Obviously, you're better off working it all out for yourself. Assuming you don't cave in and reach for a guide, that is. Conversely, there are puzzles that require a slightly woolier form of logic, like the untangling of an exceptionally complicated knot, or the fabrication of a part that consists of several, not entirely obvious, stages.Įverything ultimately makes sense, though, meaning you'll undoubtedly experience more than the occasional epiphany when the penny drops and you figure out that tricky bit that's been giving you trouble. The majority of Broken Age's puzzles are entirely logical, and as such, reaching a solution makes you feel incredibly smart. It's nice to have a change of pace while you ruminate on possible solutions to whatever conundrum you've come unstuck on, and come unstuck you most likely will.īeneath the stylised, painterly artwork and cast of colourful characters, lies a traditional point-and-click adventure game that doesn't exactly pull its punches when it comes to posing a variety of head-scratching problems to solve. You can switch between Vella and Shay at any time, which is especially helpful if you're stuck at any point. What follows is a typically fun and humorous procession of puzzles that require a little lateral thinking in some cases, and straight-up off-the-wall thinking in others. Both understandably yearn to escape the drudgery of their workaday lives.Īs such, it falls to you, the player, to rescue Vella from a grim fate within the belly of the beast and snap Shay out of his daily grind, ultimately saving the day and all that good stuff. Shay, meanwhile, is a teenage boy stuck in an infinite loop aboard a strange space station, awakening to the same monotonous routine of morning cereal, silly missions and huggable yarn creatures. Broken Age tells the story of Vella and Shay, the former a girl destined for greater things beyond the small town of Sugar Bunting, where she's offered up as a sacrifice to the monstrous Mog Chothra at the 'Maiden's Feast'.

We'll get to that in a bit, but first, a little bit of background detail, to, y'know, set the scene and that. And yet, this is an adventure game that while evidently a work of excellence, is not without its flaws. The result of Double Fine's record-breaking Kickstarter efforts, Broken Age is a beautifully hand-painted, lovingly animated point-and-click adventure that juggles humour, pathos and puzzles with brilliant aplomb a game that demands to be played and savoured. A tale of talking cutlery, vomiting trees and maiden devouring monsters, Broken Age is certainly unique, if nothing else.

Broken age game