What is Fez?
Nothing in the pre-release campaign really hinted at just what Fez really was to be - so we've decided to tell you for them.
What is Fez? Is it yet another indie darling platformer concerned with aesthetics and atmosphere over demanding gameplay? Or is it something more than that? A game about melding innovation and nostalgia? A familiar, yet surreal journey, in which you play a small white character called Gomez? An adorable sprite who inherits the titular fez and quickly learns to rotate his 8-bit 2D world at 90 degree angles, in order to reveal its previously hidden 3D complexity? Or then again, is Fez actually a puzzle game? Some huge, unwieldy meta brain teaser that rewards exploration and investigation, with all this platforming simply being a front for the real challenge? Yes? . . . Fez is all these things. Its a beautiful, haunting indie platformer that has some of the best music and visuals in entertainment today. It also has a very unique mechanic. It forces the player to learn its brain melting traversal method of folding 3D spaces down into two, in order to solve devious puzzles and collect a wash of hard to reach collectables. But then thats only half the story. If Fez and its bag of tricks ended here at pretty and innovative then the internet wouldnt have got so hot and bothered this last week trying to collectively solve its most nebulous of mysteries. Needless to say theres more here than meets the eye, Fez is regularly surprising, poignant and even awe inspiring. To say exactly how though, really would be telling. This is because its a self contained marvel, and although its secrets can be sourced online, the game is very personal, with reaching each new layer of complexity for yourself being the other half of Fezs allure. Here is a game that truly does what only games can: link interaction and experience with revelation. Why write this article then? Why tell you this much? Why say so much to say so little? Well, the short answer is that nothing in Fezs prerelease marketing really hinted at how complex and beautiful this game really is. So if youre ever looking for a game that has to be played to be believed, then bring an open mind to the world of Fez.