The game is, unfortunately, marred by many flaws.

The primary one, for a game of this type, is that the art quality simply isn't up to the standards of modern Triple-A game that's going to be seen at 1080p resolution. The art itself is well done, and the engine seems to do a reasonable job of rendering what's there, but tripling the artist-hours put in to this game and allowing for 10 GB rather than 2.5 GB of textures would have made a huge difference. That said, this is forgivable for an indie project where a huge artist budget simply isn't there; perhaps it's better to think of this as a demo of what the developers could really do, and a demo well worth playing.

The other major flaw is in certain areas of game design that simply, it appears, did not get enough time, testing and reworking. For example, a fair amount of clambering and climbing is required to reach a supply chest, which is the major item of progression in the game. Upon opening it you are immediately transported back to your home base, even if there are secrets yet to uncover nearby. When you go back (through the same complex route), there is no longer any quick way out; you must reverse what you did to come in. (Remember, it's impossible to die in this game; you can't fall off a ledge.)

The rest of the much more minor flaws are mentioned extensively in other reviews: the short playtime (which didn't bother me--my backlog is long enough already!), the repetition, and so on. They don't really affect the core of the game; they affect only how much you should pay for it.

And that's where we come to the price: $20 is probably a little too rich for most people who would otherwise like this game. Possibly this is simply part of a "frequent sales" marketing strategy, which is fair enough, though, especially on Steam. I paid $5 for this game myself, and I'd rate it at worth $5-$10. If ten bucks isn't a big deal to you, buy it at that price or even more; if $5-$7 is an amount you think about before spending, wait for that price, and you'll get your money's worth.

Before ending the review, I must mention the brilliant "Postcard Mode": this pauses the game and lets you move the camera around to set up a screenshot. This is a brilliant feature that I wish all games had, and is also a great learning tool for budding in-game photographers.

The game is, unfortunately, marred by many flaws. The primary one, for a game of this type, is that the art quality simply isn't up to the standards of modern Triple-A game that's going to be seen at 1080p resolution. The art itself is well done, and the engine seems to do a reasonable job of rendering what's there, but tripling the artist-hours put in to this game and allowing for 10 GB rather than 2.5 GB of textures would have made a huge difference. That said, this is forgivable for an indie project where a huge artist budget simply isn't there; perhaps it's better to think of this as a demo of what the developers could really do, and a demo well worth playing. The other major flaw is in certain areas of game design that simply, it appears, did not get enough time, testing and reworking. For example, a fair amount of clambering and climbing is required to reach a supply chest, which is the major item of progression in the game. Upon opening it you are immediately transported back to your home base, even if there are secrets yet to uncover nearby. When you go back (through the same complex route), there is no longer any quick way out; you must reverse what you did to come in. (Remember, it's impossible to die in this game; you can't fall off a ledge.) The rest of the much more minor flaws are mentioned extensively in other reviews: the short playtime (which didn't bother me--my backlog is long enough already!), the repetition, and so on. They don't really affect the core of the game; they affect only how much you should pay for it. And that's where we come to the price: $20 is probably a little too rich for most people who would otherwise like this game. Possibly this is simply part of a "frequent sales" marketing strategy, which is fair enough, though, especially on Steam. I paid $5 for this game myself, and I'd rate it at worth $5-$10. If ten bucks isn't a big deal to you, buy it at that price or even more; if $5-$7 is an amount you think about before spending, wait for that price, and you'll get your money's worth. Before ending the review, I must mention the brilliant "Postcard Mode": this pauses the game and lets you move the camera around to set up a screenshot. This is a brilliant feature that I wish all games had, and is also a great learning tool for budding in-game photographers.