In this current era of gaming, first-person puzzle games aren’t that uncommon anymore. Since the release of Portal back in 2007, plenty of other games have tried to catch that charming, head-scratching spark. With that, comes a mixed bag of homages and pale imitations that hardly fit the mold. Superliminal is neither of these things, in fact, it is something I found to be incredibly refreshing.

In Superliminal, you play an unnamed protagonist, who falls asleep at 3 AM while watching a commercial for Dr. Pierce’s Somnasculpt therapy program. The moment your protagonist falls asleep, they find themselves beginning the early stages of the experimental program. This is where your journey begins.

In this game, instead of portal guns, gels, or other gimmicks, the key to success is figuring out how to see the room from a perspective in which you can progress to the next room. Each level either introduces a new mechanic or teaches you a new way to use mechanics they’ve already introduced you to. The game doesn’t teach these mechanics itself, instead, it has you interact with things to see how they work.

Because of this, there is more of a sense of accomplishment when you figure out how to progress. I didn’t find most of the puzzles difficult, but some of them took me a while because I had to wrap my brain around what the game was trying to teach me. This game requires you to think outside the box, and in a world of dreams, that makes sense. In dreams, there is no box.

The controls are simple, the mouse moves your camera, you can move with either the arrow keys or WASD, and you use left click to grab or interact with objects, and right-click to rotate them. There isn’t much to say about how the game controls overall, because other than using the space bar to jump, there’s not much in the way of complexity there.

Superliminal is a mental game. In fact, it is one of the better ones I’ve seen. The Stanley Parable threw strange scenarios at you, Portal gave you puzzle rooms with a sassy robot talking to you, and somehow Superliminal does both. You are often spoken to by the employees of the Somnasculpt program, and many of the things they have to say are hilarious.

The game itself also throws you into scenarios you might not expect, some of which are downright hilarious, and others are so unexpected that I couldn’t help but be impressed. I won’t spoil the point of Superliminal’s narrative, but I found it to be satisfying. Also, I’d like to point out that many games that involve dreams tend to lean into nightmares and horror tropes. Superliminal does not provide anything more frightening than an occasional claustrophobic room.

Superliminal is colorful, visually interesting, and overall I found it to be an absolute treat. I would say you’ll get anywhere from two to ten hours out of a single playthrough, depending on how many of the puzzles give you trouble. My playthrough clocked in at about 4 hours, but I was taking my time with the game because I enjoyed it so much that I didn’t want it to end.

The meticulous design of the levels, mixed with the colorful visuals, attention to detail, and bizarre, surreal flair, is nothing short of spectacular. Even in the most disorienting of dreamscapes, Superliminal brings you to a place that just feels good. Like a dream you never want to wake up from.

My enjoyment of Superliminal is the closest thing to perfection I’ve found in a game like this in years. There are very few bugs, and the only complaint I could even have with the game is that it wasn’t longer. However, on that same token, it didn’t outstay its’ welcome. It’s just long enough to be satisfying, yet leave you wanting more.

An Epic Games Store review copy of Superliminal was provided by Pillow Castle Games for this review.

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Superliminal

$16.99

10

Score

10.0/10

Pros

• Mind-bending Levels
• Unique, Creative Gameplay
• Colorful Environments
• Humorous Characters
• Satisfying, Addictive Experience