The video game business is stuck at the emotional age of twelve but this game is not. Puzzles are not here to slow you down nor challenge you, their are to set a rhytm to the experience. They are like good punctuation in writing, and this is good writing. There is a religious feeling in NERO given by a fine contrast of real tragedy, and surreal hope.

Same developers as Adam's Venture: Origins and same problems.
Booted up on wrong monitor
Had to restart multiple times to get right display & resolution
Wasn't able to play because default keybindings were QWERTY while I have an AZERTY keyboard and you can't change the keybindings

https://youtu.be/DjIvQRdQb2Y

.Story.
N.E.R.O is a game that relies heavily on its story and so, to avoid spoilers, I’ll just say that it’s a sad one involving a family of three—mother, father, and son. It keeps you guessing until the very end before wrapping itself up (for the most part) in a nice little bow.

The story is narrated via cutscenes—usually after you’ve solved a puzzle or completed a segment of a chapter—and the narrative voice is good.

.Gameplay.
You use WASD to move around and the mouse to interact with the environment. Movement is very, very slow even when you’re holding shift to run. Once you’ve met the second person, you can use space bar to direct them, but you’ll only really need their help on two occasions.

There are a handful of little puzzles, most of which have to do with timing and sequence, but not many. You’ll have the ability to lob a magical orb in order to activate switches and you’ll use it frequently. For the most part, however, you’ll be roaming and reading the glowing text that tells you the origin of the area you’re wandering. There are two colours of text: the white serves as a narrative that describes the area before you while the blue reflects the dialogue exchanged between the members of a family of three.

There are also collectibles, which appear as floating picture frames. They’re pretty easy to spot as long as you look carefully, and collecting them adds a sense of purpose. Once you’ve collected enough of them, they form a full portrait. There’s one portrait for each of the four chapters the game is divided into.

.Atmosphere.
The game looks fantastic. It’s dark and somber save the brightly-glowing flora and fauna that battle the gloom. Each of the four chapters all look very different and the levels were well designed for stumbling into secrets and seeing little details that make the story hit that much closer to home.

.Pros and Cons.

• The game looks and sounds great. The ambience is nice to marvel at—which is good because there isn’t much else to do.
  
• Simplistic puzzles vary gameplay somewhat.
  
• The story is sad and it fits the eerie, mystical setting.
  
• Varied locations. You’ll wander the woods, a mausoleum, a hospital, and more.
  
• The environment reflects the story that is being told, though clearly time has passed since the events.
  
• At some point, the narrative text is no longer present and the dialogue exchanged does a wonderful job at building up tension.
  
• You can select chapters, so feel free to enjoy the story during your first playthrough, then go back and hunt down collectibles.
  
  
• Exploration is rewarded with collectibles that add to the story in the form of a full image once you’ve found all of its pieces.
  
• Both walking and running are very slow, which personally discouraged wandering from the beaten path.
  
• It’s not always clear how to solve a puzzle. Sometimes you just hit ALL the switches until something works.
  
• Your little magic orb lob is difficult to aim. This makes some puzzles more tedious than they need to be.
  
• The story, while poetic and lyrical, is sometimes nonsensical. This was one of my largest problems besides length. Sometimes, you lose track of who is who while the narrator waxes on about he and she, him and her. Names are very rarely used, so it’s easy to get confused. There were also some questions that were left unanswered: is the David who grew up to be a great leader the same David who is a child in the blue text? Impossible. That David died—or so we can presume. Why was the story regarding brigands and a secret hideout even a part of the opening if it fell away and was ultimately left unresolved? What did the brigands and their base even have to do with our dear family of three?
  
• The final chapter is the shortest by far and, as sweet as the conclusion is, I felt cheated. It just kind of slaps you in the face with a feel-good moral and crashes to a halt.

.Longevity.
This game will take you, at the least, two hours to complete. And that includes reading the text. If you skip the puzzles that aren’t required, brush past the glowing, floating text, and gun for the end… You could probably finish it in less.

.Bottom line.
N.E.R.O makes me wish, yet again, for the ability to leave a neutral review because I can’t recommend it as a game—and especially not considering its price—but I can recommend it as a beautiful, albeit brief experience. If it has a price cut of at least 75%, I could say this is worth picking up for the sound and visuals alone. Otherwise, save your money for something that will give you a little more bang for your buck.

"The most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt with the heart.'

N.E.R.O is a beautiful game, in fact the opening cut scene is dare I say beautiful. It left me engaged, drawn in and waiting to play the game. Once the game started I was thrown into a world that looked like something painted by a world class painter. The colors game the numerous areas a vibrant and alive feel to them. I found myself taking in the scenery while in awe. Looking at the multiple colors, thinking to myself this terrain could be something out of an animated film. Dark caves lit by glowing creatures, water that actually looks like water, animals which seemed almost real enough to touch.

While N.E.R.O is a simple walking simulator it's set apart from other games in the genre by the graphics, I can't stress enough how beautiful the game looked. If you're a graphics hound you'll love it.. While other walking simulators looked good, they lacked that special something that made the scenes look alive.. N.E.R.O clearly had that it factor going for it. Aside from the graphics the game also has an amazing soundtrack, which further lent itself towards making the game feel alive. Hearing a waterfall get louder as you approach, and lower as you move away..


I pretty much covered the graphics already, but the store page doesn't even begin to do justice to this wonderful piece of interactive art. Well drawn, well population and well animated. If you're like me you'll be drawn into the game immediately.. The only down fall of the beautiful graphics are the character moves at a snails pace.. Even when sprinting it seems like you're walking in a mud puddle heading up a hill. While I can understand the need to slow things down and give the gamer more time to enjoy the scenery having the character move that slowly is kind of detracting from the experience..


Similar to other Walking simulators, you walk around at a slow pace, reading signs, and solving simplistic puzzles which give you access to the next area.. Generally speaking if you enjoyed other walking simulators you'll enjoy this game. It really shines above in the artwork and sounds. Like other walking simulators the game has collectibles, in this way you collect pictures. Small fragments are scattered around each chapter of the game, which you interact with, collect and build a completed picture. The game also features numerous puzzles, most of them are rather simplistic, press the button and then fire your energy ball into it. Others require you to use another character that joins you mid way through the first chapter. Yet others require you to aim your energy ball at a distance and complete an arc shot. Although the aiming mechanic is slightly broken and the only challenge comes from the ball needing to be aimed nearly perfectly in order to count. This can leave the gamer frustrated as they line up what should be a perfect shot only to have it explode early, or completely miss..


The story is a wonderfully told tale, I won't spoil it here but as you move along in the game it unfolds before your eyes, while it's a bit easily figured out fairly early on, the story is engaging enough that you'll find yourself pressing forward to find out what happens next. Depending on who you are and what you've gone through in life, the game has a chance to leave you feeling emotional. The story is told through sentences and statements spread throughout the world. A few cut scenes are sprinkled here and there as well, although 99% of it is reading..


Beautiful visuals and scenery
amazing music
moving story
Totally in love with the Final Fantasy 9 mage design for the characters

Slow moving character (speed that fella up a bit)
puzzles are a bit underwhelming, easy and repetitive
The aiming puzzles are more difficult than they need to be, and the aiming mechanic is a bit broken, (it's made slightly better if using a K&M, but still not perfect)
The game is kind of on the shorter side..
Price tag is a bit steep for the content offered


You can really tell this was a labor of love from the developer, the scenery is beautiful, the music is perfect, and the story is engaging. The game isn't perfect, but it's very well worth a purchase for nothing more than seeing the beautiful scenery and hearing the ambient sounds, which are nearly perfectly blended together to create something I'd consider a masterpiece. Gameplay wise it's a bit on the weaker end of the gene pool, but as a walking simulator that isn't a PewDiePie jump scare fest it ranks up there pretty highly.. Then again most walking simulators are lacking in the gameplay department, only so many ways exist to walk from point A to point B... With that said I'd recommend picking this game up, but if you really aren't sure wait for a steam sale.. You'll love the atmosphere, and be completely and utterly drawn into this amazing game..

N.E.R.O.: Nothing Ever Remains Obscure is a short, story driven walking simulator adventure with puzzles.

Check out my Quick Review here: https://youtu.be/FA5QBODSEVY
Throughout the game, the lighting is absolutely obnoxious, especially In the first chapter. I was actually squinting because the crazy bright lights were flickering, and hurting my eyes. I tried playing with the settings, and completely turning the lens flare off, but no matter what I adjusted, there was still way too much glow on everything. In addition to the rather unpleasant lighting, the game also suffers from constant texture changes, and texture popping, and it was a major distraction. For a game that is predominately a walking simulator, these severe lighting and texture issues have a very strong negative impact on the game overall.

I’m not sure if the game just got better as it went on, or I just started to enjoy it more because of the story. I really enjoyed the story; it wasn’t anything mind blowing, but it was emotional, and I admit that it got me all choked up, and had me in tears. The story is definitely the highlight of the N.E.R.O., and it’s disappointing that the rest of the game isn’t as polished as it could be.

• the story was good, and evoked an emotional response; the story was the best part of the game
  
• the story text combined with the narrative did a good job telling the story
  
• some of the music and ambience was decent, and very fitting (audio was hit and miss)

• the game too short for the cost
  
• obnoxious lighting - the story text, and other things had too much glow on it, and it was a bit hard on the eyes (the first chapter was the worst for this, and it seemed to get batter as I progressed)
  
• many issues with textures changing abruptly, and it's majorly distracting in a walking simulator
  
• most of the puzzles were optional, but they were pretty easy (the hardest part was arcing your magic ball to hit the target correctly)
  
• some of the music and ambience was repetitive and annoying

I played the game about 2 hours, and while I don’t feel the need to replay the game, part of me wishes I had explored a little more thoroughly because I know I missed some things. Then the other part of me just wanted to be done with the visual issues that the game suffers from.

Even though the story was good, and did evoke an emotional response, I still don’t think it was quite good enough to carry the rest of the game; considering how short N.E.R.O. is, and all the graphical and lighting issues it still has. It’s a shame to say, but right now, the game simply does not justify anywhere near the full $20 retail price.

N.E.R.O.: Nothing Ever Remains Obscure is a visually stunning game. Taking even the briefest look at the screenshots and trailers will let you see that for yourselves. If you enjoy slowly walking through almost breathtaking vistas, then you should enjoy this game. If you are looking for the next big puzzle game, this might not be the game for you.


You can easily see the time and care that went into making N.E.R.O.: Nothing Ever Remains Obscure’s visuals. Each of the four areas of the game has a different feel. The first is a bioluminescent cave which leads to the second area, a lush vibrant forest. The third area takes you inside a rundown building and the fourth to a desert. Each distinct area looks starkly different from the last so the visuals never really become boring. As you slowly walk/run through the game, you will see story fragments floating around the map, guiding your way to the end of the level. You are welcome to just follow the path to the end, but if you are more adventurous and want to take in all the beautiful visuals, you will be rewarded by finding picture fragment collectables and optional puzzles. With the floating text, the picture fragments and the interjections by the narrator throughout your adventure and after puzzles, the cryptic story will unfold before you.

The stunning visuals in the game are marred by the excessive use of bloom and lens flare. It can almost blind you at times with how overly bright things can be. You can adjust the lens flare and gamma, but it doesn’t really help that much. Even moving the lens flare slider all the way down, doesn’t stop it from occurring. Adjusting the gamma can dull it, but it also dulls out passages to the point where you might walk past the formerly dimly lit passage you were supposed to take. If you can look past the glare, the game is, as mentioned, visually stunning all the way through. Even the character details are incredibly well done. The glowing eyed figures in their light trimmed cloaks made for a fun and different take on the usually standard character design. Even the scenery is well detailed, it feels like a lot of time and effort went into making this one great looking game.

The ambient sounds, the lilt of the narrator’s voice, all went into making the experience better. The overall story was very realistic and believable. It is entirely possible that people playing this game will actually be able to relate to the story and feel great empathy for the characters. The story attempts to be particularly emotionally stirring and I have no doubt that it will indeed have that effect on many of the players who play it, particularly those with children. The story was a bit predictable as it has been done before in movies and other games, but it still had its own unique flavour here.

If you looked past the blindly bright bloom in this game, and ended it here, this could be one of the best story-driven walking simulator games to hit Steam this year. Unfortunately it isn’t really classed as just a walking simulator, it is a puzzler too. Sorry to say, it falls a bit flat here.
The puzzles basically fall into two basic element categories, buttons and target practice. Buttons are the standard trope in puzzlers, so odds are you know how those work. You press a button and it does something. Sometimes it is a constant effect until turned off, other times it is a timed effect or needs to be held down. Your job is to figure out the right combination to do whatever it is the puzzle wants you to do. These puzzles, while incredibly easy for me to solve, were not bad. I have played so many puzzle games that it is very likely I can just visualize the solution instantly and get it right my first try which makes the puzzle seem too simple to me. Someone who is not as practiced, might find them challenging, and I am going to assume that to be the case. The other element is a royal pain in the posterior in my opinion. I have never been good at playing sniper in games that have snipers, so maybe that is why I found this element so annoying. You have an arced shot. The further it goes, the lower it will fall. Eventually it will just explode. The puzzles involving shooting typically have you hitting a tiny unforgiving target somewhere off in the distance. The short range ones I had no issue with, but the ones that required you to line up the shot just right and fire it over a long distance took me more trial and error than I am willing to admit to. Now if getting close worked, I would be fine with it, but getting close doesn’t count for anything. I had many shots that appeared to have narrowly missed the tiny opening and exploded just outside. Despite enveloping the target; it didn’t count as a hit. The thing is you can’t even really tell if you actually did get close or if it just looked close because you can’t really zoom in on the projectile to follow it. Overall, I found this element kind of ruined the fun of the game. Sure I felt relief when I finally managed to nail a shot, or felt joy when I managed to get it in the first try, but in the end, I really disliked this mechanic.

Despite the fact this says I have played it for over 9 hours, the game itself is actually incredibly short. Even without knowing where anything is, or knowing the solutions to the puzzles in advance, it took me under two hours to 100% it. I replayed certain areas of it to piece together the story better, and I also left it running to gather its card and forgot it was alt-tabbed for about 8 hours.


Overall, would I recommend you buy it? I personally think for the length of the game, it is a bit over priced. The visuals are stunning and probably took a lot of time and effort to make, but the weak puzzle elements and short game length makes it hard for me to justify the price tag. If you see it on sale for half price or less, you might be interested in it. You will get a visually stunning walking simulator with a compelling story that is only slightly hampered with inconvenient but mostly optional puzzle elements. If you are looking for the next big puzzler, stay away from N.E.R.O. You will be disappointed by the puzzle elements I can almost promise you that. I am going to give it a positive rating since I can’t do neutral and don’t want to be negative because for a walking simulator, the visuals are incredible. The story is compelling enough, and I had no major technical issue others than the slow walking speed and excessive bloom. I am going to assume the puzzle elements were added just to break up the flow to slow you down and not actually meant as a draw to the game.

Pros:
• Visually stunning environments. I loved the bioluminescent glow that made everything seem alive
  
• Interesting narrative told in suitable way. The cryptic words you encounter unfold the story. The narrator helps supplement the story fragments
  
• Fairly unique character design
  
  Cons:
  
• Excessive Bloom effect can make your eyes sore
  
• Puzzles are too primitive/easy
  
• Shooting mechanic expects too much aiming precision for the type of game. Even if you come incredibly close to the target spot, you still miss
  
• Incredibly short. Took me under two hours to beat it 100% (all achievements and collectables). Part of that two hours also includes me failing my shots countless times. In reality, assuming I landed every shot, it could be as short as a little over an hour to beat

Awsome game with wonderful environment!
I was waiting for it since it was released for XBOX and I have been not disappointed at all; tricky puzzles, marvelous effects and a really touching story. A must for its genre!

In N.E.R.O., You play a floating creature, dressed in a black cloak with neon-blue patterns for decoration. There is no apparent introduction story; instead, the back story unfolds as you play through the magnificently designed levels. This is sometimes done by a disembodied voice which serves as the game's narrator, but also by reading glowing and floating pieces of narrative text that are scattered throughout the environment. And let me tell you; in a environment that is mostly dark and only lit by neon plants most of the time, this looks absolutely amazing. No matter how you look at it, the combination of neon objects and dark and mysterious environments is a surefire way to make things look awesome!

The story that unfolds is one of love, trust, feelings and questions that need to be answered; it's about a group of people who somehow got stranded in this mysterious place and are trying to survive. The main texts will be displayed in a green/yellow color, but you'll also discover blue text fragments. These fragments tell a more personal story about a family; a mother, a father and their son. I was immediately fascinated by these story fragments and, lucky for me, the story about the family becomes more and more important as you progress through the game.

N.E.R.O. is a story driven game, set in a first person perspective. Just reading the texts and discovering what happened in the past is an adventure in itself. The world of N.E.R.O. is beautiful and the soothing soundtrack completes the calm yet mysterious character of the game. Apart from the journey through the events of the past, N.E.R.O. also provides you with a number of cool puzzles to solve. Most of the time, it's quite apparent what the game wants you to do and it's only a matter of timing or combining the right pieces to complete a puzzle. And, as in most games, the puzzles become more difficult with every new chapter. The cool thing about the puzzles is that they really support the game's story, so they never feel forced or out of place. N.E.R.O.'s puzzles are not too easy, but they don't require a university student to figure out what to do.

In chapter one, you will meet another floating creature. His cloak is black with red patterns. He will accompany you on your way and he can help you solve puzzles. Besides solving puzzles, always keep an eye out for pieces of photographs. Every chapter offers you the chance to complete one of these photographs, if you manage to find all the pieces. These photo's represent pieces of the family's story. It's not necessary to find them, but they help you to better understand what's going on.

N.E.R.O. is a very beautiful game, featuring a moving story. It's not every day that you encounter a game which is sad and touching all at the same time. Together with an excellent soundtrack and amazing environments, this game is truly enjoyable for everyone who love games like Journey and/or Karma Flow. For fans of story driven/visual novel games (like me), N.E.R.O. is an absolute must!

For reviews, eventreports and more epic stuff, just check out our websit www.dumeegamer.com!

If you are looking for a next gen puzzle game stay away from this game. Just don't waste your money leaving a bad review. As already said puzzles in N.E.R.O are not so hard, this because the game if focusing on something else. Every player will live this game in a different and personal way. You can love it, you can hate it. What you do is walking in this magical world full of meanings. What you should do is live this world reading all the texts, discovering all the puzzles and listening at the charming and relaxing voice of the narrator, without rushing too much.
I suggest to live this journey.

I been waiting to play this game for so long and now im disappointed that i did. :/