THERE IS NO GAME: WRONG DIMENSION review - There is no review

(By Matthew Werner)

There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension is a 2020 point & click adventure developed by Draw Me a Pixel. Building upon There Is No Game, which won the 2015 Construct Deception Jam, it is a comedy adventure with--as you may have guessed by the title--a metanarrative to it. It's a game I'd heard great things of, so when I had the chance to try it out, I leapt at the opportunity. Having enjoyed the first hour and a half or so, I had no alternative but to buy this fantastic title over on Steam. Of course, I word it that way in jest--this is definitely, absolutely, 110%, fundamentally worth the $12.99 USD cost.

As you may know, I am a big enthusiast when it comes to pixel artistry. Of course, the vast majority of classic P&C adventures boasted quality pixel art, especially those hailing from the hallowed halls of LucasArts. However, TING is not yearning for comparisons to those titles, particularly when it comes to pixel art. This stuff is very high fidelity, very colorful, and very expressive, with energetic animations to match. Meanwhile, its soundtrack courtesy of Xiaotian Shi is absolutely delightful. Sound effects are, likewise, roundly excellent. If I were to note a bugbear regarding TING's audiovisual elements, it'd be some legitimately sickening screen-shake in chapter 4. I understand why the screen-shake is there. I don't understand why you can't turn it off in the options menu.

Seeing as I was smitten with The Stanley Parable all those years ago (and remain so), it should be of no surprise that when TING supplies me with some Stanley vibes, I go gaga over it. Speaking of Stanley vibes, let's chitchat about how great the voice acting on display is in this not-a-game-nuh-uh. While the general tone is, naturally, mighty comedic, it ventures occasionally into more dramatic arenas, and the performances are surprisingly good. Especially considering how hard it is to take Game's voice acting seriously. This game made me take Game's voice acting seriously in some scenes (if that's not too confusing). That alone is a Herculean feat.

So yeah, this is one of those tales like Chew, The Stanley Parable, or the comic book aardvark who shall not be named (because fuck fascist child groomers)--where things begin lighthearted before progressing into more fascinating territory. I wouldn't say that things ever get as emotionally heavy as the two I mentioned, and I wouldn't accuse a game as creative as Wrong Dimension of being derivative, but there are some honestly poignant questions about art, the artistic method in the gig economy, and more which get asked, and that's a pleasant surprise from a game I would've been contented to see truck along as a TING in cheek (I regret nothing) riff on video game genre tropes. For what it's worth, when TING is actually shooting for that, it hits bullseyes there too.

For a point & click adventure, Wrong Dimension is so consistently bold and inventive, while remaining intuitive to control. The occasional hitch aside, the controls are buttery smooth as it generally sticks to P&C controls, while varying the gameplay itself up substantially. I don't wanna blow the lid off of too much of the zaniness, but this game is consistently fresh and sincerely innovative in some moments.

There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension feels unlike any other game out there. Thanks to a strong sense of humor, an outstanding story, and satisfying gameplay, I'm confident in saying that this is not only a revolutionary release for its floundering genre--it's one of the very best in its class from at least the past decade (as in ten years, not as in for 2020's--'natch). While there's the occasional nitpick I could have, the overall experience is far too engrossing to really knock it for minor quibbles. There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension gets a 10/10.

Masterpiece

Summary:

This is a phenomenal point and click, which really shows just how Draw Me a Pixel can go anywhere from here creatively. I adore it.