I feel slightly guilty for this review, as I get the impression that I'm missing something or that I'm simply not appreciating the true meaning behind the game - but for £6 this definitely isn't something I'd reccommend.

You start by being given no clear goal, which isn't a huge problem. You walk around and interact with what you can, which means finding 3 or so temples before entering a final room where.. the game ends? The credits rolled and the game closed. So yes, my first playthrough confused me, but then as I started it up a second time, I noticed things were different.

I could play through a second time with the NPC's being in different locations doing different things, but besides that, the level layout was exactly the same and it just meant me walking from tile to tile to go to all the temples again, which took way longer than necessary due to the extremely slow and awkward movement.

I get the feeling the message is the strong point here, seeing as the aesthetic and music is simple, the dialogue is non-existent and the gameplay is.. well.. a walking simulator. I just don't get it. Something must have whooshed, but I don't see the appeal behind this at all.

Man...I got duped good on this one. Impulse bought it, based on the interesting visuals and premise. Didn't realize that the game is only 15 minutes long and only has about 5 screens that aren't duplicates of each other. Then I finished it and went through it again thinking that must be the idea. Nope...it's the same game. Unless there's some amazing reveal or area that I missed, I wouldn't bother spending 6 dollars on something that seems like it should be a demo or freeware.

I grew up on point-and-click adventure games, particularly the old Sierra ones. This reminded me of 'em and so I got it on the cheap since I've also got Proteus and Waking Mars.

This is more like Proteus than Waking Mars; it's about wandering, having no real point or distinct rhyme or reason. Everything is presented without explanation; you're stranded on a planet with no background and get to walk (slowly) through alien vistas to visit robotic temples without explanation. The artwork is nice, yes, as is the music, but none of it is groundbreaking, /especially/ if you're over a certain age and remember EGA and VGA adventure games of the late 1980s and early 1990s at all.

The problem here isn't so much the lack of explanation. This is definitely aiming towards minimalist 'art' and encouraging user interpretation (though I once had an argument with a collage artist that, since art is a form of communication, /something/ must be intended by all artistic design choices--if the artist completely abrogates the work of interpretation to the observer, then the artist is not communicating and could be doing absolutely /anything/).

The problem is the pacing.

This is quite possibly intentional.

Your little astronaut walks slowly. All the screens have to be backtracked. In one playthrough, there just isn't that much to see. In my playthrough, I wandered through all the available screens three times over to be rewarded with... well... let's just say a game over that had as little explanation as anything else, though in hindsight it was a good game over since it illuminated just a little bit more of the world the developers created.

Are there different endings? I don't know, and that's where the problem comes in. The manual encourages leaving the game alone and waiting for things to happen; something about how actions are static but the world is dynamic or something. That's fine, but even then the amount of time it takes for your character to walk from one side of the screen to the other is an investment that doesn't have much payoff. Is there any guarantee that if you leave it running for an hour and then come back and wait the one or two minutes it takes to change screens that you'll get something different? No.

I don't want to sound like an anti-art game philistine, so I have to compare this to other works. Proteus, which is equivalently aimless, rewards running around and backtracking by being immediately interactive. Starseed Pilgrim encourages exploration by hiding the backstory in rhyme. The Swapper gives you new things to look at, backstory, and moral dilemma without relying on kinetics or speed. The Endless Forest at the very least interacts with you, and its artistic bent is /anti-kinetic/. The Graveyard had you moving very slowly, but every step added to the story (and it didn't suggest that there was replay value in an attempt to become a time sink).

Stranded offers none of these things, and certainly does nothing to suggest that it has more to it. It almost seems to be given away by the tagline: "Do you know what it is to die alone, and so far from home?"

Seems like it is to shuffle around a bit and then, well, die alone in a godless universe and out of shake-n'-vac.

This game is 2deep4me.

The art and music is really stunning actually. It feels like I bought a music album instead of a game. But the game does NOT come with a soundtrack. The OST costs $6 when really it should be included.

As per the walking part, it's really annoying to have to wait till the animation is finished. But that's to be expected for a Ren'Py game.

I really wish more things were done with this game. It's an amazing concept, very atmospheric. But there's nothing to do beyond walking. To call this Point & Click is far too accurate. You point, click, and you look. If you're looking for something with a similar atmosophere and more gameplay, check out The Swapper.

I spent exactly 36 minutes playing this game and have exhuasted it of all content. Can't really complain much because I used a 20% voucher I got from Proteus.

While obviously not for everyone, Stranded is a unique audio/visual experience that is extremely pleasing to the eyes and ears. The setting is incredibly mysterious, and you're thrown into an unknown world with little to no explanations. As you leave your marooned ship you'll slowly discover the secrets of your surrounding, and watch them change as the days and nights pass by. This feels more akin to an art project than a video game, and I love it.

The game itself is very slow paced, which feels necessary for the story being told and the tense atmosphere being created as you travel further away from your base. This deliberate pacing only serves the creeping feeling of lostness and wonder, allowing you to take in your surroundings and focus on the sound of every breath you take.

The soundtrack is a masterpiece and serves as much more than your standard background music as it evolves with every action you take, building up and changing as you visit different temples or advance between night and day. The dynamic soundtrack reminded me of Proteus, and is my favorite aspect of these games.

In the end Stranded is a short but sweet experience that most people looking for a "gaming" session will be disappointed with, but those of you with a serious appreciation for lovingly detailed art, sound design, and storytelling will find a very memorable experience that is more than your money's worth.