Wilderplace

A very entertaining and very well designed puzzle game! Silly and relaxing, but certainly not easy. Don't let this one slip under your radar if you love puzzles but you're getting a little tired of the sokoban grind!

Wilderplace is soooo lovely. art is gorgeous, sounds are satisfying, dialogue with the many characters is charming. the overall vibe is wonderful and unlocking mechanics is tied to the theme, which feels wonderful to discover. The puzzle mechanics gradually build on each other. Occasionally I get very stuck, but for the most part the puzzles are manageable, as someone who does not play many puzzle games at all. It is all very entrancing.

I'm enjoying my time with Wilderplace so far. However, Boulder Trail V is large difficulty spike for me. I don't know if I'm smart enough to complete this level much less the game.

Disclaimer: I was involved in beta testing this game.

My favorite thing about this game is the use of NPC players to create the puzzles. In a way it harkens back to Arcarde games such as Pacman where the predicability of the NPCs leads to ideals movements. Here though, the limited AI is a feature, not a reflection of limited technology. This pairs well with the turn based nature of the game, giving players who enjoy testing their read-depth the time to work out what will happen next.

Using NPCs as the puzzle pieces creates problems as well. While the NPCs are introduced to help you learn how they move, as the game progresses it's gets hard to keep track of the different features of each NPC resulting in hard to predict situations. I suspect fandom could/will present a solution for this problem with a wiki that lays out how the different NPCs work. I would have found this very helpful in overcoming the learning curve of some of the later levels.

Early on in playing I tried to use the mouse controls and found them to be too slow. Moving to keyboard and tweaking some of the settings really helped the game play for me.

Overall, I enjoyed playing Wilderplace a lot. The art gives the game an independent feel while the production level shows this is more than "just a hobby project". The music fits well and evolves with the game. And while the game plays as a series of puzzles, the story that unfolds in those puzzles is clear and complementary to the puzzles themselves.

The hand drawn art style felt good the whole time I played and I got surprisingly drawn into the simple but not simplistic story. As a puzzle game the levels definitely start off easy, but as mechanics get introduced it quickly gets complex, though still never excessively hard. I also appreciate how often a new ability or mechanic recontextualizes elements that I've already seen and really contributes to the feeling of a rich world.

This game is great! A puzzle game with actual unique puzzle mechanics, good difficulty curve, simple but not cheap art style, and a narrative that I actually want to pay attention to. How are people sleeping on this game?!?

Disclaimer: I did get an opportunity to play Wilderplace in beta & provide feedback before launch.

Overall, I think Wilderplace is a lovingly crafted, polished indie title that's definitely worth your time. The art style, music, and interacting with the story through various gameplay mechanics is very enjoyable.

Games I've played before and felt similarly about are FEZ and A Short Hike. Wilderplace is give-or-take longer than the games listed but all are largely atmospheric and immersive in their worlds.

good puzzle! very captivating! forgot my dog outside and burnt my ramen!

note: its not easy to burn ramen all of the water has to completely evaporate from the pot but I now know that it is indeed a very real possibility. It was only until i could smell the burning ramen and hear the dog yelping outside that I realized I needed to take immediate action idk how much time passed but it was a good minute

I haven't seen so much love and care poured into a game in a long time. It reminds me of Inkle's Pendragon, also a puzzle and strategy game with heavy emphasis on story and setting, but way more polished. And Baba Is You, not so much in terms of gameplay (although both are turn based), but more the general lost autumn forest mood.

It's a great puzzle game that makes you feel soo satisfied after (almost) every solution.
I imagine artstyle can be a hit or miss for some (I love it but it was a little hard to read initially) and controls takes a little to time get used to; but puzzles are great.

Wilderplace is a wonderfully vibrant and mystical puzzle game. The hypnotic music and mysterious characters carry you throughout the game. Wilderplace starts out easy, but does not shy away from challenging level designs and you will leave each level behind feeling a sense of purpose and connection to this spiritual world. It's a lovely game and great break from traditional narratives. I definitely recommend this game for those who are looking for an atmospheric, mystical, and challenging puzzle game.

Things I like:
- Very pretty art and colors
- Great music
- Cute story and nicely written dialogue, makes me interested to play through all the levels
- It's challenging enough that you have to put in some effort. Don't expect to get through it without some thinking