On the surface, The Witness is a puzzle game that promotes exploration; in reality, it’s so much more than that. To being with, it’s absolutely stunning, but not just visually. As you start exploring and uncovering new areas full of secrets — and then solving the puzzles they contain — you begin to appreciate the amount of work that has gone into its creation.
Discovery becomes addictive very quickly and patience and an eye for detail will frequently be rewarded. You may find a new puzzle or maybe a visual easter egg if you stand in just the right spot. Perspective is incredibly important too — once you understand that, you realise nothing in the game is arbitrary. Every piece of the environment has been shaped, coloured and placed in an exact spot for a reason and the scope of the puzzles can be daunting at times.
I lost count of the times I was struggling with a puzzle and decided to try a different approach, only to be blown away by the outcome. You need to think on your toes to solve puzzles, sometimes flipping an approach and working backwards, or stepping back to take your surrounds into account. The difficulty increases throughout the entire game, but I was never worried I’d become stuck. This is because every time I found something difficult, I knew I was guaranteed that rewarding “eureka” moment with some thought.
There’s an immediate sense that there’s something strange going on at the heart of The Witness. Why are you here? Where is everyone? Even at the peak of a tower with the entire world stretching out in front of you, you feel as claustrophobic as you do alone. It’s an amazing sensation because it feels so real and makes no sense. This serves to heighten the mystery and fuels you to keep exploring and uncovering new things.
I recommend venturing out as much as possible as early as you can. Finding new areas will help you to get to know the island and introduces you to knew puzzle mechanics. Keep in mind that if you can’t work something out because you don’t understand the puzzle, there’s no shame in walking away and returning later. You’re certain to find something later on that explains what you were missing; when you go back, the solution will be obvious.
The Witness is a spectacular game, but it’s not quite flawless. In trying to be so deep and philosophical, it borders on pretentiousness. Obviously, that can be quite dependent on how you perceive what’s around you, so it’s a flaw most will be happy to overlook. I can’t, however, shake the sense that later puzzles rely on cheap tricks rather than the ingenuity the rest of the game conveys so well. Distracting flashing lights and just flat out obstructing your view of the puzzle you’re working on doesn’t fit with the charm of the game as a whole. There are only few small sections like this later on, but it’s a real downer and hard to understand why a game that’s so meticulously planned out would resort to that kind of thing.
My only other concern is the way the game ends. Don’t worry — I won’t spoil anything — but once I finished The Witness, I continued to play for another 10-15 hours to find a second ending I was convinced was hidden somewhere. I satisfied my needs, but not my curiosity, and I’m still searching as a result.
I’ve now spent over 50 hours on the island with over 500 puzzles solved, but there are new areas I’m still working on. There are puzzles scattered around I can see but can’t figure out, or some I think may be hidden close but don’t know how to begin. There is still a sense of mystery even now with everything I know, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I can’t recommend The Witness enough. Every skeptic initially put off by the price that I’ve convinced to give it a go has come to understand my obsession. If you’re even partially interested, I urge you to try it. You won’t be disappointed.
The Witness was reviewed using a promotional code on PS4, as provided by the publisher.
