The Music Machine [Game Review]

Game: The Music Machine

Genre: Walking Simulator

Developer: David Szymanski

Publisher: David Szymanski

Copy supplied by developer

The Music Machine is a story-driven walking simulator developed and published by David Szymanski, creator of The Moon Sliver.

STORY

The game is about a teenage girl and the ghost of her friend who is trying to find a way to kill her. They go to an island where several people were recently murdered, and they discover some kind of church, with a mysterious music machine that travels through dimensions and different places.

The story is really good and the dialogue between the two characters is really well written. The strongest point is the atmosphere, which feels both relaxing and haunting.

GRAPHICS

Developed in the Unity engine, the game has a really artistic style: every environment has a different color, and that adds to the atmosphere. The lighting effects are also very good, and the places you explore are all very big and fully explorable.

GAMEPLAY

The game is a "walking simulator", which is basically a game that mostly requires you going from point A to point B. However, there are some puzzles that break (in a positive way) the exploration. The game is non-linear, and you might have to go back to a previously visited place to find an item that you might have missed.

CHALLENGE

There is little to no challenge: the puzzle are very few and not hard to understand. The core of the game is not to challenge the gamer, but to tell a compelling story and to deliver a worthwile experience.

SOUND

The atmospheric soundtrack really helps set the tone of the game, and I recommend buying it. There are also sound effects that further immerse you in the game.

REPLAYABILITY

This is entirely subjective: if you like this kind of games, you will come back to fully explore the environments, read all the letters and better understand the story. Others won't see much reason to come back.

Overall, this is a great and fresh experience, with an interesting story and beautiful environments as well as a great soundtrack. However, if you don't like this type of games, don't buy it.

Story: 8

Graphics: 8

Gameplay: 7.5

Challenge: 2

Sound: 8.5

Replayability: 7

ENJOYMENT: 8

FRUSTRATION: 2