Theatricality And Deception Are Powerful Agents In Device 6 [Review]

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Device 6

It’s a little hard to describe what exactly Device 6, the new project from developer Simogo, is, exactly.

Device 6 by Simogo
Category: iOS Games
Works With: iPhone, iPad
Price: $3.99

It’s kind of a visual novel. It’s also kind of a puzzle/escape game. But it’s also its own unique animal, a challenging artistic experiment unlike anything I’ve seen before. It will confuse you, impress you, and ultimately provide one of the most memorable experiences the App Store has to offer.

So, yeah. It’s pretty good.

Device 6 tells the story of Anna, a woman who wakes up in a strange place with no idea how she got there or what she’s doing. It’s a common enough way to start a narrative, but the game’s presentation immediately establishes itself as something special. You advance the plot by swiping along with it, and the text’s design and layout do as much as the words to show what’s happening. The text forks, turns corners, goes down ladders, and all the while, you’re listening to audio clues and looking at three-dimensional images that you can only glimpse through square panels in the screen.

In fact, obfuscation and confusion are two of the game’s major themes. Anne’s amnesia and her quest to discover what’s going on is also your own, and you have to find your answers by gathering and assembling facts from the tiny scraps of information you receive. This is true of all puzzle games, really, but Device 6 takes that idea farther by incorporating it into its very design.

Obfuscation and confusion are two of the game’s major themes.

As for the puzzles themselves: they’re tough. Because of how the game is laid out, you never know where you’re going to find clues. You have to pay attention to everything you read and see and sort it out, but once you do, you feel like a genius. And that’s the hallmark of any good puzzle game.

This one just happens to be beautiful, slick, and brilliant in all-new ways. We even named it as our game of the week on Friday. So play it, already.



Device 6Game Name: : Device 6
The Good: Clever puzzles, amazing and unique presentation, makes perfect use of iOS devices.
The Bad: Clues are occasionally too obtuse, and then you feel dumb for a while.
The Verdict There’s nothing else like it, and nothing I say can really convey how incredible this game really is.
Buy from: App Store

[rating=game5]

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