I spent a good forty-five minutes thinking about how I’d start this review off. The first idea (which I quickly abandoned) involved me doing some sort of gimmick in the review involving time travel and altering the order of my text <--this like of kind<--, but I quickly realised that would be crap and is more suited to a video review anyhow. Then I thought about going on a small rant at frugal gamers who believe the $15 price of entry for Braid is too high and that they won’t be buying it because they’re cheapskates, but I know for a fact that I’ll be preaching to the converted with this review. Even if I were trying to articulate why they should want to buy Braid in this review then I think I’d probably fail. There is only one way to know whether you’d like this game; by playing the trial. So instead of trying to have some profound, memorable opening for the review I’ll just say this: Braid. Is. Awesome. It is a magnificent, totally unique, mind-bending experience that rivals games which cost $60 on the shelves. Since 2005 when Xbox LIVE Arcade first opened its doors, this is the game I’ve been waiting to see on the service.
There, that’s it. I could finish my review now and that’s all you’d need to know. Braid is awesome and you should play the free trial version. However, you’ll humour me for a few more paragraphs whilst I tell you why Braid is, without a doubt, the best $15 you could possibly spend. Ever.
To cut to the chase, I’ll get straight to the aesthetics of Braid. This game looks and sounds incredible. From the tranquil, calming music that’s affected by Braid’s distinct world rules to the beautiful, hand painted, high definition 2D characters and environments, Braid is a sensory pleasure like no other. I wouldn’t go as far as saying that I bought a HDTV for this, but upon getting a 1080p set one of my first wishes was to see graphics like this being displayed on my setup. Beyond that, the soothing music means I have one less frustration to deal with (namely pressing the “Mute” button on my TV remote) when solving some of Braid’s tough, but fair, puzzles.
The experience of Braid begins as a unique XBLA experience; the game has no starting menu or introduction, instead you’re simply thrown onto some rooftops and are immediately given control of the playable character, Tim, as you move closer to his home and transform from a silhouette into the player. From Tim’s house, you can choose the world you wish to play in and this area acts as the game’s central hub and, in many respects, main menu.
Braid’s platforming mechanics are fairly straightforward upon first impression. You traverse through worlds, jumping on the heads of enemies to defeat them and reaching the end of the area; but to get the most out of Braid (and to see the mind-blowing ending) you need to solve sixty puzzles in order to acquire all the puzzle pieces to construct five jigsaw paintings, unlock the top floor in Tim’s house and, as such, the last level.
Each world in Braid has its own unique set of rules that require you to rethink the way in which you solve your puzzles. What might work in “World 5” would be totally useless in “World 6” due to the different rules and abilities available to Tim in each. Because of this, each world and puzzle feels fresh and original; there’s no repetition in Braid so completion of each puzzle provides a great sense of achievement and satisfaction, plus a boost of self-worth when that one bastard of a puzzle is finally solved after twenty minutes of experimenting doing different things only to have it click and all make sense.
Puzzles aside, Braid also has a good plot. It’s somewhat muted in its presentation, for the most part being presented as text passages before each world begins, but culminates in a clever ending that changes the player’s perspective on Tim decisively. The themes of this story are reflected in the gameplay with the rewinding elements (you’ll know why once you complete it). Minor spoilers are ahead so just skip by if you haven’t finished the game yet.
MINOR SPOILER WARNING AHEAD
Braid’s plot isn’t about rewinding time, but reconstructing and rewinding memories to suit the holder’s perspective. What memories these are (and as such the greater meaning of Braid’s plot) is open to wide interpretation.
END OF SPOILERS
With all this gushing, some might think I’m being too easy on the game. So, like every review, I’d like to highlight Braid’s flaws. No, really, for what it is and what it tries to be, this game has no flaws. None. And whilst that’s tantamount to me saying that Braid’s perfect (which no game in reality is), I honestly can’t think of anything that would make this game any better than it already is.
In comparing gaming to literature, Braid is the short story of videogaming; everything is relevant and deserving of analysis. Just like a fully blown novel, a full length game can feel padded to appear more valuable or to add length. In contrast, a short story is (arguably) a story in its purest form, just as Braid is (arguably) gaming in its purest form; with every minute of gameplay completely relevant, engrossing, tightly knit and all the better for it. Skinflint gamers take note – the next time you spend $15 on something worthless, think about buying Braid first.