The Talos Principle Reviews
An adept and satisfying puzzle game with a narrative that requires a bit of player investment to yield its biggest rewards.
The Talos Principle is a game of challenges and conundrums and philosophical wonderings, filled with logic puzzles and cerebral mysteries. Its chunky mechanical processes are underpinned by a compelling breadcrumb-trail narrative that tackles the intangible notion of humanity and consciousness. Consequently, despite playing a robot that interacts with computer terminals and takes instruction from a disembodied voice in the sky, it exudes personality and charm; its mechanical precision complementing its aesthetic qualities. For an experience bereft of human contact it boasts a very big heart indeed.
Much like Portal, The Talos Principle makes you feel smart just by playing it, as the bulk of the puzzles hit that sweet spot between too easy and near-impossible.
With its relaxing atmosphere, pretty environments and interesting theological dilemma, The Talos Principle is PS4's best puzzler to date.
If you love brainteasers and philosophy, then The Talos Principle is better than a night at the movies
It's a smart game that doesn't punish you for it, a puzzle game that allows a sense of creativity. And while it isn't the most upbeat thing out there, there's a vein of hope that runs through it — and ties it all together neatly at the end.
Excellent puzzles are only the tip of the iceberg for The Talos Principle, an existential journey about what it is to be human.
If you love and miss the Portal series, it's time to celebrate: The Talos Principle has all the first-person puzzles you've been craving, wrapped in an extremely thoughtful package. Don't be surprised if you feel legitimately smarter after reaching the end of its 100-plus puzzles.
The Talos Principle has some important things to say, but more thoughtfully, it wants the player to have important things to say as well. Even those who do not bother to think about the philosophical topics can find a smart, sometimes frustratingly difficult puzzler here. It really shines for those open to both.
I didn't expect a video game to have deep philosophical questions that I pondered long after each session, and I appreciate how it adds the kind of depth seldom seen in games. It's also very cool to play a non-combat game that keeps me interested for hours at a time. The Talos Principle: Deluxe Edition doesn't offer any new content to entice people who played the PC version, but I highly recommend it to everyone who hasn't.
Games that are this thought provoking and enjoyable are rare. Rarer still are those that imbue this level of pride and honor upon completion.
The Talos Principle surprised me in almost every way, and it's one of the best puzzle games in recent years.
The Talos Principle builds a giant collection of 3D puzzles, puts you in the middle of it, and then gives you a philosophical puzzle to chew on that's even larger.
The Talos Principle may spend a bit too much time stroking its beard and showing off how deep it is, but the fact remains that it regularly deserves to posture. Not only is it a highly accomplished puzzle game, it's a genuinely fascinating collection of reflective notions.
The philosophical side of the game won't be for everyone, and you can largely leave it alone or skim the texts if you really don't get on with it. I really enjoyed digging into the archives so I'd recommend giving it a good go, but ultimately it shouldn't get in the way of enjoying the excellent puzzle side of things.
While some graphical issues keep the PS4 version from matching its PC counterpart, The Talos Principle remains one of the most interesting, intelligent, and inspiring video games ever made. Absolutely essential gaming.
The Talos Principle plays like a marriage between Portal and a game from the 'walking simulator' genre, complete with an intriguing narrative and challenging puzzles.
The feeling of accomplishment from solving The Talos Principle's puzzles is almost like a high, and the game does a mostly great job of guiding you in the beginning and then letting you figure things out for yourself. Some hiccups near the end drastically change the pace of problem solving for the worse, but it's a game that will seriously challenge you to think and to reason.
The Talos Principle is a meaningful exercise. Sure, I worked out my brain with some good old fashioned puzzle solving. But the real workout began when I started sweating questions of why-am-I-here existence, of what constitutes consciousness—and whether the end is really the end, or if it's really the beginning, or if it's somewhere along the way.
One of the most intellectually stimulating experiences on PS4, with imaginative puzzles, fantastic atmosphere and a brilliant expansion that builds tremendously on the core game.