Trance, Trauma
- July 17, 2023
- Liu Zeren
Get on Steam"Trance, Trauma" is a puzzle-based game set in three surreal hexagon rooms. You play as a woman who killed herself, trying to uncover the tragic incident that led to her death. The game features unique hand-crafted puzzles, along with various activities like feeding a parrot, playing a piano, and planting a seed. The rooms are filled with secret messages, clues, Morse code, and equations to solve, providing an engaging and immersive experience.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Challenging and unique puzzles that require critical thinking and sometimes outside knowledge.
- Atmospheric sound design and compelling story that explores deep themes of grief.
- Great artwork and creative puzzle mechanics that provide an enjoyable experience.
- The game is quite short, leaving players wanting more character development and story depth.
- Some puzzles feel disjointed from the storyline and can be overly reliant on math, which may frustrate players.
- Clunky mechanics, such as not retaining choices when interacting with objects, can detract from the overall experience.
- story28 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 39 % neutral mentions
- 11 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as poignant and compelling, focusing on themes of grief, though it is noted to be quite short. While players enjoyed the narrative and its emotional depth, many expressed a desire for more character development and a longer conclusion to fully explore the aftermath of the events. Some puzzles felt disconnected from the story, which detracted from the overall experience for certain players.
“Great game to play if you want to solve some intriguing puzzles while uncovering a flavor-packed (sad) story.”
“The story is great and very sad.”
“Compelling story.”
“A lot of puzzles had nothing to do with the back story, leaving them feeling disjointed and pointless, but had to be solved in order to move on.”
“I would have liked it if the ending was a bit longer just because I'd like to see what happened afterwards, but that would be a completely different story.”
“Would love to see a longer story told like this.”
- atmosphere8 mentions
- 75 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is highly praised, with users highlighting its impressive sound design and artwork that contribute to an immersive experience. Many reviewers express a strong appreciation for the overall ambiance, suggesting it could enhance other media, such as horror films.
“I loved the atmosphere of this game.”
“I also love the atmosphere of the game as well as its artwork.”
“I liked the atmospheric sound design too.”
- graphics6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are highly praised for their great aesthetics and excellent artwork, contributing to an engaging atmosphere. Players appreciate the originality of the puzzles, which complement the visual design effectively.
“Great aesthetics.”
“Excellent artwork and the puzzles were original and interesting.”
“I also love the atmosphere of the game as well as its artwork.”
- character development4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the game suffers from a lack of character development, with many players feeling that enhanced backstory and deeper character arcs could significantly improve the overall narrative and engagement.
“I think this could be a really good game with a little more backstory and character development.”
“The storyline could have been intriguing with more character development.”
- gameplay2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The gameplay is noted to be somewhat short and features clunky mechanics, but there is optimism for future improvements from the developer.
“The gameplay is on the short side and the mechanics are a little clunky, but I hope to see more from this developer!”
- music2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The music in the game tends to become monotonous over time, yet players are required to keep the volume on to receive audio cues for puzzle-solving, as these are the only indicators of success.
“The music got pretty boring after a while, but you have to keep the volume on to know if you solved the puzzle correctly, as a click or slide noise is the only indication.”
