Catyph: The Kunci Experiment

About

Catyph: The Kunci Experiment is a single player action adventure game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Simon Says: Play! and was released on May 11, 2016. It received neutral reviews from players.

CATYPH is a First Person Adventure game (Myst-like), part of a sci-fi series named The Black Cube (ASA: A Space Adventure...). Visit Tytaah, a moon of Catyph divided into 7 regions, and try to save your home planet Terra by solving the challenging puzzles of the mysterious Germinal.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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57%

Audience ScoreBased on 14 reviews

story9 positive mentions

grinding3 negative mentions

Catyph features a wide variety of challenging and complex puzzles that provide a satisfying gameplay experience, showcasing the designer's true skills.
The game has improved navigation with full video transitions between scenes, enhancing immersion and making it easier to localize oneself in the game world.
The graphics and sound design are well-executed, with diverse environments and a pleasing musical score that contribute to the overall atmosphere.

Some puzzles are poorly clued and can be frustrating, with solutions that may not make sense even after consulting walkthroughs.
The in-game lore is difficult to read due to small font size, making it a chore to engage with the story's background.
The requirement to play an arcade mini-game to earn in-game currency for hints and activating cubes can feel repetitive and detracts from the puzzle-solving experience.

story
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
41%
45%
14%
The story of Catyph is set in a richly detailed universe, primarily on the moon Tytaah, and is conveyed through logs and video transmissions, offering a complex narrative that some players found intriguing yet convoluted. While the game features a captivating backstory and well-integrated puzzles, translation issues and character development were criticized, making it difficult for some players to fully engage with the plot. Overall, the narrative is appreciated for its depth and connection to the gameplay, particularly for fans of classic puzzle adventure games.
- “Catyph is an amazing puzzle adventure with an intriguing story and tons of interesting challenges.”
- “The storyline is very good, with a great deal of well-conceived background, and the game's flow fits the story well.”
- “But if you want the satisfaction of figuring out tricky puzzles within very nicely rendered environments following a detailed and interesting storyline, and especially if you're a lover of classic Myst-style games, I'd certainly recommend Catyph.”
- “The story didn't make much sense (too convoluted, too many things going on), and the characters presented were caricatures--it was hard to care about what was happening on 'Terra' and the 'bad guy' was so bad he could have been the master in a 60's episode of Doctor Who (see: mustache-twirling, maniacal laugh).”
- “It's as if one game designer created a world and backstory, and then another came in afterward and just distributed puzzles through it without knowing anything else about it.”
- “About the storyline, the game starts with a video that was, I have to admit, kind of confusing on the first view.”
graphics
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
40%
30%
The graphics in the game received mixed reviews, with some praising the distinct visual styles of different regions and the quality of artwork and mini-movies, while others criticized the dated, old-school visuals and low-resolution graphics that hindered gameplay. Overall, while the graphics may not meet modern standards, they are considered competent and can be appreciated by fans of the genre.
- “Graphics were also good; I especially liked how each main region of the game had a different feel and look.”
- “The artwork is great, and there are some very lovely mini-movies, especially at the start and end of the game.”
- “The graphics are correct; the foreground and helmet effects look cool.”
- “The voice acting was terrible, and the graphics were very, very old-school.”
- “The graphics are dated, but I could forgive that.”
- “The second one requires the player to use pattern recognition from low-res graphics you can't zoom in on.”
gameplay
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
The gameplay is characterized by a rich variety of challenging puzzles, including pattern matching, mechanical manipulation, math, time manipulation, environmental observation, and cryptography, providing a deeply satisfying experience. While it offers a classic myst-like or rhem-like feel, the difficulty level is notably higher, and some players may find themselves needing more guidance on certain puzzles. The estimated 15 hours of gameplay may be underestimated for those tackling the challenges without assistance.
- “The challenge and depth of the puzzles lead to a very exciting gameplay experience; it had been a while since I played a game that left me with this level of satisfaction.”
- “There are classical pattern matching and mechanical manipulation puzzles which are the staples of this genre, but there are also math puzzles, time manipulation puzzles, environment observation puzzles, and even some cryptography puzzles.”
- “As a sequel to 'Asa: A Space Adventure', it is a classic Myst-like or Rhem-like in terms of gameplay, but it is much more difficult.”
- “Instead, there were times when I needed more insight into the intent or mechanics of a specific puzzle.”
- “As a sequel to Asa: A Space Adventure, it is a classic Myst-like or Rhem-like in terms of gameplay, but it is much more difficult.”
- “I think the developer's estimated 15 hours of gameplay is a bit short if you're going to try and crack the puzzles without help (but I may just be slower than most!).”
grinding
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious and frustrating, often leading to a loss of engagement with the storyline. The challenging puzzles can detract from the overall experience, making it feel more like a chore than enjoyable gameplay.
- “That's the definition of a painstaking, tedious puzzle that is not fun to do.”
- “In fact, I became so engrossed in trying to solve them that I completely lost track of the storyline and forgot about reading the database. After spending hours grinding my teeth on the puzzles, I realized that the storyline videos were kind of messed up since I had moved back and forth between worlds when I was stuck.”
- “I love a good 90's style point-and-click, but this one was tedious.”
music
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
150%
The music and sound design in the game are highly praised for their quality, complementing the beautiful and diverse scenery. The pleasing musical score enhances the complex story and adds depth to the challenging puzzles.
- “The music and sound design are exceptionally well done.”
- “The beautiful and diverse scenery is complemented by a pleasing musical score.”
- “The complex story and very challenging puzzles are enhanced by the captivating soundtrack.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players report that "asa" evokes a sense of childlike wonder, while "catyph" immerses them in a scientific mindset, providing rich environmental insights. Both games effectively engage emotions by fostering unique perspectives and experiences.
- “In Asa, the AI made me feel like a small kid.”
- “In Catyph, it made me feel like a scientist, sharing all kinds of scientific information about the environment.”