Only If
Only If is a surreal first person adventure-puzzle game. You play as Anthony Clyde, who, after a heavy night of partying, wakes up to find himself in an unfamiliar bed with no memory of the previous night's events. Unfortunately, escaping these unfamiliar, opulent surroundings will prove to be no easy task, as an unseen, menacing, radio-bound antagonist will stop at nothing to block Anthony's path at every turn. The game's mechanics are designed to be experimental and unpredictable, to defy the logic of "What you see is what you get". Is the environment changing around you, or is it your imagination? Will jumping to your death kill you, or will it save you? Could the wrong answer actually turn out to be the right answer? In Only If, you will fail a lot, you will die a lot, and you will undoubtedly be confused. Or will you?
What it feels like
An enigmatic pull of secrets and answers withheld permeates the experience, with the unseen antagonist adding to the uncertainty. A creeping wrongness where the almost-familiar is subtly disturbing defines the atmosphere, with logic-defying mechanics making the environment feel off. Slow-building anticipatory fear of the menacing antagonist blocking the player's path creates sustained tension.
What it's about
Unraveling what happened to Anthony the previous night and understanding the nature of his surroundings structures the core experience. Dream logic and the subconscious mind govern the gameplay, with the environment shifting between reality and imagination. Horror rooted in the mind, paranoia, and unreliable reality drives the experience as the player questions whether events are real or imaginary.
How it plays
Puzzles are woven into the game world itself, requiring the player to interact with and manipulate the environment to progress. Jumping and navigating hazardous geometry appears to be a core challenge, including the surreal mechanic of jumping to death or salvation. The game's unpredictable nature and emphasis on failure suggests moment-to-moment reactions to unexpected scenarios.
How it looks and sounds
The game is explicitly described as a first-person adventure where the player experiences the world directly through Anthony Clyde's eyes. Surreal visuals and impossible imagery are the defining characteristic, with the game's core premise built on defying physical logic and player expectations.
How it's structured
The game is explicitly designed for single-player experience with no multiplayer component. While not explicitly stated, the puzzle-adventure format and surreal nature suggest a compact experience likely completable in a few hours.
Kindred games
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