The manual is the game. Finding hand-drawn pages, translating glyphs, realizing the diagrams are actual instructions - it feels like discovering a secret language.
The game gives you just enough to keep going, then trusts you to figure it out. When the Golden Path finally clicked and I got the true ending, it felt amazing. It’s one of the best puzzle payoffs I’ve had. The combat is simple but tight - stamina matters, and learning enemy patterns turns frustration into muscle memory. The best upgrades are hidden well - bombs behind fake walls, relics locked behind page finds. The world connects back to itself with shortcuts, and the way everything loops together is satisfying.
Each page you find adds new information. The game teaches you through discovery rather than exposition.
The story is told through environments and visuals. The manual itself is part of the story, and each page adds info about the world.
It runs decently on Switch, and the art style looks great.
Rewards curiosity and patience. The manual as both a gameplay mechanic and a storytelling device is very smart. One of the most interesting games I’ve played.