![]() ![]() Accessibility should always trump difficulty, in my eyes. I get why, but I also think there’s no shame in being able to move on when something feels beyond your capabilities. The hint system unfortunately leaves a lot to be desired for the perennially stumped, offering vague ideas instead of anything near solutions. Truly the Dark Souls of co-op puzzle games, if you’ll forgive me for such a comparison. This is a credit to the game’s design, but it means that this is not something you can play with your kids, unless they’re toddling MENSA members. I can’t think of a game that has more difficult asymmetrical trials to overcome, beyond the most punishing of Portal 2mods. Your mileage may vary, but the comedy was almost always player-generated in my case.įair warning if you’re new to the series: We Were Here Forever has some brutal puzzles to contend with. There is a solid amount of dialogue from the omniscient characters, but I found it hokey and it didn’t summon any laughs. However, I think it’s likely to delight fans of the series, who have a good grounding of the game’s world and are really pining for more lore and mystery. I didn’t care much for the story itself, which is a shame because it is clearly one of the areas where Total Mayhem was looking to innovate. Those are two tough genre hallmarks to match up to, sure, but We Were Here Forever sits a few notches below them, even if it is batting in a different direction. The pacing is pretty good though, and you will jump between hands-off and hands-on sections, but I was often left longing for the snappier puzzles of Portal 2’s co-op campaign, or the strong narrative spine of Hazelight’s It Takes Two. ![]() Some eureka moments tend to lose their vigour when drawn out. As challenging and rewarding as they were to solve, the “You figured this out? Do it three more times!” schtick got old at times. I found that Forever’s puzzles were usually long-winded and delivered in stages, often lingering on the same kind of solution. Nothing game-breaking, but it was annoying and unexpected to have every new vista come with some chugging, given we were playing on a 3080 and a 2080 Ti, respectively. With regards to performance, my co-op partner and I also experienced some gnarly hitching when moving into new areas. Hilarious when you realise you’re being an idiot, but you’re going to waste a lot of time staring at walls in this game, so the less of it that’s necessary the better. ![]() The worst part of the game’s visuals is that the busier environments can lead you to think that innocuous assets are puzzle solutions. Consistency isn’t all bad, but I think it could do with a revamp. It’s nothing you haven’t seen before, and the series has maintained it over a number of games now. Forever has smart visual ideas and set pieces, but unfortunately, they all feel cut from the same cloth. But there’s a certain fatigue that comes with We Were Here Forever’s colour palette and fantasy-adjacent steampunk art style. Stiff levers offer a satisfying creak and buttons give off a sturdy click. ![]() The game’s environments are beautiful and brought to life with smart sound design. If you’re looking to test and develop the strength of your relationship with a friend, this would be a good place to start. But it’s these moments of made-up nonsense that really feel like bonding agents, and lead to We Were Here Forever’s finest moments. You’ll start making up names for things that already exist - ‘the Crash Bandicoot gem’ or ‘the Mike Wazowski’ being two of my favourites. As your mind fills with complex symbols and solutions, simple considerations like knowing your left from your right, or the ability to distinguish basic shapes – these concepts will quickly fall out of your brain, and lead to some serious laugh attacks as you try and return to your senses. This makes it a daunting, often oppressive experience, especially when you’re bashing your head against a single puzzle, your intellectual self-esteem destroyed.Īs a puzzle game, it does a fantastic job of humbling players, right down to the core of their critical thinking. Forever uses this set-up to dole out a surprising amount of jumpscares and a healthy dose of atmosphere, with little levity in between. ![]()
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