Episode 148 - Knower of the Tomes - Braid

All those years ago, Tim had left the podcast behind. Welcome back
to the podcast! For our first episode in Mystery May (but with
rolling dice instead of solving mysteries), we’re going to be
talking about Braid! Braid, as honestly you’re probably already
aware, is a puzzle platformer that received a massive amount of
recognition and acclaim when it launched on the Xbox Live Arcade
way back in 2008. Far more puzzle than platformer, in Braid you use
standard platforming controls and the ability to reverse time to
collect puzzle pieces and complete levels, with each new level
offering a different gimmick that changes the way the world and
sometimes your abilities work. Gameplay-wise, the puzzles are
extremely well-built. Never being outright unsolvable for the
average person but also deep enough to provide a challenge and
featuring some truly unique solutions. To some, this will be the
biggest draw of the game. For others, the game’s melancholic tone
and vague story will be the thing that hooks them, and it is also
well crafted. The writing is eloquent and evocative, calling to
mind how we as people handle mistakes and questioning the fantasy
of being able to turn back time to correct them. As two different
elements of the game, they both really sing, but when experienced
together, how well do they mix? We’re going to be talking about our
difficulties with the puzzles, our difficulties with piecing the
game’s message together from the parts it gives you, and we make
listening to the episode without being embarrassed about it a
difficulty by telling a yo mama joke at the halfway point. Thank
you for joining us again this week! Braid coming up first on
Mystery May is a great example of what we designed the whole system
around because it’s been on our list literally since the inception
of the podcast and kept getting kicked further down the road. It
feels good to have finally played it, but missing the cultural
zeitgeist on this game may have done more harm than we realized? Do
you think Braid still holds up and its intentions still come across
in the modern day? Do you think Braid has had an impact on game
development or just indie game popularity generally? Let us know in
the comments or over on our Discord! Next time, we’re going to be
talking about Child of Light, as deigned by the fates, so we hope
you’ll join us then.