INSIDE: Is It Just Limbo 2.0?

When developer Playdead first released Limbo in 2010 it was met with critical success across the board. It was praised for its dark and brooding atmosphere, clever puzzle design, and art style. Now let me say, if you've never played Limbo you definitely need to check it out. So fast forward six years later and a new game from Playdead emerges called Inside which seemed to mimic much of the mechanics of Limbo. So does Inside stand well enough on its own? Or is it simply a re-skinned version of Limbo better left in the shadows?
 
Well, let me say that if you have played Limbo or at least seen images or videos of it, then Inside is going to look very familiar because both games are almost identical to one another in regards to their look and play style. You'll also find it's hard not to compare Inside and Limbo to one another. That is definitely not a bad thing in my opinion.

The overall look and feel of Inside has a very dark, tense, and gloomy atmosphere to it. When you first start the game you are literally dropped right into it. There are no opening cut scenes or story dialogue. You are playing as a small boy, you are alone in the woods, and that's all you know at the start. However, within the first minute of the game you definitely know something is not right in the world. I don't want to spoil any of the story but let me say that the more you continue to explore the world and get further into the game, the stranger and darker it becomes. I found myself not wanting to stop the game and only wanted to continue further to unravel the mysteries surrounding me in the game.

(Gamers On a Rant video review for INSIDE)

The design on the characters and environment, while detailed with great lighting effects, are simplistic. But the game is beautiful in its simplicity. Characters have smooth animations and fine details like dust particles are shown in rays of light. Unlike Limbo that consisted primarily of black, white, and gray colors, Inside offers a little more variety with regards to coloring in the environment and characters. The small boy even wears a read sweater. While the sound design of the game mainly consists of ambient noises, there are times when music will begin to play at the appropriate intense and eerie moments. Also, the boy will begins to breathe harder after running or when he's afraid at particular moments. To me this added more depth to the character and made him less static.

As mentioned before regarding the simplistic art style, so are the controls. You'll use the thumb sticks to move your character around, the A button to jump, and the X button to interact with or grab objects needed for the puzzles. Personally I liked the simple controls and not having to remember a ton of button combos for a change. Much like Limbo, this game is all about the puzzles, which you must solve in order to progress further through the game. The puzzles throughout the game are very well-balanced so that you're not completely stuck on any one moment, yet sometimes you have to think a little bit.
 
Overall Inside is an excellent game for anyone who likes 2D platformers, a dark atmospheric style, and puzzles. If you played Limbo and liked it, then you will love Inside. If you didn't like Limbo, well then I'm not sure you will enjoy Inside anymore. Regardless, Inside is a fantastically crafted game and I highly recommend it to anyone. Inside is available on Xbox One and PC.

Final Verdict: 10/10

Written by: Alter Ego 83