Lemma

About

Lemma is a single player platformer game. It was developed by Evan Todd and was released on May 12, 2015. It received mostly positive reviews from critics and positive reviews from players.

"Lemma is a single-player action game with a good story and perfect mechanics, offering immersive first-person parkour in a surreal, physics-driven voxel world. Creativity is key as you build structures by moving through space, and with non-linear storytelling, there are four possible endings. The game also includes Oculus Rift support, time trial mode, a built-in level editor with Steam Workshop support, and a soundtrack by Jack Menhorn and Ashton Morris."

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

Skip User Reviews

85%

Audience ScoreBased on 189 reviews

gameplay26 positive mentions

grinding2 negative mentions

The parkour mechanics are fluid and rewarding, providing a satisfying sense of movement and exploration.
The game features a unique mechanic where players can create platforms and walls, adding depth to the traversal and puzzle-solving experience.
The atmospheric visuals and sound design create an immersive environment that enhances the overall gameplay experience.

The level design becomes confusing and open-ended in the latter half of the game, making it difficult to determine where to go next.
The controls can feel clunky and unresponsive at times, particularly with multiple actions assigned to the same key, leading to frustration.
The story is poorly explained and lacks coherence, making it hard for players to engage with the narrative.

gameplay
90 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
29%
62%
9%
The gameplay features fluid and rewarding parkour mechanics reminiscent of titles like Mirror's Edge and Portal, allowing for exciting movement and exploration. However, the experience is marred by poorly explained mechanics, frustrating fetch quests in later levels, and a lack of direction, which detracts from the overall enjoyment. While the core mechanics are praised for their creativity and potential, the game's design choices and excessive complexity have led to mixed reviews regarding its execution.
- “The gameplay is fluid, exciting, and rewarding.”
- “Around the midpoint of the game, however, it opens up hugely, and exploration becomes a big component of the gameplay.”
- “It takes the mechanics of wallrunning and sliding, and extends them to create walls and floors that form under you as you move.”
- “The end levels turn into mundane fetch quests with frustrating new mechanics that are explained poorly.”
- “The game adds in too many mechanics and annoying puzzles that I think it lost most of its fanbase.”
- “Bad level design, confusing story, too many mechanics that make no sense, and no direction.”
story
70 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
52%
14%
The story in the game is generally viewed as weak and often confusing, with many players finding it bland or poorly explained. While some appreciate the minimalistic approach and the intrigue of uncovering narrative elements through exploration, others criticize the lack of direction and the reliance on hidden notes to understand the plot. Overall, the story does not seem to be a significant draw for most players, with many suggesting that it is not essential to enjoy the gameplay experience.
- “The minimal story is told through textual snippets found throughout the game, leaving much of the rest up to the player to explore.”
- “The level of mystery brought about by the way the story is presented to you is intriguing enough to motivate deep exploration, and players who do so are rewarded with a greater understanding of this narrative through the scattered pages.”
- “The story is compelling and ties into the lore well, which is very fleshed out.”
- “The story is obtuse and forces you to hunt for hidden notes if you want even a chance of comprehending it. The level design becomes far too open-ended towards the end, making it very difficult to figure out how to progress, and this can cause a lot of frustration.”
- “The story is Lemma's weakest aspect.”
- “Bad level design, confusing 'story', too many mechanics that make no sense, and no direction.”
music
29 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
52%
10%
The music in the game is described as beautiful and atmospheric, enhancing the overall experience, particularly during key moments. While some users appreciate the sparse yet fitting soundtrack, others criticize the limited sound library and suggest using personal music instead. Overall, the soundtrack is well-received, with comparisons to notable titles like "Mirror's Edge" and "Dear Esther," and some players expressing a desire to access the original soundtrack.
- “The music is sparse, but when it comes in, it's absolutely beautiful, yet eerie at the same time.”
- “The sound design and music are solid and help the game's alien atmosphere.”
- “Solid controls and a beautiful world and soundtrack make a great frame for the adventure of a young grad student named Joan Emmerson.”
- “The sound library for BGM and ambience kind of sucks, and you're probably better off just putting on your own music, but judging from the credits it was mostly put together from free resources, what can you do.”
- “Why can I not find the soundtrack to this game anywhere?”
- “I would love to listen to the soundtrack.”
graphics
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
56%
33%
11%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the effective use of a voxel aesthetic and vibrant colors, while others criticize them as subpar. Overall, the visuals are described as fitting and engaging, contributing positively to the game's atmosphere, despite some opinions highlighting a lack of polish.
- “The developers get a lot of mileage out of its 'voxel' aesthetic and I think it works well enough.”
- “I love a good challenge and this does not cease to amaze me with its extremely amazing world, graphics, and the sound, too, is very nice and fitting.”
- “Badass parkour, pretty colors, cubes, and amazing graphics!”
- “The graphics are subpar.”
- “A cool game but very poor graphics.”
atmosphere
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
82%
18%
The atmosphere in Lemma is highly praised for its immersive quality, combining surreal visuals with excellent sound design and music that enhance the game's alien environment. Players find themselves deeply engaged, often losing track of time while exploring its unique ambiance, which is accessible and enjoyable without needing a philosophical background. Overall, the game's atmosphere is described as incredible and captivating.
- “Even without the Oculus, the atmospherics in this game are brilliant - it balances a surrealist touch without requiring a philosophy degree to appreciate.”
- “The sound design and music are solid and help the game's alien atmosphere.”
- “Lemma's atmosphere is incredible.”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
71%
29%
The game offers excellent replayability through its separate challenge levels and the ability to create custom challenges, allowing players to explore and approach gameplay in unique ways each time. The diverse parkour mechanics and open-ended exploration further enhance the replay value, making it a highly enjoyable experience that encourages multiple playthroughs.
- “In addition to the main campaign, Lemma also supports custom challenge levels, leading to great replayability.”
- “You parkour; run, jump, climb, roll, and even build your way, your roads to other levels, other doorways, and other dimensions of Lemma... this game has excellent replay value, because you would never go about doing the same way twice, and you can go and explore at your own pace.”
- “I highly recommend this game, and again the replay value alone could and should give you an indication of just how enjoyable this game can be.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious due to slow movement speeds, often wishing for shortcuts like noclip to expedite their progress.
- “With your speed so slow, it gets very tedious, and oftentimes I wished I could just noclip towards my destination.”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is hindered by inconsistent collision detection, allowing players to occasionally go out of bounds. Additionally, the mechanics for spawning new platforms are poorly explained and lack reliable responsiveness, contributing to a frustrating experience.
- “Collision detection is at times buggy; I was able to get out of bounds in a few places, and the ability to spawn new platforms was confusing, poorly explained, and inconsistently responsive.”