Lemma
- May 12, 2015
- Helvetica Scenario
- 9h median play time
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Lemma is a single-player platformer game with a good story and splendid game mechanics. It features immersive first-person parkour in a surreal, physics-driven voxel world, where you can creatively build through movement and extend platforms. The game offers a non-linear story with four possible endings, time trial mode, and a built-in level editor with Steam Workshop support."
Virtual Reality
Windows
Oculus Rift
Xbox
Reviews
- The parkour mechanics are fluid and rewarding, providing a satisfying experience as players navigate the beautifully designed environments.
- The game features a unique mechanic where players can create platforms and walls, adding depth to the traversal and puzzle-solving elements.
- The atmospheric visuals and sound design create an immersive experience, enhancing the overall enjoyment of the game.
- The level design becomes confusing in the latter half of the game, leading to frustration as players struggle to find their way and complete objectives.
- The controls can feel clunky and inconsistent, particularly with multiple actions assigned to the same key, which can hinder gameplay.
- The story is poorly explained and lacks direction, making it difficult for players to engage with the narrative and understand the game's context.
- gameplay45 mentions
- 29 % positive mentions
- 62 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by fluid and rewarding parkour mechanics reminiscent of titles like "Mirror's Edge" and "Portal," allowing for exciting exploration and movement through expansive environments. However, the experience is marred by poorly explained mechanics, frustrating fetch quests, and a lack of guidance, particularly in the later levels, which can detract from the overall enjoyment. While the core mechanics are praised for their creativity and potential, the introduction of excessive and confusing elements can lead to a disjointed gameplay experience.
“The gameplay is fluid, exciting, and rewarding.”
“The movement is on point, the lore is also good, the mechanics and controls are perfect and fluid.”
“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.”
- story35 mentions
- 34 % positive mentions
- 51 % neutral mentions
- 14 % negative mentions
The story in the game is often described as minimal and confusing, requiring players to seek out hidden notes for a deeper understanding, which can lead to frustration due to poor level design and lack of direction. While some players appreciate the intriguing lore and the gradual reveal of backstory, many find the narrative bland or shoehorned in, suggesting that the story is not essential for enjoying the gameplay. Overall, the storytelling approach is polarizing, with some players valuing the exploration aspect while others criticize its execution.
“The story is compelling and ties into the lore well, which is very fleshed out.”
“Gradually a backstory is revealed while you’re busy scaling the floating monoliths that overwhelm your surroundings.”
“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 for this narrative through the scattered pages.”
“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 end levels turn into mundane fetch quests with frustrating new mechanics that are explained poorly.”
“Bad level design, confusing 'story', too many mechanics that make no sense, and no direction.”
- music14 mentions
- 36 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 21 % negative mentions
The music in the game is generally praised for its beauty and fitting atmosphere, enhancing the overall experience with a mix of minimalistic and eerie tones. While some users noted that the sound library could be lacking, many found the original soundtrack compelling enough to purchase. Overall, the music complements the game's environments and narrative effectively, creating a memorable auditory experience.
“Jump around in a beautiful environment with beautiful music.”
“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.”
“The sound library for BGM and ambience kind of sucks, and you're probably better off just putting on your own music. Judging from the credits, it was mostly put together from free resources; what can you do?”
“The use of music is sparse and tastefully added to extraordinary situations.”
“Why can I not find the soundtrack to this game anywhere?”
- graphics9 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 22 % neutral mentions
- 22 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the 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.”
- atmosphere5 mentions
- 80 % positive mentions
- -40 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is highly praised for its immersive qualities, blending surrealism with accessible design. Players commend the brilliant sound design and music, which enhance the alien ambiance, making it a standout feature that captivates users for extended play sessions. Overall, the game's atmosphere is described as incredible and engaging.
“I was going to play for 5 minutes to see if my computer could run it, but I ended up playing for a couple of hours, completely immersed in the game's atmosphere.”
“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 create the game's alien atmosphere.”
“The environments feel lifeless and fail to immerse me in the game's world.”
“Despite the potential, the atmosphere feels flat and uninspired, lacking any real tension.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Lemma offers significant replayability through its main campaign and custom challenge levels, allowing players to explore and approach challenges in unique ways. The freedom to parkour and build paths enhances the experience, ensuring that no two playthroughs are the same. Overall, the game's design encourages exploration and experimentation, making it highly enjoyable and replayable.
“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 thing twice, and you can explore at your own pace.”
“I highly recommend this game, and the replay value alone could and should give you an indication of just how enjoyable this game can be.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect 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.”
“The grinding feels endless and repetitive, making it hard to stay engaged with the game.”
“I find myself spending more time grinding than actually enjoying the gameplay, which is frustrating.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game's stability is marred by inconsistent collision detection, allowing players to occasionally venture 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. The ability to spawn new platforms was confusing, poorly explained, and inconsistently responsive.”
