GameCritics.com Podcast Episode 38: Street Fighter, UFC/MMA, Monday Night Combat and Limbo

For what it's worth, I asked Limbo creator Arnt Jensen at E3 what the story of Limbo would be and he answered, "You're looking for your sister." Of course this was after he'd made a deal with Microsoft, so he could have just been spewing out their jargon, but I believe the sister storyline was what he'd had in mind the whole time.

To be honest, I was a bit disappointed when he told me that. I was hoping for something more. I liked the openness of it all, but wanted a little more structure to the tale. Though not a total tell all, mind you. I think Ico did a better job at letting you fill in the gaps, but still provided enough context that you could tell what was going on (like the reveal as to where the shadowy enemies came from). With Limbo the ending just felt very abrupt, imo.

It is an abrupt ending for sure -- although it doesn't seem entirely fair to compare it to Ico on some levels since that was a full retail game and this was a $15 experience. I guess I'm willing to cut it some slack in that regard because it's a lower price point title. Is that fair? I don't know -- maybe we'll tackle that on a show one day.

In my review over at Horror Squad, I mentioned that I felt like the sister revelation is a lot like the sister revelation in the original Halloween 2 -- totally unnecessary and it kinda ruins things. I can pretend the game isn't about that when I play it, but in the back of my mind I now know it is. I liked it when it was a mystery...

That doesn't ruin the game, of course, but I liked trying to piece it all together and coming up with my own little meaning for it all.

Thanks for sharing that info.

I have not finished listening to this podcast yet but i have to say that it's one of the best you have done in terms of critique. I definitely think you should try and play the same games more often!

One question i have with Limbo is how do we know he is looking for his sister. Does the game tell you at any point that the girl is his sister?

@Zolos

The only time you're told about the sister is in the little informational blurb that shows when you buy the game. It's never actually mentioned in-game, which is why we thought it may have been Microsoft's doing.

Thx Richard. I have also finished the podcast and heard the comments on this.

I enjoyed Limbo a lot. Definitely one of the best games i played this year.

I also appreciated Tim's comment with regards to the game peaking too early. I did not realise it at the time not after playing it but now thinking about i actually agree. Most of the game's best moments are indeed while the character is still in the woods.

With regards to comparisons with Braid, these are inevitable due to their similarities. Braid is one of my best games ever list although i do agree that the way story is told (text) is not good. I also never realised the atomic bomb had anything to do with it until long after i played it.

Thanks Zolos! Glad you enjoyed the show. We definitely plan on playing more of the same games in unison moving forward since it certainly gave this episode a completely different dynamic.

I know EXACTLY the puzzle Chi was talking about, in LIMBO. Early on you have to pull the box backward. But it "looks" like you are supposed to push it forward, in to the water, and jump on it. I tried to do the wrong thing for a while.

I felt so stupid, not being able to solve that. Because my 10 year old nephew figured it out in 2 tries. But i wasted a lot of time, jumping on the crate in the water. I figured I simply wasnt getting something "exactly" right.

I blame all of the poorly crafted puzzle platformers, that I have played in the past. Because its normal, in this sort of game, that you have to repeat a puzzle 20 or 30 times, because you "just" missed a jump

Brad doesnt like the term "try and Die" to describe the LIMBO.
But according to IGN, the developer used a similar phrase while promoting the game:
"The developers describe Limbo as a trial-and-death game."

Limbo did feel like a trial and death game to me as well at some puzzles. A lot of the times i did not actualy get what i was supposed to do and therefore kept trying out stuff, which of course usually meant death.

In this respect i think Braid excelled with the no-death and the rewind. Although it was still trial and error it did not feel like you were being punished for it like in Limbo.