A Guidebook of Babel

About

"A Guidebook of Babel" is a story-adventure game where players embark on a rebirth journey on the mysterious spaceship Babel. Using a Memory Extractor, your memories are erased before launching you into the afterlife with a cloud cannon. The game features four chapters of time-travel, puzzle-solving, and subtle manipulation of history to change the future of Babel. Explore various locations, meet eccentric characters, and uncover the secrets of this intriguing world.

Genres & Tags

Adventure

Play Modes

Single-Player

87%

Audience ScoreBased on 210 reviews

story78 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

The game features quirky and fun characters, complemented by a charming art style and engaging music.
The story is heartfelt and emotional, with a unique take on the butterfly effect that enhances the gameplay experience.
Puzzles are generally well-designed, with a helpful hint system that allows players to progress without feeling overly frustrated.

The gameplay can feel tedious and slow, with long tutorials and hand-holding that detracts from the overall enjoyment.
Some puzzles lack clear logic, leading to confusion and the need for external guides to progress.
The localization from Chinese to English is often poor, resulting in awkward phrasing and unclear dialogue that can disrupt immersion.

story
196 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
58%
2%
The story of "A Guidebook of Babel" is a heartfelt and engaging narrative that explores themes of life, death, and the complexities of human emotions, often presented with a mix of humor and tragedy. Players navigate through a unique gameplay mechanic that allows them to alter past events, enhancing the storytelling experience, although some found the character reactions and plot conventions to be occasionally frustrating. Overall, the game is praised for its rich character backstories, emotional depth, and clever writing, making it a standout in the puzzle-adventure genre.
- “The story was surprisingly heartfelt, which was a pleasant surprise.”
- “The game's narrative is expertly woven, with a main storyline that's both engaging and emotional.”
- “The story flows nicely, it doesn't overstay its welcome and the ending has me tear up a bit.”
- “Although the story touches briefly on some deep topics about death, don't expect anything too profound.”
- “The monotonous music or gameplay just made me feel tired, and the story just didn’t grip mostly because I was seeing things twice or three times.”
- “Story is uninspired.”
gameplay
94 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
60%
4%
The gameplay of "A Guidebook of Babel" is characterized by its unique time-rewriting mechanics and engaging puzzle-solving elements, which are complemented by a clever notebook feature that helps players organize their thoughts. While many players appreciate the quirky characters, charming art, and immersive storytelling, some have noted that certain puzzles can feel overly simplistic or poorly communicated, leading to frustration. Overall, the game offers a distinctive experience that balances light puzzle mechanics with a narrative-driven approach, making it accessible for players of varying skill levels.
- “I was very surprised by this game; it has a very specific charm and very functional time-traveling mechanics that make it really stand out from other games in the genre.”
- “The gameplay is a really neat take on time loops, and how everything interweaves with each other was wonderful.”
- “The heart of 'A Guidebook of Babel' lies in its ingenious gameplay mechanics, which infuse traditional word adventure elements with modern sensibilities.”
- “This is more of a walking simulator with light puzzle mechanics than a game.”
- “I used a walkthrough for most of this game, as so many solutions felt poorly communicated and I was getting frustrated trying to figure out what mechanic to use when.”
- “The developers failed one of the most basic, fundamental requirements of game design: 'show, don't tell.' So you'll spend a huge amount of time not playing the game, but clicking through endless lines of poorly written visual novel text cutscenes because the developers couldn't work out how to relate their narrative through the game mechanics.”
graphics
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
61%
6%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising its charming and unique art style that complements the narrative's heavy themes, while others criticize the simplistic and low-quality visuals that fall short of contemporary gaming standards. Some players find the artwork expressive and fitting for the quirky world-building, while others feel it lacks the depth and polish expected in today's gaming landscape. Overall, the visuals evoke a range of emotions but may not satisfy those seeking more sophisticated graphical experiences.
- “This game's art style is what sticks out most to me.”
- “While the gameplay doesn't rise to the difficulty, complexity, or immersion of other similar puzzle narratives, Babel's charming art style, character design, and sound design all leave a very positive impression.”
- “A journey that is a mix of time and space travel, afterlife exploration, touching stories of intertwined human destinies, darker, subtle references to real historical events and political factions, script writing and butterfly effect wrapped in cheery, surrealistic cartoon graphics and quirky unique backgrounds.”
- “It's unclear if this is due to a lack of budget to arrange someone who can create graphical assets properly, or a lack of talent.”
- “Regardless, the overall visual quality of the game is very low, beneath what PC gamers have come to expect in this era of cutting-edge photorealistic 3D graphics.”
- “While there are options to change the resolution for the game, all this does is scale up the simplistic 2D art assets used to make the game, which makes little or no difference to the graphics quality.”
emotional
28 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its heartfelt storytelling, which blends humor with touching moments, particularly in the impactful ending that resonates with players. Many reviews praise the narrative for its depth, exploring themes of human connection and destiny, while some express that the emotional engagement can be diminished by repetitive gameplay elements. Overall, the game is celebrated for its ability to evoke strong feelings, making it a memorable experience for players.
- “The story was surprisingly heartfelt, which was a pleasant surprise.”
- “The storyline made me cry with the ending, which was so heartbreaking and so emotional.”
- “The game's narrative is expertly woven, with a main storyline that's both engaging and emotional.”
music
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
92%
8%
The music in the game is widely praised for its lively and whimsical quality, enhancing the overall experience with a fun and engaging soundtrack that complements the charming art and characters. While many players find the music uplifting and integral to the game's atmosphere, a few critiques mention moments of monotony that detract from the experience. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a standout feature that contributes significantly to the game's appeal.
- “You find the varied, lively soundtrack to be a great accompaniment to this extravaganza.”
- “The soundtrack is equally impressive, perfectly capturing the game's whimsical and mysterious atmosphere.”
- “Fun story, fun puzzles, an insanely fun soundtrack, there's a lot to like here.”
- “The monotonous music and gameplay made me feel tired, and the story just didn’t grip me, mostly because I was seeing things twice or three times.”
humor
16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is generally well-received, described as adorable, sweet, and funny, with moments that can be touching. However, some players found the execution lacking due to clunky writing and gameplay, which detracted from the overall comedic impact. Despite these critiques, the clever writing and unique mechanics contribute to a quirky and enjoyable experience that leaves players feeling warm-hearted.
- “Overall, a very adorable, sweet, funny, and enjoyable game.”
- “The story is most of the time sweet and funny, but also touching sometimes (especially the end).”
- “The game's unique mechanics and clever writing will have you thinking outside the box and laughing out loud.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and a slog, detracting from the otherwise appealing art style and humor. While some backtracking for time-travel events is mentioned, it is noted that it doesn't feel overly burdensome compared to the overall grind.
- “I really wanted to like this, the art style and focus on some humor sounded good, but it's just so tedious.”
- “Such a tedious slog!”
- “Such a tedious slog!”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
Character development in Babel is positively highlighted through its charming art style and character design, which contribute to an engaging aesthetic experience. However, the gameplay itself lacks the depth and complexity found in other puzzle narratives, suggesting that character growth may not be as fully realized as in more immersive titles.
- “Babel's charming art style, character design, and sound design all leave a very positive impression.”
- “The character development in Babel is engaging and adds depth to the overall narrative experience.”
- “The unique personalities and backstories of the characters make the journey through the game feel personal and immersive.”
replayability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game is noted for its short length and minimal replay value, which may limit its long-term appeal; however, it is still recommended for purchase if found at a low price.
- “The only downside is it's very short with minimal replay value, but if you can get it cheap, definitely pick it up.”
atmosphere
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its whimsical and mysterious qualities, significantly enhanced by an impressive soundtrack that complements the overall experience.
- “The soundtrack is equally impressive, perfectly capturing the game's whimsical and mysterious atmosphere.”

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10h Median play time

10h Average play time

10-10h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs

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