One of the reasons I don't stream video games more often (aside from, you know... not having friends) is the fact that I think most people would be terribly bored watching me do what I typically do. When it comes to the games I play, especially my favorite games, I really like to soak up the environments and the atmosphere, which sometimes manifests in me standing around, walking back and forth, looking at artistic details. Not going where I'm supposed to go, or fulfilling the objective.
This proved to be especially relevant the first time I played through The Talos Principle. I'm sure I took probably double the time most players would, but I don't have any sources to back that up or anything. The game is really just stunning, between the various environments and worlds as well as the appropriate music and extremely heavy-handed mystique. It also imposes actual glitches on certain textures of the walls and things too, however, and this positively contributes to the whole feeling that something is
off about the world.
Speaking of which, one of the selling points of this game is the whole "philosophical" aspect of it. True enough, throughout the game you're asked a lot of questions that encourage you to think about deeper issues... and kind of come to your own conclusions about things. Without spoiling too much, the game does a pretty good job at being compelling in this way, but that said I think this is probably one of my less favorite aspects of it. I used the term heavy-handed to describe it for a reason--Talos really doesn't force any views on you, but it does so in a way that definitely forces you to think for yourself... which means, if you play video games to turn off your brain like I do sometimes, it can be a little annoying. Despite this, though, I find myself appreciating the presence of these things through the high level of mystery it adds to the game.
I think I've written enough about its atmospheric merits, but Talos isn't all bells and whistles. The puzzles in this game are actually quite challenging, especially if you're persistent about getting all the secrets. A lot of people like to draw a comparison between this game and
Portal 2, and on some level it makes sense... it's a first person puzzle-platforming kind of experience. But I'm just going to throw it out there that this game does puzzles much better. I think the mechanical designs and solutions here are brilliant, and I'd recommend them to anyone looking for a little bit of a brain challenge. (Especially the DLC! Get that.) Another thing about the puzzles is that they often have alternate solutions which... were probably not intended by developers.... To say certain mechanisms in the game can't be exploited is definitely hasty, because it's probably worse in this game than the aforementioned Portal 2, but I find them quite fun in this game. (CRAZY solutions!)
So, yeah, I mean, playing through this game the very first time was one of the most memorable experiences I've had playing video games. Nothing can take away those experiences, but it remains a game I'm happy to go back to and surround myself in.