Illusion: A Tale of the Mind
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Critic Reviews for Illusion: A Tale of the Mind
Late in the game, one of the characters has a line where he says “I am a miserable, unfortunate man.” We can't think of a more perfect way to describe playing this title. From a team capable of making a game as exceptional as Fated: The Silent Oath, the quality of work, or lack thereof, on display here stings.
Illusion: A Tale of the Mind has a touching story to tell, but it's held back by repetitive puzzles.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Illusion: A Tale of the Mind is a marvel to look at and enjoy from a puzzle standpoint. However, it starts to bog itself down with a quirky storyline that carries the action along well enough to start with, but becomes increasingly convoluted and eventually downright boring, to the point where the ending will leave most sighing with relief, which is a massive shame as the core gameplay is very intriguing to start with, but is dragged down by an over-reliance on switch-hitting towards the end.
I think that Illusion: A Tale of the Mind is probably the perfect example of what is considered an ‘average’ game. There’s no denying that it has a wonderfully weird world and that there are some really clever moments to encounter during the roughly four-hour adventure, but there were also too many times where I was left frustrated by some poorly designed puzzle or annoying chase sequence for me too feel too enamoured by it all. It’s certainly not a bad game and I wasn’t bored during my time with Illusion: A Tale of the Mind. There are just too many better puzzle-adventures out there right now that are probably a bit more deserving of your time.
So yes, Illusion is worth a run through if only for the environments and the story of Euclid alone. It’s not often that I get so invested in a storyline, but the tragedy that is Euclid is hard not to get wrapped up in, and I found myself putting up with the repetition and the tedium of the gameplay to find out more. So, if you want something like Limbo or Braid, go elsewhere. If you want to share in one of the most emotive stories I’ve ever seen, and some pretty environments to enjoy it in, then definitely give this hidden gem a go.
Illusion: A Tale of the Mind is a fun puzzle-platformer with some very frustratingly strict timed segments and confusing puzzles. The overall story of the game, the setting, the audio, and graphics are all amazing and work really well together – It’s just a shame that our protagonist walks as fast as a snail as she takes in everything that’s around her. Issues aside though, the game was fun to play and interesting to follow. I’d recommend this to people who like puzzle platformers where the emphasis is on the story and the four puzzle types I mentioned in my review. I also love a good story with an emotional aspect, Illusion: A Tale of the Mind didn’t fail to deliver on this either.
