Braid 2008

Is it still worth playing?

Jonathan Blow's 2008 puzzle platformer with art by David Hellman, first on Xbox Live Arcade and later on Windows, Mac, PlayStation 3 and Linux, with an Anniversary Edition in 2024. You run, jump, stomp enemies and collect keys, and you can rewind time without limit, even after dying. There are six worlds plus a final one, each with its own rule for time, such as objects unaffected by it, time that moves with horizontal movement, a shadow that repeats rewound actions or a ring that slows it. Jigsaw puzzle pieces gate the final world, and a speedrun mode unlocks after finishing. The Anniversary Edition adds switchable art, remixed music and over 15 hours of developer commentary. One idea, rewinding time, with a fresh rule in each world, makes every mistake part of solving the puzzle, and that is the reason to play it now.