Time Travel in Braid (2015)
2 days ago
- The author bought Braid for its visuals and puzzle mechanics and enjoyed it, though keyboard driver issues caused frustration with controls.
- The game is recommended despite being old, with well-judged puzzle difficulty, extraordinary visuals, and a good soundtrack.
- The author dislikes Mario, so Braid's departure from that style is a plus.
- Braid's story is deliberately ambiguous; the author is skeptical of this narrative technique, preferring clear storytelling.
- The game focuses on aesthetics, puzzle scenarios, and time manipulation mechanics, each world introducing a new mechanic.
- Time travel in fiction often has inconsistencies, but in games like Braid, rules are consistently implemented, avoiding contradictions.
- However, game universes are simpler than reality, so their models cannot be directly applied to the real world without contradictions.
- World 2 introduces the rewind mechanic; world 3 adds green objects exempt from time, implying two time dimensions; world 4 features a shadow self; world 5 has a time-slowing ring; world 6 runs time backwards.
- Paradoxes in the game are not contradictions but are handled consistently, allowing rational puzzle solving.
- The final level reverses events, recontextualizing the story, similar to playing films backwards, though with some contrivances.
- The epilogue reflects on lessons: implementing concepts concretely, discovering new possibilities through game design, and the hard work required.
- The author thoroughly enjoyed Braid and gives it a 5-star rating.