The Great Perhaps

The Great Perhaps is a nice looking adventure game that takes players on an interesting journey with solid dimension-shifting gameplay. Just be wary of the poorly handled mood swings and occasionally annoying design elements.

66%Game Brain Score

story, gameplay

grinding, stability

66% User Score Based on 183 reviews

Critic Score 58%Based on 6 reviews

Platforms

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About

In The Great Perhaps, play as an astronaut returning to a post-apocalyptic Earth, using a mysterious lantern to explore the past and uncover the cause of the disaster. Solve time-travel puzzles and experience a unique atmosphere melding Soviet aesthetics with gripping post-apocalyptic drama. Interact with memorable characters and enjoy an original adaptive soundtrack.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

66%

Audience ScoreBased on 183 reviews

story57 positive mentions

grinding6 negative mentions

The game features a unique time travel mechanic that adds an interesting layer to puzzle-solving.
The art style and music create a captivating atmosphere that enhances the storytelling experience.
The story, while short, is engaging and evokes a range of emotions, making it a memorable experience.

The gameplay can feel repetitive and lacks challenging puzzles, often relying on simple fetch quests.
Controls are clunky and can lead to frustrating moments, especially during timed sequences or platforming sections.
The ending leaves many questions unanswered, which can be disappointing for players seeking closure.

story
128 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
45%
48%
7%
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players praising its intriguing premise and emotional depth, particularly the time-travel mechanics and rich art and music. However, many critiques highlight its linearity, lack of alternate endings, and a somewhat unsatisfying conclusion that leaves key elements unexplained. Overall, while the narrative has potential and can be engaging, it often feels underdeveloped and may not meet the expectations of those seeking a more profound storytelling experience.
- “The storytelling in this game is so good it's almost a sin.”
- “If you're a fan of intriguing mechanics and a story that tugs at your heartstrings, don't let the shortness of this experience deter you from it.”
- “The story is really intriguing and the characters are fun, especially the AI companion of the main character.”
- “The story has potential, but never really takes off properly, and I think I get what the ending was going for, but it really would've benefited from more of an explanation at the end.”
- “The story is garbage.”
- “The story, while interesting, ends in a confusing way, lacking a proper explanation for what happened.”
gameplay
97 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
55%
9%
The gameplay of "The Great Perhaps" features a unique time travel mechanic that allows players to switch between past and present to solve puzzles, which many found intriguing and enjoyable. However, the experience is marred by repetitive tasks, clunky controls, and simplistic puzzles that can lead to frustration. While the art style and narrative elements are appreciated, the overall gameplay lacks depth and can feel tedious, making it a mixed experience for players.
- “The gameplay is fun and straightforward, the story — original and compelling, and the humor is just outstanding!”
- “The time travel mechanic makes for some interesting puzzle designs.”
- “The gameplay loop is enjoyable, and most of the puzzles were fun.”
- “The gameplay side isn't noteworthy.”
- “I can not recommend this game though I see the direction the game was going and it wasn't bad for a narrative game but when I can't move past a simple puzzle due to either bugs or poor game mechanics it immediately loses any credibility.”
- “The voice acting is dull and robotic, the story is unimaginative and overdone, the mechanics often end up feeling repetitive and gimmicky (lantern) or flat-out sloppy.”
graphics
41 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
46%
7%
The graphics of "The Great Perhaps" have received mixed reviews, with many praising its hand-drawn art style and Eastern European aesthetics, which contribute to a melancholic atmosphere. However, some players noted that the overall graphical quality feels amateurish and lacks polish, detracting from the experience. Despite these criticisms, the artwork remains a highlight for many, often compensating for other gameplay shortcomings.
- “The graphics are pretty nice, hand-drawn style, with Eastern European and Soviet aesthetics.”
- “Great short and sad story with very cool graphical design and in a good retro-Soviet setting.”
- “The art style is also very alive with stark contrasts between past and present, which helps propel the tone of planetary dread very well.”
- “And the graphics look like one of those old games from back in the 'flash' days (rip ;_: )”
- “While the graphics, animations, and voice acting are strictly amateur level, there is something strangely endearing and addictive about the gameplay that overcomes the weakness of some of its elements.”
- “The great perhaps is that kind of game, that has a pretty limited budget and you can easily feel it watching at every aspect of the game: from its weak plot to pretty mediocre graphics.”
music
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
62%
27%
12%
The music in the game is widely praised for its ability to enhance the atmosphere and complement the rich storytelling and visuals. Reviewers note that the soundtrack is both moody and immersive, effectively carrying the narrative forward, although some mention it can become repetitive in longer play sessions. Overall, the combination of music, art, and voice acting creates a captivating experience that many players found memorable.
- “The music, the style, the mechanics all lend themselves to an awesome array of scenarios that you find yourself in as you progress along your journey.”
- “Music and atmosphere are just magical; I felt completely immersed, and that’s what this game is about.”
- “The soundtrack is really great, and even for its very short playtime (about 2 hours), it's worth the price.”
- “The hand-drawn art style is good, but the voice acting is somewhat average; luckily, the soundtrack keeps things together.”
- “The combination of art style and music does the most for the atmosphere.”
- “Music and atmosphere are just magical; I felt myself completely immersed, and that’s what this game is about.”
atmosphere
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
52%
33%
14%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive qualities, combining detailed graphics, evocative music, and strong voice acting to create a compelling post-apocalyptic setting. Reviewers highlight the melancholic tone and engaging story, although some express disappointment with gameplay elements that disrupt immersion. Overall, the atmosphere is described as magical and captivating, particularly appealing to fans of sci-fi and narrative-driven experiences.
- “The game has a rather thick atmosphere of the Soviet post-apocalypse.”
- “Music and atmosphere are just magical; I felt completely immersed, and that’s what this game is about.”
- “Incredible atmosphere, music, and art.”
- “So much of the premise, gameplay promises, atmosphere, and art style kept drawing me into it, yet it was plagued by too many immersion-breaking moments that it made me overall disappointed with the outcome of actually playing it.”
- “In a game that is begging for a melancholic atmosphere, having a boring and frustrating puzzle game is not interesting; just having the character walking in an environment and trying to piece out what went wrong would be much more gratifying and intriguing.”
- “Background music works well for the game and perfectly suits the atmosphere, but can become repetitive if the player is stuck in one location for a long time.”
grinding
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be frustrating due to infrequent checkpoints and slow movement, which can lead to tedious backtracking after dying. The combination of slippery running mechanics and cumbersome puzzles, such as transporting items one at a time, contributes to an overall experience that feels more infuriating than enjoyable. Despite its appealing aesthetics, the game's unique elements often exacerbate the tedium rather than enhance gameplay.
- “You can die very easily in this game, so the infrequent checkpoints can get really tedious really fast when you accidentally die to some random hazard and need to spend a long time getting back to where you were.”
- “The walk is very slow and gets really tedious, but the run is slippery (for some reason), which makes it more troublesome to use when you want to stand in a specific spot.”
- “It's a strange mixture where the unique elements really only serve to make the game more tedious.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is noted for its cleverness and balance, featuring sarcastic AI interactions and funny scenes that complement the mature themes and heavy questions posed. While some players expected more outrageous humor, many found the overall comedic elements to be outstanding and well-integrated into the engaging gameplay and compelling story.
- “The interaction with AI is quite funny with many sarcastic takes.”
- “It poses some heavy questions and contains mature themes, but it balances the tone with a sprinkle of very welcome humor.”
- “The gameplay is fun and straightforward, the story is original and compelling, and the humor is just outstanding!”
emotional
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game elicits a powerful emotional response, offering a touching and sobering experience that can evoke laughter and tears. However, some players find that repetitive failures during emotionally intense segments can disrupt immersion. The calming and emotional music further enhances the overall emotional impact.
- “What it does to you emotionally shouldn't be allowed.”
- “A very touching and sobering experience.”
- “I laughed, I cried.”
stability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is marred by frequent bugs and glitches, leading to a frustrating experience with sluggish controls and poor collision detection. Players report issues with poorly executed puzzles and repetitive gameplay, which detracts from overall enjoyment. The inconsistent tone and monotonous voice acting further contribute to a lack of polish in the game's stability.
- “Puzzle game where you switch between the past and present, though the puzzles are simple to solve and frequently buggy.”
- “The most fun I had with the gameplay was discovering a few glitches and repeatedly killing myself.”
- “Mostly repetitive and brainless puzzles, including fetch quests with backtracking as you can frustratingly only carry one item at a time. Some poorly executed puzzles, such as one that involved placing items in a can with no indication of whether an item had been put in the can or accidentally dropped, and no indication of whether you had successfully placed items in the correct order or needed to try again. Additionally, there is monotonous voice acting of the main character, inconsistent tone which is poorly managed, sluggish controls, and buggy collision detection.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Overall, the game's replayability is considered low, with many players expressing disappointment in the lack of engaging content to revisit after completion. While a few puzzles offer multiple solutions, the general consensus is that the game does not provide enough incentive for repeated playthroughs.
- “You might be able to speed run and return it, but otherwise, there is zero replay value.”
- “Thumbs down because there is no replay value, and the ending twist wasn't very original and quite disappointing compared to the rest of the game.”
- “A few puzzles have more than one solution, which might give some replay value.”