MIND: Path to Thalamus

About

MIND: Path to Thalamus is a single player shooter game. It was developed by Pantumaca Barcelona and was released on August 5, 2014. It received negative reviews from critics and neutral reviews from players.

"Mind: Path to Thalamus E.Edition" is a first-person puzzle-adventure game that takes players through a surreal world filled with challenges to solve. The game features a variety of environments and weather conditions that affect gameplay, as well as a rich storyline that unfolds as the player progresses. Using a unique mechanic that allows players to manipulate the environment, they must navigate through the dream-like world to uncover the truth behind the protagonist's memories.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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60%

Audience ScoreBased on 916 reviews

story168 positive mentions

stability38 negative mentions

The game features stunning visuals and a surreal aesthetic that captivates players.
Puzzles are generally well-designed, providing a satisfying challenge without being overly difficult.
The atmospheric music and sound design enhance the immersive experience.

The voice acting and narrative delivery are often criticized as being poor and distracting.
Some puzzles can feel tedious and repetitive, with a lack of clear instructions leading to frustration.
The game suffers from technical issues, including bugs and crashes, which can hinder gameplay.

story
606 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
60%
12%
The story in "Mind: Path to Thalamus" has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it underdeveloped and lacking coherence. While some appreciate its emotional core and visual metaphors, others criticize the narration as confusing and melodramatic, detracting from the overall experience. Overall, the narrative is seen as a weak point in an otherwise visually stunning puzzle game, with many players suggesting that the gameplay could stand alone without the story.
- “The story is actually quite interesting: it has good character development, wonderful visual representations of the plot (all the visual metaphors and motifs are excellent), and an intriguing concept (representing the subconscious mind of the character).”
- “The story was interesting, the pacing was good, and the world was nice to explore.”
- “I was blown away by the beautiful visuals, emotive music and touching story of Mind: Path to Thalamus.”
- “The story isn't engaging enough to make me want to hear more.”
- “The story tries to be deep and fails, and the voice acting is horrendous.”
- “The story is both very generic and very lacking.”
graphics
338 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
57%
41%
2%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning, surreal aesthetics and beautiful environments, often described as top-notch and visually immersive. However, some users noted inconsistencies in texture quality and performance issues, suggesting that the visuals may not always match the high expectations set by trailers. Overall, while the graphics are a highlight, they are sometimes overshadowed by gameplay and technical shortcomings.
- “The visuals are absolutely stunning and the soundtrack is simply the best video game soundtrack I have ever listened to.”
- “Mind: Path to Thalamus is a fantastic example of what the indie development scene is capable of producing, from the gorgeous visuals right down to the engaging story.”
- “The graphics are stunning and have been crafted with great care and attention to detail.”
- “Unfortunately, the visuals are the only worthwhile aspect about playing this game.”
- “Graphics are nothing like the trailer.”
- “I did appreciate some of the visuals like skyboxes and reflections, but overall the graphics and especially textures were low quality.”
gameplay
264 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
74%
7%
The gameplay of "Mind: Path to Thalamus" has received mixed reviews, with many players finding it simplistic and repetitive, often relying on trial-and-error to understand mechanics that are poorly explained. While the visuals and some puzzle mechanics are praised for their creativity, the overall experience is marred by dull gameplay, lack of variety, and frustrating design choices, leading to a sense of boredom despite the game's beautiful environments. Players seeking a rich puzzle experience akin to titles like "Portal" or "The Talos Principle" may be disappointed by the game's linearity and ease.
- “The gameplay is at its most satisfying when it nudges you to think in new ways in order to solve different types of puzzles.”
- “The game is stunning and puzzles are designed well to teach you mechanics while gradually ramping up the difficulty.”
- “Overall, mind: path to thalamus is a great gaming experience, with great game mechanics, superb graphics and an engaging story to keep you occupied for hours.”
- “This isn't even cheating, because you never even get an indication of what you are supposed to be doing, and as you get to more difficult versions of those puzzles (where the teleport distance is not long enough to cover the gap) you are clueless that there's this whole 'find/turn on the bridge' game mechanic.”
- “The gameplay is still so boring as to be nauseating; the VR can look cool with floating rock islands and reflections at times, but that's canceled by how often you get a closeup of some ugly texture smeared across a mountain face or in the grass that hurts your eyes.”
- “However, at the end of the day, bad gameplay ruins an otherwise serene immersive experience.”
music
182 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
40%
2%
The music in the game is generally praised for its beauty and ability to enhance the atmosphere, with many players describing it as relaxing, haunting, and emotionally impactful. However, some reviewers noted that the soundtrack is sparse, with occasional moments of silence that detract from the experience, and expressed a desire for more consistent background music throughout gameplay. Overall, while the soundtrack is considered a highlight, its limited presence at times leaves players wanting more.
- “The music and art are beautiful.”
- “The player is taken on a journey, and both the music and the artworks make for a spectacular atmosphere, not to mention some really beautiful scenery.”
- “The visuals and music are impeccable and I find myself wishing for more games that are able to deliver an experience like this.”
- “Only downside is that it doesn't have any background music at times.”
- “I encountered very little music.”
- “Many areas have no music at all with the sounds of the environment and the amazing voice acting of the narrator carrying the player perfectly.”
atmosphere
96 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
65%
32%
3%
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its immersive and surreal qualities, with many players highlighting the stunning visuals, beautiful landscapes, and evocative soundtracks that enhance the overall experience. While some reviews note that the game may lack depth in story and action, the captivating environments and emotional impact make it a worthwhile experience for fans of atmospheric and exploratory gameplay. Overall, the game excels in creating a breathtaking and engaging atmosphere that draws players into its world.
- “I immerse myself inside this astounding atmosphere and leave breathless and in awe, every time I enter... time & time again!”
- “The atmosphere is amazing; it is really good art-wise, with beautiful landscapes and textures and a great soundtrack.”
- “This game did a brilliant job of creating an amazing atmosphere and presenting engaging puzzles that aren't all that difficult but feel rewarding.”
- “Unfortunately, some people may be giving this game a worse review than it deserves because a) they're not playing it in VR, so not getting the atmosphere, b) they're playing it in VR but without a motion platform, so they're getting sick.”
- “Some of the words he says are poorly pronounced, the mic overrides or pops at some points which is not only disturbing the atmosphere, but is also unprofessional.”
- “I have already accepted it as a walking simulator based on atmosphere and I was poorly wrong (well it is a walking simulator based on atmosphere but it includes something more).”
stability
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game is frequently described as "buggy," with numerous glitches affecting gameplay, including issues with teleportation movement, invisible colliders, and graphical problems. While some players find the beautiful environments and puzzles redeeming, the overall stability is a significant concern, leading to frustrations such as getting stuck and needing to restart the game. Despite these issues, some reviewers suggest that the enhanced edition has improved stability, but many still feel the game should be considered early access due to its persistent problems.
- “So much teleporting... my biggest gripes are the teleport-only movement, which glitches a lot.”
- “It's buggy and playing with Vive and its motion controllers becomes a nightmare: problems with falling off the wooden bridge panels on one level, problems with invisible colliders that don't allow you to move freely on another.”
- “Looks nice, what I can see of it - but very buggy, constantly loses control of the mouse and flicks back to the Windows desktop.”
emotional
38 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its touching narrative that explores profound themes such as bereavement and family tragedy, resonating deeply with players despite some criticisms of the writing and voice acting. Many reviewers praised the game's ability to evoke a wide range of emotions through its stunning visuals and evocative soundtrack, creating a unique and immersive experience. While some felt the execution faltered, the overall emotional engagement remains a strong selling point for the game.
- “Not many games attempt to explore the heart-wrenching themes the player is presented with.”
- “The story was pleasing, and I actually found myself emotionally affected at times, be it fear, sadness, awe, terror, or joy.”
- “Its atmospheric, emotional impact is its strongest selling point for me.”
grinding
32 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The grinding aspect of the game is characterized by tedious and repetitive gameplay, with many players noting the slow walking speed and the excessive wandering required to solve puzzles. While some puzzles are clever, the overall experience is marred by a lack of engaging content and a sense of accomplishment, leading to a feeling of boredom rather than enjoyment. Despite its beautiful visuals, the game often feels like a slog, making it hard to recommend without significant discounts.
- “A masterclass on how to make the most tediously boring puzzles imaginable: dilute the few puzzle elements in an ocean of space.”
- “But, based on the about hour and a half I have played, I can't recommend it; the game, or experience, is tedious and long-winded, with no real sense of accomplishment or narrative.”
- “It's too bad because this game had so much going for it, but the static environments, tedious puzzles, rigid characters, and confusing story made it really difficult to fully immerse myself in what the game developers had to offer.”
optimization
18 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
61%
17%
The optimization of the game has received mixed feedback; while some users report significant performance issues, particularly in VR experiences, others praise its impressive optimization, noting smooth performance even on older hardware. Overall, the game appears to be well-optimized for certain setups, but inconsistencies in performance across different platforms have been highlighted.
- “The game seems very well optimized and runs perfectly fine on my 5 year old machine with a GTX 580 card.”
- “Games like this, when I max out, are usually smooth but have rough spots or hiccups every now and then, but even with max settings and V-Sync, I had liquid smooth performance with absolutely no lag at all.”
- “This wouldn't be as much of a problem if the game didn't suffer from performance issues despite the simple graphics.”
- “Now, the graphic controls are few and limited, but the amount of optimization in the game is shocking.”
- “Also, the performance - seriously?”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
30%
The game suffers from a significant lack of replayability, a common issue among story-driven titles, with many players noting that once the narrative is completed, there is little incentive to revisit it. Reviewers consistently mention that the experience is short and the driving motivation to play again is lost, leading to an overall assessment of zero replay value. Despite this, some still find the initial experience worthwhile.
- “One of its weak points is fairly common among story-driven games: replayability is completely out of the question, just like in Frictional Games' 'Amnesia' and 'Penumbra' series.”
- “Replay value is absolutely zero, because once you've been through the game, the driving force behind why you kept playing has been lost.”
- “The game has absolutely no replayability at all, and with the fact that the character annoyed me that much, I'm quite happy that I never have to hear his voice again.”
humor
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is noted to be quite effective, with players finding the puzzles particularly funny and surprising. While some feel the overall story lacks depth, the humor and atmosphere contribute positively to the experience, making it enjoyable despite its simplicity.
- “Very funny indeed.”
- “The landscapes are breathtaking and the puzzles are really funny and surprising (though I would have preferred harder ones), and the storyline has a simple and strange metaphysical air... just buy it.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features strong character development, effectively exploring the protagonist's subconscious mind through engaging storytelling and impressive visual metaphors. Players appreciate the depth and intrigue of the characters, enhancing the overall narrative experience.
- “The story is actually quite interesting: it has good character development, wonderful visual representations of the plot (all the visual metaphors and motifs are excellent), and an intriguing concept (representing the subconscious mind of the character).”
monetization
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The reviews suggest that the game's monetization strategy may not align with the quality of its in-game music, as players expected a similarly high standard based on the promotional material.