Braid: Thinking Backward

Time to Complete: 5 Hours
Braid:
 
One of the first breakthrough indie games, Braid (2008), received immediate acclaim, while defining the term through its innovation. Though short in length, it should instead be seen as concise, for in that space the developer has packed such a breadth and depth of material, that it would be a shame to limit a description to one thousand words, so this is the first of two articles.

A platformer and puzzler, revolving around the mechanic of time manipulation, the player controls Tim(e), a well attired man. In the common convention of platforming, Tim is limited sideways movement, jumping (and falling), and activating switches. But though one must describe Braid as a platformer, it uses platforming to deliver its puzzles, unlike Mario or Sonic whose platforms are an obstacle.

Braid opens with Tim standing upon a bridge, in the distance a darkened sky encloses a city illuminated by a radiant reddish orange glow, which a first one might assume to be flame, but must be the city lights. Advancing, Tim paces under the a sky bereft of auburn structures, a witnesses the outline of the constellation of Andromeda, conspicuously absent of stars. At last, he enters a house, with five rooms (each with space for a painting), and a ladder leading upwards. Each of these rooms contains a World, much like Super Mario, and each World contains a number of levels. A curious observer might notice that the first room is described as World 2, and the other rooms, when activated are Worlds 3 – 6. Upon closer observation, the ladder leading upwards is missing five pieces. Completing the picture for each World unlocks a section of the ladder, and with all five, Tim can access World 1.
To complete a World, Tim move through the multiple levels it contains, by entering through a door and exiting through another. Once he has accessed a new level in this way, he can return to any level he has already been in, without passing again through the others. But this isn't how one finishes the pictures. There is no challenge in walking from one door to another, instead one must collect the picture pieces and arrange them correctly in the picture frame. Each World contains twelve picture pieces.

The first World (World 2) is a training exercise, allowing the player to experiment with Tim's ability to manipulate time. But there is not a single puzzle of World 2 which requires his ability (though it would be hard to complete without it). Tim has the miraculous ability to rewind time, undoing the effects of the recent past. Everything moves backwards; Tim, picture pieces, enemies, keys, locked doors, and other moving components. If one waits long enough, the level (at least in World 2), will entirely reset itself, with Tim entering through the door.

Each level contains one, two, or three picture pieces. Each of these requires Tim to solve a puzzle. Even if when are multiple puzzles on the same level, they are often unrelated. Most puzzles are distinct with no connection between them, though sometimes a puzzle must be beaten to advance. He must collect the pieces by avoiding enemies, for they are deadly.

Yet, dying is impossible for one who controls time itself, and whenever Tim collides with a flames, spikes, or an enemy, he undergoes an animation of death, but before the screen can change to black, the game pauses and waits for the player to rewind time. In spite of death's transience what are these foes? Braid debuts Monstar, a Goomba like enemy, who patrol back and forth, heedless of danger. Jumping on their head gives Tim a bounce (simultaneously eliminating the threat), and bouncing repeatedly from one to another, imparts an increasingly powerful force upward. There's also the Claw, who unmistakably resembles Mario's piranha plant. Wonderfully designed, with a delightfully wet smack, smack, smack sound, like that of the movement of gratified lips.

Braid doesn't waste a single World (or level) to unnecessary bloating. Worlds 3 – 6 alter the basic dynamic of time manipulation with distinct variations.
This variety is accentuated by “The Pit”! A training level, included (with minor modification) in Worlds 3 – 6, it introduces the player to the new feature. Though each World contains a unified mechanic, each puzzle requires a completely unique mindeset.
World 3's innovation is grounded objects. Certain enemies, doors, keys, and platforms will be unaffected by Tim's ability to reverse time. As everything else travels backwards in time, these objects (helpfully distinguished by a sparkling green glow) continue progressing forward (in time). This allows for some interesting interactions. If Tim picks up an ungrounded (normal) key and rewinds time, both he and the key will return to their starting positions. But “the Pit” demonstrates the difference: Tim must jump into a hole, and retrieve a key, and then rewind out. The grounded key he picks up stays in his hand as he travels back in time. Additionally, if Tim stands on a grounded platform, he too becomes grounded, and will not move backward in time, even as other objects do. Grounded objects are a common sight in future Worlds, as they interact well with the other variations.

In World 4, time is attached to Tim, as if is running on some strange treadmill. While standing still, time does not move. The Monstars, Claws, and platforms stay in place. When Tim moves to the right, time progresses, but moving to the left forces everything (but Tim) to move backward in time. It has the same effect as Tim using his time manipulation ability. The greatest difficult lies in trying to carry a key to the left. It jumps out of Tim's hand, desperate to return to correct position in time! For better or worse, once the player has defeated World 4, they will not
experience this mechanic.

World 5 is a mixture of reality and shadow, a land where everyone is a Peter Pan. Every time Tim rewinds, he creates a shadow which reenacts his last thirty seconds. It is not just Tim, all moving objects, whether alive or abiotic create a shadow image. Like grounded objects in World 3, there are Shadow Objects, indicated by a purple glitter. Shadow Objects exist in both realities, and are effected by real Tim and shadow Tim. For instance, a regular Door requires a real key, but a Shadow Door can be opened by a real key, or a shadow key. Shadow Tim can also pick up Shadow Picture pieces. Shadow Objects (and Tim's shadow) exist only in World 5.

World 6 allows Tim to deploy a Ring (wedding ring or symbol of eternity) to slow time. Closest to the ring, time nearly stops, while the further an object (or Tim) is from it, the faster time passes, eventually approaching normal speed.

Eventually, victory will be Tim's, or will it? Find out next week!

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