Just finished the True Ending(-ish) of Billy Basso and BIGMODE's Animal Well , and I found it to be perhaps the most unique video game I've played this year, if not this decade. That is because Animal Well is not a game. Animal Well is a crypt — a deeply buried treasure trove of delicately designed secrets and ciphers, all under the guise of an impossibly compact, albeit somewhat basic metroidvania. When it comes to the game and its ludic elements, Animal Well is not like your typical metroidvania. It does not involve the traditional "powering up" and overcoming foes. Instead, you play as a weird, powerless shit-blob that can only run and jump. There is no combat; any unconventional item you find along your journey — be it a yo-yo, a bubble wand, or a top — serves the primary purpose of being "keys" of sorts that allow you to solve puzzles you would otherwise be unable to solve. Because there is no combat, most of Animal Well 's "challenge...
A deep dive into the wide world of indie games. A blog by CookieJar.