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Ellipsis

An Exercise in apathy, neither solid nor liquid. Not exactly bad, but not very good either. Just a bit 'meh,' really.
Ellipsis Game Cover
88%Game Brain Score
gameplay, graphics
replayability, story
96% User Score Based on 197 reviews
Critic Score 50%Based on 1 reviews

Platforms

Nintendo SwitchLinuxPCMac OSWindows
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Ellipsis Game Cover

About

Ellipsis is a single player casual shooter game with a anime theme. It was developed by Salmi Games and was released on January 25, 2017. It received neutral reviews from critics and overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Ellipsis is an action-packed Avoid ’Em Up with minimalistic, yet powerful neon styled visuals. Guide your ship through a mysterious universe while deftly avoiding hordes of roaming enemies, spikes, lasers and more.

Genres & Tags
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Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
Ellipsis screenshot
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96%
Audience ScoreBased on 197 reviews
gameplay25 positive mentions
grinding1 negative mentions
  • Simple, intuitive controls with precise mouse movement make the gameplay satisfying and addictive.
  • Beautiful minimalist neon retro arcade aesthetic with well-designed levels and smooth progression.
  • Large variety of levels and mechanics introduced gradually, maintaining player interest without becoming stale.
  • Difficulty spikes inconsistently, with some levels being frustratingly hard or requiring excessive speed and precision.
  • Control issues including occasional mouse lag, jitter, or unresponsiveness, and some mechanics that interfere with smooth movement.
  • Short overall game length and limited replayability outside of perfecting levels or user-generated content.
  • gameplay
    80 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Ellipsis offers simple yet tightly controlled mouse-avoidance gameplay enriched by a steady introduction of varied mechanics and challenging level designs that keep the experience fresh and engaging. Its intuitive, minimalist approach—with no text tutorials—combined with creative enemy and environmental interactions creates a smooth, fast-paced, and addictive gameplay loop praised for its balance of skill and puzzle elements. While some mechanics can be initially frustrating and neon visuals occasionally obscure clarity, the game maintains a well-paced difficulty curve and innovative progression that rewards mastery and exploration.

    • “I really enjoyed the classic, tightly controlling mouse-avoider gameplay, the intuitive level editor, and the neon retro arcade aesthetic.”
    • “The game knows exactly how long to use a mechanic before introducing something new, or a new enemy type, and there were multiple points towards the end of the game where I was surprised that they were introducing new components, instead of just stacking what the game had already introduced in ever larger setpieces.”
    • “Levels often feature phase transformations, dynamic enemies, and other gimmicks that increase the depth and variety of gameplay.”
    • “Excessive speed can break down the already-simple gameplay into a repetitive exercise of memorization and raw execution instead of a more varied test of skill.”
    • “Also, it's too expensive for about 3 hours of mediocre gameplay it's offering.”
    • “Edit: although I still completely recommend this game it does have some really infuriating design choices: namely the neon lights obscuring the level geometry being incredibly frustrating and the use of the gravity or wind mechanic which takes away from the 1 to 1 feel of mouse movement.”
  • graphics
    36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a striking minimalist neon retro aesthetic with clean, sharp visuals and simple geometric designs that effectively support its arcade-style, bullet-hell gameplay. Reviewers praise its beautiful, intuitive art style that enhances immersion and storytelling without text, though some note occasional performance issues like lag or cursor jitter. Overall, the graphics are considered elegant, stylish, and well-crafted, complementing the game’s innovative mechanics and varied level designs.

    • “Great a-typical bullet hell where you cannot attack conventionally and have to just avoid enemies while collecting dots, beautiful minimalist graphics, achieved what it set out to do 10/10.”
    • “The graphics are bright and beautifully presented, and the complete absence of tutorials or even text means you are free to learn the game at your own pace.”
    • “It has really great visuals, the abstract forms are very well designed and I love that the game works without using any language.”
    • “Occasional lag and cursor jitter can be infuriating, especially in later levels - consider lowering graphics settings.”
    • “There's only a few graphical tricks in the game, and while there's a car or two, everything is pretty reduced.”
    • “I'm thinking this could work with a more developed, intricate art style.”
  • music
    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game is generally praised for its soothing, minimalist, and adaptive soundtrack that enhances the relaxing and hypnotic gameplay experience. While some note the absence of traditional background music, the melodic sound effects tied to game actions provide a satisfying and immersive audio atmosphere. Overall, the soundtrack complements the game's mechanics and art style effectively.

    • “I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
    • “Gorgeous particle and light effects, as well as adaptive music made from melodic sound effects caused by all your actions, lead to a game that is hypnotic to play.”
    • “Easy to play and interesting mechanics with a good soundtrack to relax to.”
    • “The music is okay, it could have been better.”
    • “It initially reminded me of osu or those millions of Japanese rhythm games, mostly consisting of precise mechanical movements with music as a background (or 'plot'), which were never really my kind of thing.”
    • “There is no background music.”
  • replayability
    9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers moderate replayability primarily through striving to achieve perfect five-star ratings on its 150 levels, with some additional content from the community. However, once all levels are mastered, replay value diminishes, making it less engaging for extended play compared to classic arcade games. Completionists and speedrun enthusiasts will find the challenge rewarding, but the experience may feel limited for casual players.

    • “Ellipsis offers around 150 levels, each of which have replayability in improving your star rating, similar to many well-known mobile games.”
    • “Completionists will find replay value in trying to perfect every trial (you have to touch all five blue circles and get to the exit within a fixed amount of time to get a perfect rating on each level).”
    • “150 levels and plenty of replay value, along with extra levels from the community.”
    • “Not a ton of replayability once you've gotten 5 stars on all levels.”
    • “A relatively nice game overall, but lacks replayability even with the workshop since there aren't many levels and can be rage-inducing for certain achievements.”
    • “As an arcade game, it is now my favorite; however, once you beat the levels at five stars, I'm not confident it will have replayability like Pac-Man or other arcade games.”
  • story
    7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story in this game is conveyed wordlessly through visuals and level design, creating an intuitive and imaginative narrative despite minimal explicit plot or dialogue. While the story may be simplistic or nearly absent, many players appreciate the meaningful, subtle storytelling combined with engaging gameplay. Overall, the game effectively uses its aesthetic and mechanics to deliver a unique, personal narrative experience.

    • “Moral of the story: You never know what life has in store for you, and if I had given up when all odds were against me, I wouldn't be where I am today.”
    • “And despite having no words within the game (not even as a tutorial, not that it's needed, as all the mechanics of the game are wonderfully demonstrated and fairly intuitive), the visuals and level designs craft a fairly wonderful narrative that also leaves enough up to the imagination to make your own story within the world.”
    • “Not only does Ellipsis tell an interesting and meaningful story with no words or cutscenes, but its gameplay manages to stay interesting and creative from start to finish.”
    • “The graphics may be simplistic, and the story is nearly absent.”
    • “The screenshots tell a meager story by comparison.”
    • “Summary: in this game, you move your mouse to avoid enemies and collect dots so you can finish levels and progress through the story!”
  • emotional
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game evokes a mix of frustration and engagement due to its challenging mouse precision mechanics, where unpredictable hitboxes can lead to unexpected deaths despite responsive controls. This tension creates a compelling emotional experience centered on careful focus and trial-and-error.

  • humor
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's humor is well-received, being described as funny and enjoyable, adding a lighthearted touch to its challenging gameplay.

    • “I like the idea of this game and it's really funny and a little hard but that's fine.”
    • “Funny.”
  • atmosphere
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users praise the atmosphere for being highly immersive and captivating, often highlighting it as a standout aspect of the experience.

  • optimization
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is generally well-optimized and fun, but performance significantly deteriorates in later levels, eventually making them unplayable. However, reaching those problematic stages takes a considerable amount of time.

  • grinding
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in the game can be frustrating due to repetitive and tedious auto-scroller sections that require players to repeatedly practice easy parts before tackling more challenging areas.

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50%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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5h Median play time
4h Average play time
3-5h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Skip FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Ellipsis is a casual shooter game with anime theme.

Ellipsis is available on Nintendo Switch, PC, Mac OS, Windows and others.

On average players spend around 4 hours playing Ellipsis.

Ellipsis was released on January 25, 2017.

Ellipsis was developed by Salmi Games.

Ellipsis has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked Ellipsis for its gameplay but disliked it for its replayability.

Ellipsis is a single player game.

Similar games include THOTH, INK, klocki, Lovely Planet, Race The Sun and others.