What an explosion of nostalgia in the chest of the author of these lines when he learned during the State of Play 2020 that the Braid by Jonathan Blow (the father of The Witness) was going to benefit from an anniversary edition. Three years later, here we finally have a release date. Spearhead of the independent wave, leader in the rise of Xbox Live Arcade, epiphany of Summer of Arcade 2008, this puzzle game remains, 15 years after its release, one of the most beautiful playful experiences we have had the chance to experience. The kind of title that is capable of modifying the very apprehension we have of the video game medium.
The sands of time
For the return of Braid, Jonathan Blow did not skimp on the bonuses. In addition to revised animations and graphics (with David Hellman at the helm of this graphic overhaul in 4k+ mode), and a sound part remastered by Martin Stig Andersen and Hans Christian Kock (Inside, Limbo), the anniversary edition will also include new puzzles to solve. But the most interesting thing is the fact that we will have the possibility to go through the title while benefiting from more than 15 hours of comments concerning the creation of the game.
In the trailer that you will find below, the director explains: “I want to say things that really get to the heart of why things are the way they are, rather than just saying superficial things for the sake of comment, as often happens. I want to cover every topic involved in gaming: art, programming, game design, level design, indie game history, whatever. If you want to understand how a video game is made, Braid Anniversary Edition will be a very good resource.“
Braid Anniversary Edition will land on PC, PlayStation, Xbox, iOS and Android via Netflix on April 30, 2024. Mac and Linux ports are already in the pipeline.