Why are you pressing forward? Because of what a disembodied voice has said? Because the challenges are there in front of you? Because you are trying to prove… what, precisely? Who and what you are? Why you are? Your choices along the way help to define who and what you are. These answers are generally chosen form a list, so they are not truly your words, but they are different enough from one another to offer some distinctively unique results. You are tasked with completing challenges and answering questions. These haunting moments bring about The Talos Principle’s more philosophical moments. These lingering remnants of what you can only assume is the past left a footprint on the surroundings without leaving any tangible people to actually interact with. However, the lovely location also looks like a slice of real estate that the rest of the world has either forgotten about or never truly known. The voice of Elohim speaks to you now and again, and there are parts of the stage where you get to interact with terminals and grasp at more of the loose narrative threads as the story slowly gets woven together. On the other, the world is lonely and lacking in life. The world is a lonely place with a post apocalyptic feel to it. This all makes for a satisfying gaming experience, especially when mixed with simple but effective music and visuals. The puzzle mechanics are carefully layered, unlocking new areas or tools along the way while continually teaching you how to play the game. Not looking to be constrained to a type of puzzle, The Talos Principle will slowly roll out a large number of challenges that slowly require more tools and a full understanding of what you have done to reach this point in the game. While The Talos Principle lacks a singular clever mechanic such as the gun from Portal or the box manipulations from Q.U.B.E., it compensates by offering greater variety. Those are some lofty comparisons to be sure, but they are fair and well earned. The first player perspective, science fiction setting and puzzle mechanics will no doubt draw many more comparisons to Portal. They are organic, logical and they help to develop the fundamental understandings the player will need in order to be successful.Īll good puzzle-based games really need to function like this. The initial puzzles are incredibly simple, but they are also effective teaching tools without coming across as such. Just like both Portal games did (I can promise you it won’t be the only time you sit back and think to yourself “this is very Portal-like). Instead of beating you over the head with lengthy exposition or tutorials that hold your hand through the first forty minutes of gameplay, The Talos Principle opts to teach through hands-on experience. The way The Talos Principle begins could in and of itself make for a fascinating study in teaching game mechanics. Like the game’s puzzle mechanics, these brief words leave you with more questions than answers but also a certain amount of direction. Then the disembodied booming voice of an entity called Elohim trails a few loose narrative threads for you to think about. The combination of mind bending questions blends wonderfully with challenging puzzles to create a memorable and unique experience. Truth be told, there is an additional layer on top of the game that poses a series of philosophical questions as well. With over 100 different puzzles nested into the beautiful yet often lonely world of The Talos Principle, it would be easy to believe that these challenges are what you will spend most of your time thinking about.
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