The Facts
Windosill is a hard game to review without spoiling the actual game for the player. It's an interactive flash game deal where clicking on things plays an animation and you win by clicking on things in the right order. Except you can move things by dragging them as well as clicking on them. The version I tested was a stand alone download from steam which is unusual for a flash game but you can play the first half of the game for free on windosill.com, which is more like a flash game, but you have to pay to play the second half which again isn't very flash game like.
This game is mostly about discovery. You discover what you are supposed to be doing by discovering what happens when you interact with the things on screen. Very little is explained while playing to the point where I wasn't sure if it would save my progress when I exited the game. It didn't, but once you know the trick to beating a part of it you can play that part again quickly.
Don't be surprised if you find yourself finished in the space of half an hour with not much reason to go back and play again. The price is also on the low side but in the end I didn't think that either my time or money was wasted.
This game uses a simple physics system so that when you move something on screen it does feel like it has the a realistic weight. When items interact with each other they do so in a way that makes the game world more believable.
The Else
It feels like a box of wooden toys for adults. People who make and love wooden toys might be able to appreciate some of the craft that has gone into creating some of the angular and mechanical creations in this game. I mentioned earlier that this game was mostly about discovery. The real heart of discovery in the game is prodding these toys into life, watching them come alive and working out what purpose and character they have. And there is very little in this title that has no purpose or character.
The design and animation remind me of Terry Gilliam's work on Monty Pyhton's Flying Circus and Jim Henson's Muppets. It does have a sort of anarchic and surreal feeling but that never really crosses over from surprise into comedy.
The Summing Up
This is a game that deserves to be experienced. It is a well crafted if not especially challenging puzzle game.
