Fast Facts
Game Title: Small Radios Big Televisions
Genre: Point And Click Puzzle
Platform: PS4, PC
As the title stated, Small Radios Big Televisions has to be about the most interesting, yet confusing puzzle game I've ever played. You start out looking at this massive factory on steel stilts high in the sky. After waiting to see what happened next for a couple minutes, I realized I was in control and clicked on one of the doors to begin what will undoubtedly be the trippiest gaming experience you'll have this year.
Without revealing the story too much (mostly because I'm still working my way through it myself), your task is to travel around and collect tapes that transport you to a virtual world. In these virtual worlds, you'll find gems that open up certain doors within each factory you visit. The tapes and gems start off easy to find, but things get complicated soon enough. Pretty soon you'll be distorting tapes to find gems, solving puzzles that don't always make sense to open up new pathways in the factories, and learning about what exactly went on at this new abandoned facility.
For example there's a sequence I played recently where turning on lights killed the plants that were blocking a doorway. The mechanic was simple in the beginning because they laid it out for you in the first puzzle, but three rooms later it took a bit of doing to mentally wrap my head around the fact that I had to find a way to move the light across the room to kill a plant.
What I hate/love about this game is that you truly do feel like you're the main character of the game. You're dropped in with no explanation, the game never offers any hints or tips minus random wall sketches, and you're pretty much left to figure out this mystery for yourself.
Once you clear a facility, you'll be ushered to another after a brief cryptic cinematic where you'll get clues as to what's going on and why you may be here.
The main draw of this game is the escape and mystery. Every time I find a tape I'm eagerly awaiting what polygonal scene I'll be exposed to next, and what it will look like once I distort the tape. The bizarre concept and weirdness create a level of escapism to this game that's an experience you rarely find in gaming.
If you plan on getting this game, I highly suggest jumping in now. NO ONE is posting much about this game and it really benefits the experience of working your way through it. If you're getting frustrated trying to solve a puzzle, good luck searching the Internet for a solution. I'm sure once this game gets more exposure that will change, but I do hope you'll fight the urge to cheat because a lot of this game's glamour is in it's mystery!
Get this game if you're a lover of "feels" gaming, puzzle gaming, or just like to trip yourself out. You won't be disappointed. "Rats off" to Adult Swim Gaming for another successful product.
