- March 15, 2022
- Dragon Slumber
- 7h median play time
Aethernaut
Platforms
About
"Aethernaut is a single-player, open-world, first-person puzzle game set in a steampunk universe with approximately 7 hours of playtime. Players are tasked with solving puzzles while making story choices based on philosophical questions from Cornell, a guiding scientist. As players progress, they uncover their past and confront an unseen entity, questioning their trust and identity."










- Fantastic puzzles that incorporate unique mechanics like teleporting, time travel, and dimension-switching, providing satisfying 'aha' moments.
- The game features an interesting story and an amazing soundtrack that enhances the overall experience.
- Despite its technical issues, the game shows impressive ambition and creativity, especially considering it was developed mostly by a solo developer.
- Severe performance issues, including low framerate and numerous bugs, significantly detract from the gameplay experience.
- Inconsistent lighting and poor graphics quality, along with unclear tutorials, make it difficult for players to fully engage with the puzzles.
- Many puzzles can be frustratingly unsolvable due to bugs, and the lack of a reset option for individual puzzles can lead to unwinnable situations.
- gameplay36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
Gameplay reviews highlight a mix of innovative puzzle mechanics and significant design flaws. While some players appreciate the intriguing concepts like light manipulation and time travel, many criticize the lack of clarity in puzzle mechanics and tutorials, leading to confusion and frustration. Overall, the gameplay experience is marred by poorly explained mechanics and inconsistent interactions, detracting from the potential enjoyment of the game.
“This game has some of the most interesting puzzle mechanics I've ever seen.”
“Even the basic light mechanics in the very early game interact to open up a lot of possibilities when solving puzzles.”
“Once more mechanics like the portals or time cubes are added into the mix, even crazier possibilities open up.”
“Honestly, it was super tedious and boring to understand the mechanics of this type of puzzle, which, as far as I can tell, plagues the last one-third of the game.”
“However, the voice acting quality really does ruin some of that immersion, and the lack of clarity in puzzle mechanics takes this from a well-done puzzle game to more of a poorly made knockoff.”
“To elaborate on the 'lack of clarity' in the puzzle mechanics, I never seem to know the end point of a puzzle until I get there, so sometimes I get stuck trying to open a door that isn't even relevant to the solution.”