The Perfect Pencil
Top Critic Average
Critics Recommend
Critic Reviews for The Perfect Pencil
Despite being another in an ever increasing genre stable, The Perfect Pencil brings a uniquely twisted world to the genre. Its mysteries can be a bit dense, but the eerie atmosphere, complex themes, and strange landscapes make it worth exploring.
The Perfect Pencil mixes a really cool hand-drawn style with a dark, symbolic story about inner struggles. The gameplay follows a familiar Metroidvania formula, but creative enemy designs and the analysis mechanic keep it engaging. Frustrating save points hold it back a bit, but it's still a solid and slightly unsettling experience.
The Perfect Pencil has the foundation for a great metroidvania but runs too far with some of the aspects that make it unique, such as how cryptic it is and its offbeat sense of humour. Its quirks are part of what makes it so distinct in the beginning, but they become increasingly overused as the game progresses. A more robust fast travel system appearing earlier also would have made returning to previous areas less tedious.
The Perfect Pencil is a great metroidvania full of exploration, a rich story, and odd, hand-drawn characters that give the game a surreal feel you need to experience for yourself.
The Perfect Pencil is a beautiful artistic and psychological experience that blends exploration with dark themes. Any fan of Metroidvania games will find it worth trying and immersing themselves in its terrifying world, we recommend it especially for the fans of this genre the only thing that’s need to check out is the price.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
The Perfect Pencil, ironically, is not perfect in the gameplay or pacing, but it does stand out in concept and delivery. While some moments are a trifle ham fisted, it nonetheless promises and delivers a unique metroidvania that keeps you moving, keeps you exploring and does a lot for fans of the genre wanting to try things from another angle. I’m not sure if I’m the ideal audience, but I listened, and I think I was able to hear John clearly. I hope others can, too.
The Perfect Pencil stands out as a true gem that excels in blending art design and psychological elements, offering an intimate and visually mesmerising experience that deserves attention from lovers of action-adventure platformers. Its strengths lie in its impeccable artistic style and touching narrative, which touches on themes such as fear, depression, anxiety and personal growth, and really makes you think. All this is accompanied by gameplay that we found to be really solid and well integrated; there are few uncertainties and compromises – which are absolutely surmountable – such as repetitive backtracking (on rare occasions) and controls that are not always very fast in portable mode. The Perfect Pencil is more than an indie game, it is a true life experience that we highly recommend you try, as you will not regret it at all.
Review in Italian | Read full review
