You wake up in a spaceship with no memories. Will you be able to discover how you got there and who you are?

Table of Contents

Location: Digital

Platform: Steam

Date Played: May 2023

Team size: 1

Duration: 3 hours

Price: ~S$10 on Steam

Story



"Palindrome Syndrome" begins with an intriguing premise: waking up in a spaceship with no memories, you embark on a journey to discover your identity, unravel how you ended up there, and piece together the events that transpired. The narrative unfolds as you progress through the game, though it primarily serves as a backdrop to the gameplay, akin to navigating an escape room.

Gameplay

Played in first-person perspective, the game tasks you with exploring the spaceship and solving puzzles to advance. Interactions are indicated by a jigsaw icon, and many puzzles require you to manipulate objects within the environment.

I encountered some inconveniences in gameplay, such as the need to frequently switch between the puzzle clues and inputting solutions. To overcome this, I resorted to taking pictures or screenshots of clues for reference. Additionally, I found the hint and solution system lacking. While most puzzles had sufficient hints, the solutions themselves were not informative and required seeking community guidance for better understanding.

Puzzles

The game presents a variety of puzzles, ranging from lateral thinking challenges to mathematical and pattern-based conundrums. The puzzles were generally enjoyable, providing a sense of satisfaction upon solving them. Most tasks fell into one of three categories: inputting a code, arranging objects, or completing a system using missing parts.

While the puzzles offered diversity and interest, some had a few required leaps in logic that might frustrate newcomers to escape room-style games.

Verdict

Palindrome Syndrome is an affordable game with a price point around $10, occasionally going on sale. Despite shortcomings in the hint and solution system and occasional puzzle frustrations, I recommend it and its counterparts from the same studio. The game excels in delivering those satisfying "a-ha" moments when solving puzzles and is a worthwhile experience for fans of escape room-style challenges.

Rating: 3/5

★★★✩✩

You can buy it on Steam here.