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FRACT OSC

Fract is lonely, but it's also the best seat in the house
FRACT OSC Game Cover
76%Game Brain Score
music, graphics
story, optimization
87% User Score Based on 524 reviews
Critic Score 52%Based on 4 reviews

Platforms

PCMac OSWindows
FRACT OSC Game Cover

About

FRACT OSC is a single player open world simulation game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Phosfiend Systems and was released on April 22, 2014. It received neutral reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

Fract Osc is a musical exploration game. You arrive in a forgotten place and explore the vast and unfamiliar landscape to discover the secrets of a world built on sound. You rebuild its machinery by solving puzzles and bring the world back to life by shaping sound and creating music in the game.

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87%
Audience ScoreBased on 524 reviews
music135 positive mentions
story4 negative mentions

  • Stunning audiovisual experience with a unique blend of exploration, puzzles, and electronic music.
  • Innovative puzzle design that integrates music creation, rewarding players with a dynamic soundtrack and a synthesizer studio to experiment with.
  • Beautiful and immersive neon Tron-inspired art style and atmosphere, evoking a sense of wonder and calmness through music and abstract environments.
  • Lack of guidance and minimal instructions often leave players lost or confused, requiring external walkthroughs to progress.
  • Movement speed is slow with no jump ability, making traversal tedious and sometimes frustrating due to awkward level and collision design.
  • Audio issues such as crackling and bugs affect immersion and gameplay experience on some systems; puzzle obscurity and trial-and-error elements can cause player frustration.
  • music
    567 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in this game is widely praised for its immersive electronic and synthesizer-driven soundtrack that dynamically builds as players solve puzzles, enhancing the atmospheric, neon-lit world. Many reviewers highlight the innovative integration of music creation with gameplay, culminating in an in-game studio that allows players to compose and export their own tracks, though it is noted to be more appealing for those with an interest or background in music. While some find the music and puzzles deeply rewarding and unique, others feel the musical puzzles can be obtuse or the soundtrack repetitive, making it a niche experience best suited for electronic music enthusiasts and puzzle lovers.

    • “The music builds gradually as you solve a puzzle and seeing the area that you just traversed light up and make a great song continues to be rewarding every time.”
    • “In the course of solving the world's puzzles and restoring its infrastructure, you construct bits of music through devices that teach you the basics of music programming while incorporating your solutions into the soundtrack that results from the reactivation of key facilities.”
    • “The environment oozes with music and custom tones that are affected by what you do to the environment. There are loads of environments and the music and abstract visuals actually blend together in harmony - very nice!”
    • “For a game that's supposedly about music, I mostly played it on silent.”
    • “The music for some reason kept cracking and sputtering, regardless of how I hooked up the sound.”
    • “Music has nothing to do with the puzzles, it just plays nearly-random noise based on your input.”
  • graphics
    108 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's graphics feature a striking minimalist, Tron-inspired aesthetic with textureless polygons and vivid neon colors that create a captivating, futuristic atmosphere. While some users noted occasional graphical glitches and a simple style, most praised the stunning visual design for its immersive integration with the music and puzzles, enhancing the overall experience. The visuals, paired with a unique soundscape, deliver a beautifully cohesive and memorable artistic presentation.

    • “The aesthetic is simple - textureless polygons and bold neon primaries are pretty much the only graphics - but the way it gently coaxes you towards creating something beautiful and unique, until the world around you erupts into an ecstatic epiphany, an explosion of life and light and music...”
    • “In fract osc, you explore a desolate alien landscape littered with derelict machinery, beautifully realized by simple untextured polygons shot through with neon and displayed using a graphical filter reminiscent of CRT interlacing.”
    • “The game looks beautiful with its minimalist, Tron-inspired style, and the graphical animations and reactions are outstanding, a good variety of puzzles with unique styles to solving them, plus they made everything simple but complicated in the puzzles you solve, and having an actual music editor in a studio-like area where you can make your own song to save, export, and share.”
    • “Ambitious, but boring and potentially buggy - I got graphical glitches and audio crackles.”
    • “Despite the minimalistic visuals, it's easy to find yourself in areas that place a strain on the game, bringing the smooth framerate to a choppy crawl.”
    • “It's not unplayable but did experience stuttering graphics, which can be a bit troublesome when traversing areas with narrow ledges.”
  • gameplay
    50 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of this game is a unique blend of music, exploration, and puzzle-solving, offering an atmospheric and innovative experience that merges electronic music mechanics with first-person puzzles. While some players find the puzzles clever and original with a rewarding learning curve, others criticize the slow pace, lack of guidance, occasional confusion, and limited puzzle variety. Overall, it delivers a niche but engaging challenge that emphasizes discovery and sound-based interaction, though it may feel short and somewhat repetitive to some.

    • “Fract osc is pretty niche-based and can have a moderate learning curve in the beginning but should you stick through, you are in for a fresh kind of sound-based gameplay experience.”
    • “The most important/interesting thing about this game is the seamless connection of sound and gameplay.”
    • “By the time you’ve hit the end of the series of puzzles for a given color/instrument, the puzzles have added new mechanics over time and the resulting sounds that blast forth have additional layers of complexity.”
    • “Awful level design and very bad puzzles, both in terms of mechanics and execution.”
    • “It is slow-paced, often quite hard to figure out the puzzle mechanics, what to do, and where to continue in general.”
    • “Tl;dr: gameplay and exploration are bland and repetitive, game is ridiculously short.”
  • atmosphere
    42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game boasts a highly praised, immersive atmosphere characterized by neon, Tron-like visuals and a surreal, mysterious world that unfolds through exploration and puzzle-solving. Its electronic, synth-heavy soundtrack intricately ties into the environment, enhancing the relaxing yet engrossing experience, though some find the repetitive music loops tiring. Overall, the strong blend of sound, light, and abstract design creates a distinctive, captivating ambiance that resonates deeply with fans of atmospheric puzzle and exploration games.

    • “The game's surreal atmosphere does a great job of enticing you to go forward and explore as you solve one puzzle after another.”
    • “I love the atmosphere and look of this game; the puzzles are fun and varied, and it felt great watching the world literally light up and feel more alive as you completed more puzzles. Similarly to games like The Witness, it just drops you in the world to figure out things for yourself, which lends to a very immersive experience.”
    • “On top of the fantastic puzzle design, the atmosphere is amazing and the visuals are gorgeous.”
    • “But what's the point in exploring and soaking up the atmosphere of this strange landscape when everything looks the same?”
    • “Rather, the puzzles of the game are overshadowed by the overall atmosphere.”
    • “You are seemingly teleported into a tron-esque world with neon colors amid a gloomy atmosphere.”
  • story
    32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story in this game is minimal to nonexistent, lacking traditional narrative elements like dialogue, characters, or a clear plot. Instead, it offers an abstract, atmospheric experience where players interpret the environment and puzzles to uncover a loose, wordless narrative conveyed through exploration and music. While some appreciate this unconventional approach, others wish for a more defined story to complement the beautiful setting.

    • “However, if you manage to slow down, become patient, and accept the fact that figuring out the visual language is part of the game, you become rewarded with a story whose plot is the landscape you unexplainably exist in.”
    • “The puzzles are challenging and beautifully done musical scores that bring a deep sense of story to a wordless world.”
    • “No story or dialogue to speak of.”
    • “If you're looking for a story, forget it, this is all puzzle, all the time.”
    • “Everything is highly abstract: there is no backstory, no characters to meet, no text to read, just a completely desolate alien landscape to explore and try to make sense of.”
  • optimization
    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game shows a mix of optimization results, running smoothly on high-end systems but struggling on lower-end setups, requiring users to lower settings like draw distance to avoid stuttering and frame drops. While minor performance issues such as occasional chugging during area loading are noted, the gameplay remains largely unaffected and tolerable for most players. Overall, optimization could be improved, especially for less powerful hardware.

    • “The developers have done a lot of optimization; while the game might not run very well on low-end systems, it looks nice and the overall experience is smooth.”
    • “Minor performance issues exist, such as occasional chugging when loading distant areas, but considering the high system requirements, it runs smoothly even on older hardware like an Intel Core 2 Duo.”
    • “Performance is generally fine with only minor hiccups, delivering a smooth experience for most players.”
    • “I'm running it on a new gaming PC that runs all the 2016 blockbuster games at silky smooth 60fps, yet I can't figure out how to fix the performance issues in this game!”
    • “I had to set drawing distance to minimum to avoid a heavy drop in FPS and stuttering (read forum posts about detailed requirements).”
    • “It's not unplayable but did experience stuttering graphics, which can be a bit troublesome when traversing areas with narrow ledges.”
  • stability
    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game suffers from significant stability issues, including frequent crashes, freezes, graphical glitches, and persistent audio crackling that disrupt immersion. These bugs, especially audio problems, are common enough to potentially impact the overall experience.

    • “Freezes on loads, hangs up on startups, crashes on exits.”
    • “Ambitious, but boring and potentially buggy - I got graphical glitches and audio crackles.”
    • “However the game is plagued by audio glitches and crackling sounds.”
  • replayability
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game offers limited replayability for full completion, with most players finding it satisfying initially but quickly losing appeal thereafter. However, its in-game music maker or synth feature provides a unique element that encourages additional play sessions, boosting replay value for some users.

    • “The game has some replay value - in fact, I’m feeling the urge to go and replay after posting this review. Keep in mind it’s been a few months since I played last.”
    • “Replay value: low for completion, high to infinite for the studio.”
    • “This quirky puzzle game is pretty satisfying the first time, and mildly amusing a second time, but beyond that it has little if any replay value.”
    • “It doesn't have much replayability other than to mess with the in-game music maker.”
    • “Also, there isn't much replayability outside of the synth, but the synth does kind of make up for that by itself.”
  • emotional
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Users found the game emotionally impactful, evoking a strong sense of aliveness and immersion through its deep exploration mechanics. The lack of hand-holding in navigation enhanced feelings of freedom and personal discovery, contributing to a meaningful and memorable experience.

    • “Playing fract made me feel alive in a way I haven’t experienced in a very long time.”
    • “For me it was a very deep and emotional experience and that was only the beginning!”
    • “The exploration is really nicely done; it felt like a nicer type of 'do it yourself, we're not giving you a map or anything,' and while it was confusing at first until you realized how pathing works, it made me feel a lot more free and immersed within the game.”
  • humor
    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is appreciated by users as a redeeming quality that keeps them engaged despite frustrations, though some find the comedic elements unrelated or minimal. Overall, the humor adds a lighthearted touch that balances the game's challenges.

    • “But it's funny, no matter how furious I get at the game, eventually, I always come back.”
  • grinding
    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in the game is seen as tedious and uninspired, with puzzles contributing to a repetitive and boring experience despite the impressive visuals.

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3h Median play time
3h Average play time
1-4h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 2 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

FRACT OSC is a open world simulation game with science fiction theme.

FRACT OSC is available on PC, Mac OS and Windows.

On average players spend around 3 hours playing FRACT OSC.

FRACT OSC was released on April 22, 2014.

FRACT OSC was developed by Phosfiend Systems.

FRACT OSC has received neutral reviews from players and neutral reviews from critics. Most players liked FRACT OSC for its music but disliked it for its story.

FRACT OSC is a single player game.

Similar games include Kairo, The Witness, WitCup 12, NaissanceE, Ether One and others.