Holy Cow. This game is everything people said it was and more.

When reading reviews for The Witness, my hopes were propelled very high, but also I became intimidated by it. Every time I felt like I was ready to start playing the game, I hesitated. It was going to be work. It was going to be hard. It was going to require a lot of attention and patience. It was going to be homework. Like reading a great work of literature, I knew the experience would be rewarding but the process would be time-consuming and intellectually taxing in a way that I wasn't looking forward to.

But eventually, I decided I was just going to play it. And it ruled.

The experience of walking around the island is pleasant in and of itself. The scenery and atmosphere are so soothing and beautiful that I was instantly put at ease. I just enjoyed looking at the trees and the architecture and the statues. Listening to the sounds. Being in the game. And then I began to notice little things around the world. The ore deposits on the side of a cliff wall, when viewed from a certain angle, would become the long hair of a statue on the shore. A cluster of rock reflected in the water become Yin and Yang Koi fish, locked in place for eternity. And every now and then, you see a patch of negative space that aligns just right to create something special for you to enjoy (without giving too much away.)

Every inch of this world is crafted so lovingly and carefully that it feels like the equivalent of visiting a nice Spa or a high-end hotel. The designers have though of every spot you can be in and every direction you can look and every need you can have at every moment and they've put something there to enhance your experience. Dirt Paths. Light shining through trees. Rocky Outcroppings. Patches of Flowers. None of it is accidental. Never did someone take an asset brush and go "Eh, lets throw some flowers there." They thought intensely about what each square inch should look like.

And with that in mind, this is a game where you solve puzzles. The majority of the game is in jumping from screen to screen solving mazes (in the most basic sense.) As you go, the rules to solving them become more and more complex, but much like the world, the designers add each rule and increase the difficulty so deliberately that you never feel like you're lost or being treated unfairly. You feel taken care of. The tutorials don't come in the form of long blocks of text or floating button prompts, they come in the exact way we learn. With each new rule presented to you in it's most basic and simple form and then gradually complicated with each subsequent screen until you're solving master-level puzzles utilizing 8 sets of knowledge the game has given you at once and you're fully capable of doing it.

This is not to say this game isn't difficult. It is VERY difficult. But every time I got stuck I knew that one of two things was happening: I jumped ahead and if I looked around a bit, I'd find whatever knowledge I'm missing (though some brute force logic/trial and error could also get you through those moments) OR I'm just not thinking hard enough. It's all there for me and if I keep at it, I'll get it. And when that feeling comes over you -- the feeling that you JUST. CAN'T. GET. IT. -- you step away from the puzzle and look around the area and relax and within minutes, you're ready to dive in again. And usually with that moment of rest, you find you're more than equipped to get past that mental block and push forward.

The two elements of the game blend together perfectly in that way. Brutally uncompromising but flawlessly logical puzzles, in serene, calming atmospheres. Amazingly paced tutorials and difficult spikes paired with a spotlessly-crafted world. In that way, you could say this game is about DESIGN itself. It makes you think about games and just how much of them have been crafted to guide your brain through them. About how sounds or images are put in difficult moments to soothe you. About how stretches of empty game-world are filled with visual delights to keep you interested and moving along. About how every inch of a game is (or should be) designed around and for YOU. The player. And the love and care that goes into that.

As you progress toward the end of the game, this idea is fleshed out more concretely, though poetically. And while you eventually feel like a logic god of pure intelligence, you gain an appreciation for the greater gods who crafted this experience for you.

As I put down this game, my heart brimming with confidence for just what I could achieve if I took my time and pushed my brain to it's limits, I also found myself looking around my apartment. Contemplating the width of a pencil, the flexibility of a soda can, the slight coloration on a light-shade. How everything in your world, much like everything in the world of The Witness, was thought about and carefully designed to be as perfect as possible for you.

In the end, The Witness was not homework at all. It was challenging. It was frustrating. It took some time. It took some hard work. But even accounting for those things, it was much more like a day at the spa.