don't expect the experience to end well unless you're willing to suffer for it.

Max Payne [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.110027#1897580]
Indigo Prophecy [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.108202#1817369]
WarCraft 3 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.107685]
Fallout 3 [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.105151#1683250]
Mirror's Edge [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/326.102291#1586312]


Splinter Cell
Jade Empire (I NEED TO DO THIS ALREADY, I've been stuck with this in my skull for several weeks.)
Hitman
Frontlines: Fuel of War
Far Cry
World of Goo
The Longest Journey
Prince of Persia
Darwinia
Deus Ex
DEFCON
Beyond Good and Evil
Warhammer 40k: Dawn of War
STALKER
Team Fortress 2
Full Spectrum Warrior
Titan Quest
and whatever the hell else I happen to get between then and now.

Also: I had a plan to do a manga mashup line: a series of short mini-reviews of mangas clustered together, at maybe 6-7 at a time. Clue me in as to where I should stick these in.

I have no plans to do movies though: I can't write in that style. It feels formal in some way. I'll only do cheeseballishly bad movies like the Dragonball one, or comic book movies, as those are the only movies that I can really get worked up about.

Editor's Edit: Stuck in a line about the muzak that I forgot to include. WHOOPSIE! Also, stuck an extra line between the pictures and captions.

Extra Edit: Edited the title for posterity. It feels better now... Though I wish that there was a pun I could've thought up. Humor center of the brain not working as well as it should be today. Also, the second image would not load for some, so it was swapped out for another picture/caption.
 

Snuggle

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Nice review! I bought Braid some time ago, but got away from it to play Fallout 3 instead. Unfortunately I have a habit of stop playing puzzle games when I get to some place I can't figure out, and then just forget about the game and move onto something else. I probably just need to play more puzzle games.

Anyway, the review. I haven't actually finished the game yet (see above), so I can't comment that much the story, but I completly agree with you on the music part. It is truly epic.
 

sneak_copter

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Oh god... did you just mention FLAWS and BRAID in the same sentence?

Such a thing will bring on the apocalypse!
Repent! Repent your sin!
 

scotth266

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sneak_copter said:
Oh god... did you just mention FLAWS and BRAID in the same sentence?

Such a thing will bring on the apocalypse!
Repent! Repent your sin!
I refuse, on the grounds that my ego is so massive, it collapsed into a black hole long ago. Ergo, anyone who dares attack me will be swallowed up :D

But to be serious, it has flaws. Namely being too short, and having a bad ending for anyone not willing to spend RIDICULOUS amounts of time on it.

Snuggle said:
Anyway, the review. I haven't actually finished the game yet (see above), so I can't comment that much the story, but I completly agree with you on the music part. It is truly epic.
You get to the level where the music only plays right when time is rewound? It's such a good song...
 

Snuggle

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No, at least I don't remember it. But then, it's been about two weeks since I played it last. What level is it?
 

scotth266

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Snuggle said:
No, at least I don't remember it. But then, it's been about two weeks since I played it last. What level is it?
Dunno. It's probably pretty far in... in fact I think it's one of the latter levels. Just look out for a level where the music only plays correctly when time rewinds: it's a very energetic song.

antipunt said:
Braid had a pretty awesome story
Riiiight up till the end I'd agree with you. When you hit that epilouge, it was like a wet sponge to the face.

ryai458 said:
its a good game
Agreed, but it's not worth 15$. If it were a little longer and didn't end so poorly, I'd say "Buy it now!". As is, it stays as "Wait until it goes on sale".
 

scotth266

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antipunt said:
scotth266 said:
antipunt said:
Braid had a pretty awesome story
Riiiight up till the end I'd agree with you. When you hit that epilouge, it was like a wet sponge to the face.
Dude, lol. The ending was the best part
I assume you managed to get all the stars then? The ending I reached was rather lame sauce...
 

oliveira8

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scotth266 said:
antipunt said:
scotth266 said:
antipunt said:
Braid had a pretty awesome story
Riiiight up till the end I'd agree with you. When you hit that epilouge, it was like a wet sponge to the face.
Dude, lol. The ending was the best part
I assume you managed to get all the stars then? The ending I reached was rather lame sauce...
I think the game was lame all around....mainly the story. It also doesnt help that Blow's ego is bigger than the Gallagher Brothers ego. But the music was good.

Steam price is actually good in Europe. 12,99 Euros for an indie good. Its not great price like Audiosurf but its not a bad price like World of Goo(Really 20 euros?)

But anyway good review! 4 starts and half cause the 2nd picture apparently isnt working. :p
 

scotth266

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oliveira8 said:
Steam price is actually good in Europe. 12,99 Euros for an indie good. Its not great price like Audiosurf but its not a bad price like World of Goo(Really 20 euros?)

But anyway good review! 4 starts and half cause the 2nd picture apparently isnt working. :p
Huh, isn't the euro worth quite a bit more than the dollar? Ah well. Here World of Goo is $20, and Braid is $15. So not much of a price difference...

The second picture isn't working? Hit refresh. I don't see any problems... Then again, maybe only I can see it: it's the PICTURE WHISPERER! Seeing ghosts of pictures that aren't really there!

I had to use the width and height code to adjust the size though, perhaps that fucks with some people's browsers? If it continues to bugger up, quote me and I'll grab another one if I can find it. I like getting 5 stars damnit!
 

oliveira8

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scotth266 said:
oliveira8 said:
Steam price is actually good in Europe. 12,99 Euros for an indie good. Its not great price like Audiosurf but its not a bad price like World of Goo(Really 20 euros?)

But anyway good review! 4 starts and half cause the 2nd picture apparently isnt working. :p
Huh, isn't the euro worth quite a bit more than the dollar? Ah well. Here World of Goo is $20, and Braid is $15. So not much of a price difference...

The second picture isn't working? Hit refresh. I don't see any problems... Then again, maybe only I can see it: it's the PICTURE WHISPERER! Seeing ghosts of pictures that aren't really there!

I had to use the width and height code to adjust the size though, perhaps that fucks with some people's browsers? If it continues to bugger up, quote me and I'll grab another one if I can find it. I like getting 5 stars damnit!
In Steam $1=1? apart from some games aparently like Braid and some Valve games. Also I hit refresh plenty of times and nothing. Got Firefox.
 

scotth266

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oliveira8 said:
In Steam $1=1? apart from some games aparently like Braid and some Valve games. Also I hit refresh plenty of times and nothing. Got Firefox.
Crap on a biscuit! Ok then, I'll see if the interwebz can procure a solution.

Edit: Try it now...
 

oliveira8

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scotth266 said:
oliveira8 said:
In Steam $1=1? apart from some games aparently like Braid and some Valve games. Also I hit refresh plenty of times and nothing. Got Firefox.
Crap on a biscuit! Ok then, I'll see if the interwebz can procure a solution.

Edit: Try it now...
AH! it works now...But now you get 3 stars! Cause you used that picture! urg urg urg!

(kidding xP)
 

scotth266

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oliveira8 said:
AH! it works now...But now you get 3 stars! Cause you used that picture! urg urg urg!

(kidding xP)
I was about to say, nobody cannot appreciate that reference. But I'm glad it works now... Hopefully anyone who strolls in here and read it already isn't too confoosed.
 

Woe Is You

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scotth266 said:
But to be serious, it has flaws. Namely being too short, and having a bad ending for anyone not willing to spend RIDICULOUS amounts of time on it.
I thought part of Braid's appeal was that it doesn't overstay its welcome, does a very simple concept extremely well and that's it. It's no shorter than Portal is, in fact, you can draw lots of parallels between the two despite the fact that they're completely different games. $15 for such a game isn't too bad, really.

As for the ending, I never collected the stars either but I found the ending satisfying enough (the twist ending in particular). I haven't put the time to getting all the stars but everything I've heard of it basically makes it sound like it sort of sours the original ending of the game.
 

Mstrswrd

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scotth266 said:
The only problem I have with your review is that in today's game market, where we pay 60 dollars for a 10 hour game, you're complaining about a 15 dollar game being 6.5 hours long.

And the stars are completely optional. I didn't even know there were stars until I read a gamefaqs plot analysis that briefly mentioned them.

On the other hand, your review did explain most of your complaints quite well, so nothing said wasn't in some way justified. Plus, it was really just quite well written.
 

Smurfy 0151

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All in all, it REALLY is a good game. Personally, I enjoyed the ending, except for the stars bit...that, as you said already, was kinda the icing on the bullsh*t cake. The gameplay was in depth, which really is rare in a game so seemingly simple. It reminded of Portal, in ways...I felt smarter after completing Portal, and Braid knocked me back down a few pegs. It was also well balanced...some puzzles I flew through without actually realizing a puzzle had been sent my way, and others I was stuck on for literally HOURS. It does have it's problems, but personally, I'd give it a 8.5 out of 10. Although, I suppose that coming from a guy who really does just game, and honestly doesn't care if anyone gives a sh*t what he thinks, really doesn't matter.