Genesis Noir Reviews

Stellar

I don't know what to say about this. I just haven't progressed at all through it and can't get the vibe. I hope it'll click one day, it seems to have been made with care.

Let’s be clear: *Genesis Noir* isn’t a game—it’s a TED Talk disguised as an interactive screensaver, crafted by someone who unironically quotes Carl Sagan at cocktail parties while sipping lukewarm kombucha. This cosmic snoozefest masquerading as "art" is what happens when a physics undergrad with a thesaurus tries to *solve the universe* while jazz saxophones moan in the background like a tortured algorithm. The game’s obsession with quantum babble and noir aesthetics feels less like a creative vision and more like a desperate cry for validation from the "I-read-Hawking-on-the-subway" crowd. Every pixelated supernova and pseudo-profound dialogue tree ("Time is a melody… but what if we *flattened the waveform*?") reeks of a dev team that conflates *ambiguity* with *depth* and *randomness* with *meaning*. It’s the gaming equivalent of a black turtleneck-clad hipster explaining Schrödinger’s cat to a barista—**performative intellect**, polished to a hollow sheen. And let’s talk about the gameplay—or lack thereof. Clicking on nebulae to trigger existential monologues about entropy isn’t "innovative"; it’s a screensaver with a superiority complex. The jazz soundtrack? A calculated ploy to trick you into thinking staring at a slowly rotating dodecahedron is "transcendent" instead of what it really is: **a screensaver with a PhD**. In its desperate quest to be *interstellar Faulkner*, *Genesis Noir* forgets one thing: games should **engage**, not lecture. Save your $20 and just rewatch *Cosmos* on 2x speed—it’ll be equally profound, half as smug, and you might actually learn something. **TL;DR:** A cosmic ballet of self-congratulatory pseudo-philosophy, best enjoyed by people who unironically use "ontological" in Scrabble.

[b] [i] [u] What a Shame [/u] [/i] [/b] [h2] I Wish I Could Forget This Game [/h2] What a shame. I beat this game (both of its endings) and refunded it. I've always held a personal code: even when I complete a game and could refund it I don't. I rarely refund it because I believe in supporting the developers who pour their heart and soul into their creations—even if the game isn't perfect. But with Genesis Noir, it was different. Despite having finished it, the experience was so utterly disappointing that I refunded it. For the past three years, I've wrestled with the urge to repurchase it because I felt compelled since I saw everything the game has to offer, but I ultimately chose not to because supporting a game I truly despise just isn’t something I can do. [h2] The Disappointing Details [/h2] [b] Boring and Pretentious [/b] Genesis Noir tries to dazzle with its lofty ideas, but for me, it falls flat. I usually marvel at details and the art of storytelling, yet this game just didn’t click. The narrative feels overblown & pretentious that it ends up feeling empty. I get what it’s trying to say, but it says it in a way that’s blunt and uninspired. [b] Annoying Gameplay [/b] The gameplay is another letdown. Instead of delivering a satisfying experience, I was forced to endure a series of boring, annoying mini games that I just wanted to skip through. Progress feels like a chore, not an engaging challenge, and every moment spent on these dull tasks only deepens my frustration. [b] Visuals That Don’t Connect [/b] Visually, Genesis Noir is undeniably stunning. There’s no denying the craftsmanship in its art. Yet, despite their beauty, the visuals don’t resonate with me. The vibe is off; they seem designed to impress, but somehow, they fail to draw me in the way I’d hoped. It looks like something I should love, but it just doesn’t. [h2] A Developer's Passion, Lost in Translation [/h2] I do have a soft spot for the effort behind Genesis Noir. It’s clear the developers poured their heart and soul into every detail. And yet, even that passion can’t save a game that isn’t fun, exciting, or clever. Sometimes, even when you know the creators have given everything they had, the final result simply misses the mark. [h2] 3 Years [/h2] It’s been three years, and every time I think of Genesis Noir, I’m reminded of how awful it was to play through. It’s a shame that a game with such promising elements could end up feeling so hollow. I stand by my decision to refund it.

You like Jazz? Great! I have to admit, the first few hours of game-play I was semi-confused of the plot and story. Tho I don't think its the fault of the game for the most part. Pros: Visually the game is beautiful, Characters and backgrounds are very well designed despite the modernization style they are in. The music is also a very good plus Cons: It's a Point and clicker game. Tho I'm sure my super lack of investment really does stem from the fact I have a monkey brain. So tho the story did pick up at the end and was getting to the point of enjoyment, due to the lack of really doing much besides small puzzles it was slightly lacklustering I really did had to play the game a second round to really enjoy the things I end up missing/understanding. It took me legit a while to realize these characters were analogies for "the universe". Does it have that replay ability value? No not really. Your able to go back to the last save point and achieve both steam achievements at the very end. Is it worth full value? To me and my monkey brain no. The game is beyond visually stunning and that's nothing to overshadow, but I guess for me it wasn't my cut of tea. I did however enjoyed it when I just want to relax and chill so that's some value. Get it on discount if you can.

It was for nothing. Look, Genesis Noir is a really chill puzzle game that falls flat in the last chapters. Ironically, the visuals, being so rich in black & white, got absolutely killed by four ugly flat colours. Compare this to the subtle touches of gold that don't break the overall style while serving a purpose in the story. The music also changes from relaxing jazz to the worse. But all that leads to a satisfying ending, right? Umm. I had hoped No Man would have to choose between saving his girl or saving the universe; but noo, he either makes out with her and she gets killed, or he dumps her and she gets killed. Nice. tl;dr Nice point 'n' click game, great visual style, lame ending chapters

"Solve a murder where the weapon was the Big Bang." was my understanding of Genesis Noir. This is what the trailers emphasize. The reality, it in many ways, not that at all. This is a good thing! The plot of Genesis Noir attempts to explore a world where our entire universe is just a spec. In this, it mostly succeeds. My only real gripe with the game is that its pacing is *really* uneven. The beginning of the game in particular tends to repeat itself thematically, before exploring new ideas in earnest. Additionally, I spent a lot of the game exploring to not miss anything - in reality there's little to miss, and what you can miss doesn't dramatically impact the themes. As far as I'm aware there is no reward for being thorough. But still! It's great. You should play it.

Ok, there's so many wonderful things about this game, but ultimately it is unplayable because of bugs. I can't count the number of restarts I've had to do to get through each and every level (and without video walkthroughs would not have been able to do many of them because the game mechanics don't work/freeze). It's a real shame, because it is an intriguing beautiful game but after 4 hours of game play (?) most of it spent restarting I just can't invest any more time or energy into finishing it. Playing on a Mac airbook running Sonoma 14.4. I'm really glad I bought it at a very reduced price, otherwise I'd be asking Steam for a refund.