BinaryMessiah Monument Valley 3 Review

Monument Valley played a pivotal role in shaping the mobile gaming scene by demonstrating the feasibility of console-like experiences on mobile devices. With the flood of microtransaction-heavy free-to-play schlop on the app stores, Monument Valley was a beacon of hope for those who wanted to play single-player games on their phones. The MC Escher-like level design and clever puzzles were adored the world over, and USTWO was considered a pioneer of single-player mobile gaming. The second game was more of the same, which everyone wanted, but the third game here is still more of the same. That's also what we want, but we want something longer than two hours. With the series venturing into console and PC territory, the short length isn't as forgiving. The overall game is exactly the same as before. If you play all three of these games back-to-back, you could be forgiven for thinking they were the same game or DLC of the first. There's not much new here outside of a more streamlined and cohesive narrative. While it's more visually presented with a girl named Noor trying to restore a lighthouse to a tribe that lives in the ocean (or that's how I interpreted it), there's nothing crazy storywise and never has been with the series. A lot of emotions are invoked through the fantastic soundtrack and visuals. The bright colors and the continuation of the MC escher style puzzles with perspective and illusions at play make this series one of my favorites of all time, right next to echochrome. The game is easy to understand thanks to visual context. Parts of the level that can be manipulated are represented with hollow pips similar to a Lego block. You can move these freely while Noor is on them, and it's required to solve some puzzles. You can't always expect to just move a piece and command Noor to walk to the exit. Some pieces are moved with a spinner, and these can not be moved while Noor is on one of them. These are some of the harder puzzles, and they really require you to look outside of the box and take perspective into mind at all times. There's a new gameplay mechanic here of being able to command a boat (it's a leaf bug with an eye on its sail that blinks). It's such a fantastic design. These may require moving a character back and forth between platforms to solve a puzzle. Another puzzle-solving element is a growing tree and having the leaves appear on different parts of a platform. These are subtle gameplay ideas, but they are new and welcome. With all that said, the game is still just way too short. There are only 11 levels, and you can finish the game in a single sitting. I wanted more. I have always wanted more from this series. They are spread so far apart that when they come, you cherish them like an expensive sweet. The soundtrack is ethereal and beautiful, the visuals pop on OLED displays, and the level design is like no other. These games are well worth a playthroughif you love puzzle games. Just don't expect a lot.