Inside
Review
You will die, in brutal, horribly and disgustingly detail
by Matt Porter
reviewed on PC
On the shoulders of giants
When it came out in 2010, Limbo became a masterpiece of game design. From its art and sound design, to its sense of atmosphere, to its puzzling gameplay mechanics, and to its ability to tell a story with no words, Limbo was a genre defining moment. Six years later, development studio Playdead is back with Inside, and it has proved Limbo was not a fluke. Inside takes what made Limbo great and runs with it even further, and has added yet another great game to 2016s ever-growing list.
Much in the same way to its predecessor, Inside is dark and mostly monochrome, although there are splashes of colour here and there, most notably the red top the protagonist wears. Again, you play as a young boy, puzzle-platforming his way through dangerous environments, although here, the dangers are not part of the forest itself as in Limbo, but rather the people chasing you. Youre not really given any sense of why you are where you are, why these people are looking for you, or where you are even going, you just know that youre going to have to figure out how to survive.
Death is inevitable
But you wont survive, at least not at first. And when you do die, the added amount of detail in Insides character and the extra death animations will leave you shocked, every time it happens. A game has never left my mouth open, aghast, so many times. Whether hes being ripped apart by dogs or violently smothered by a shadowy man, these deaths are brutal, and you can see how the game got its 18 rating. These moments of horror are not to mention the last section of the game, where the animation and sound effects are exquisitely disgusting, but I wont give too much away about that.
Indeed, if you know youre going to be playing Inside, its worth going into it with as little information as possible. The story is ambiguous enough that you dont want to be weighed down with other peoples theories before forming your own. Its not exactly a water-cooler game, but youll certainly be discussing what you think it all means with your friends, as well as recounting some of the best moments. Perhaps the story is too ambiguous though, as certain moments and the ending in particular will leave you with more questions than answers.
Inside isnt exactly hard, although it is quite unfair at some moments. I wouldnt go as far as saying some of the puzzles are trial and error, but a handful are designed to have you fail so you can figure out how to actually get past them. Puzzle solutions arent telegraphed in the environment, but there arent any red herrings here. If you can interact with an object, itll be part of solving the puzzle, so if you can drag it somewhere, or activate it, or jump over it, youll probably figure it out. Thats not to say the puzzles arent enjoyable, but you wont be challenged very much during the 3-4 hours of playtime Inside has in store for you.
Its all about the journey
Instead, its all about the journey. Youll progress through the forest and into a more industrial area, before going somewhere you never thought youd end up. Once again, Playdead has absolutely nailed the art style and atmosphere, and that alone is enough to push you through to see whats coming next. The level design is more sprawling than in the games predecessor, but youll never become lost. Plus, there are nice touches such as objects blending into the background when youre not using them. If you drag a box somewhere but dont want to jump onto it yet, youre not forced to, and you can run right by it.
Inside isnt as impressive in terms of the physics based puzzles as Limbo was six years ago, but it doesnt make them any less enjoyable now. Inside has improved on the genre in other ways, in animation, in subtle yet noticeable level and puzzle design, in the way the game makes you feel while youre playing it. You may turn up your nose at another game which is viewed as art and which doesnt tell you everything you need to know. Thats fine, but just know you are missing out on yet another wonderful game.
8.9
fun score
Pros
Beautiful art design, great yet simple puzzle and level design.
Cons
Highly ambiguous story, some moments are designed for you to fail.
