Vinyl

Warning: this world contains drug use.

Vinyl is first a world to chill out and and listen to music in a classic record store style environment. However it contains something sinister behind closed doors.

I primarily love this world because it is subversive. I did not expect a noir-like story and lore to be a part of this experience, and it reminded me a lot of some of the movies I’ve seen that are somewhat similar in tone. The amount of puzzling is just enough to be interesting, but there are some visual elements that can make accomplishing the objectives difficult. The intensity of the story and experience ramps up considerably and for me, it definitely left me wanting more. I don’t know if the creator is going to continue what they’ve made but I hope they will.

If you find worlds that contain shaders which affect the viewport difficult or headache-inducing, you can still absolutely enjoy the world for the music and ambiance. Just don’t get too curious and avoid the unforeseen.

(Rating: 8.5)

I thought this world was set up quite nicely and it feels pretty cozy, until you try to leave. I love worlds that have more going on underneath than what appears on the surface; there’s a puzzle that requires you think laterally to get into a secret back-room which was pretty fun.

Unfortunately, part of the end was not at all comfortable for me and just annoyed me more than anything. I don’t want to spoil anything but if you have issues with vertigo or screen fatigue, you probably don’t want to bother with the last room as it can make you quite sick. I wish there was an option to tune down the weird effects at the end. I get “why” it happens, but it’s just a bit much for me.

(Rating: 7)