Let’s learn the art of waiting with Optillusion! While Waiting is a transformative puzzle game that we can solve simply by doing nothing!
How would you react if someone told you that there was a game where you didn’t have to do anything to finish it? Well they’re definitely talking about While Waiting!
It’s not easy to give a category to this type of game. Some may call it a pastime, others a point-and-click adventure and still others a puzzle game.
Well, While Waiting is all these genres and more. Optillusion, the team behind the award-winning Mooncage, has created an original, crazy and bittersweet title.
A puzzle game that contains many minigames and many references to classics of the past. The developers certainly have a very vast culture of the gaming world, just think of the Crazy Bus quote. A title as original as it is bizarre and unplayable, which in its own way has carved out a space for itself in the history of gaming.
It’s not even easy to review this type of game and above all to describe the details. Talking about certain moments and situations could in fact ruin the experience for potential players.
So without getting lost in chatter I will try to review this very original work as best I can.
While Waiting: Philosophy of Waiting
In addition to the fantasy and surreal situations that follow one another, While Waiting is a game with a very specific philosophy.
Going through and experiencing the moments in life where sometimes you just need to wait. Being faced with certain moments and the small and large expectations of life where only acceptance is the only possible solution.
Acceptance and patience will guide us through 100 levels, where with curiosity and lateral thinking, we can entertain ourselves in at least surprising ways.
So in the game you don’t need to do anything to solve the levels? The answer is yes, but as in life we can take different paths even when faced with the inevitability of events.
Furthermore, as we go through the protagonist’s life, both passively and actively, we will have some surprises.
In certain moments of transition we will have levels in which the fourth wall will even be broken!
The developers will speak to us directly, curious about our opinion.
A Normal Story
While Waiting obviously has a story, but don’t think it’s anything out of the ordinary. The game tells the moments that can happen in everyone’s life, where it is not difficult to recognize oneself in certain moments of everyday life.
Waiting for your PC to reboot, waiting for your paycheck or a response from an interview. These are precisely the small and large expectations of life that While Waiting subjects us to.
Normality itself can have funny, serious and even sad consequences and sometimes accepting reality is the only solution.
In experiencing all this, the game offers us alternative and non-logical ways to “kill time”. Small minigames and flights of fancy will be the order of the day if you are curious or crazy enough to experiment.
Quotes, Quotes and Citations
Optillusion is certainly a competent team that knows the gaming medium well. The quotes are plentiful, I will try not to list them because it would just be a cruel spoiler. Just think of the Nintendo classics, Tetris and the cults of puzzle gaming and trash like the aforementioned Crazy Bus.
In addition to this we have a very respectable soundtrack. As a pianist I was pleasantly surprised to listen to Bach and Mozart as a soundtrack, bringing to mind my old studies. It almost becomes a game to recognize the various songs. In order not to give spoilers, I will only tell you that there is Bach’s prelude in C Major.
Summing up, the quotes, the valuable soundtrack and last but not least, the truly spot-on and tasteful graphic style make While Waiting a remarkable product.
Finally the Gameplay
In While Waiting you can easily use both the keyboard and the pad. The controls consist of moving the character through the level and another to interact.
Usually the backgrounds are black and white with some colored areas. These also serve as clues as to where you can interact. Don’t be fooled though, as it’s not a fixed rule of the scenarios.
Each scenario has different achievements to unlock, increasing their replayability.
As a nice touch there is a command with which we can make a gadget appear. Depending on the level it could be a BIC pen, a button or a fidget spinner and they will help us not to get “bored”. If we don’t want to do anything, these items will help us pass the time. Be careful because using these objects too much will consume a bar on the left of the screen. When it runs out it will mean that we are too bored and the game will ask us if we want to skip the level.
Equally useful is the option to speed up the protagonist’s movements because in certain situations they are really too slow.
It’s a shame that these controls, however simple, are often clumsy and imprecise, risking compromising the good ideas of the game. Unfortunately I decided to abandon or not repeat a challenge because the controls were really imprecise, making the attempts frustrating.
My Two Cents
Those who follow my reviews know that I usually deal with genres other than While Waiting. Action, roguelite, hack ‘n’ slash and RPG are some of my favorite genres. Right now I’m busy with Monster Hunter Wilds and I assure you that playing a title like While Waiting was a strange experience.
Strange but pleasant experience because for once the mechanics to analyze simply weren’t there!
While Waiting is definitely a good game, crazy and terribly normal, fun and serious at the same time. The developers have certainly put heart, knowledge and passion into the creation of this product.
Often, as in life, you can have similar experiences, but each face them with their own vision. While Waiting encourages the player to think outside the box and the levels can be played pleasantly one after the other.
Unfortunately, when the game becomes purely playful, problems begin. The somewhat rough mechanics unfortunately compromise the brilliance and fun of some scenes.
Net of this While Waiting has ideas and a development that is brilliant and romantic in its own way. Highly recommended for fans of the genre and for those who want an experience that is not too demanding but satisfying.
STEAM key granted by the developers.
While Waiting
PRO
- Good story
- Crazy and fun ideas
- Fun to play and Replay
CON
- Sometimes cryptic clues
- Sometimes game mechanics work against the game
7.7/10
