Tyler Glaiel, the programming and musical composition half of the team behind Aether, has released an amazing new platform-puzzle game with a unique look and gripping, oppressive atmosphere. Closure is yet more proof that accessible browser games can be used to tell stories—memorable, expressive stories with layers of metaphysical depth. The exciting thing about Closure is that it's not much like anything you've played before; but the brilliant thing is that it functions perfectly well as a technically impressive puzzle game with dynamic background music and some tricky timing/jumping challenges, without anybody needing to worry about its meaning. It's a pretty onion, even if you don't peel it.
The trouble with writing about a game like Closure is that a large part of the game's value is in discovering it. Mind you, I'm going to write about it anyway, so my advice is to STOP READING RIGHT NOW AND PLAY THE GAME. SERIOUSLY, YOU WILL SPOIL YOUR EXPERIENCE IF YOU READ ANOTHER WORD. DROP YOUR EYEBALLS AND STEP AWAY FROM THE ARTICLE. I'M NOT EVEN GOING TO TELL YOU WHAT THE CONTROLS ARE.
Okay, that's a little unfair. Here's the controls and a basic summary of the gameplay. BUT REMEMBER I WARNED YOU. I WAAAAARNED YOOOOOOOOOUU. Walk around with [left] and [right], jump or go through doors with [up], pick up and put down objects with [down] or [space]. If you get stuck, restart the current level with [R] (for Restart), [K] (for Kill), or [enter] (for um… Enter the level… again… or something…). Your goal in each area is to reach a door and walk through it. The problem is the fact that the walls and ground are only solid while illuminated, which means that you'll have to carry around orbs of light if you enjoy walking on solid earth, as opposed to falling through an endless abyss of nothingness for eternity and forever.
Once again, play the game before you read the analysis bit. Most of what I have to say won't even make sense until you've finished all 30 stages. I'll try not to spoil the storyline, but still, it's best to have a personal reaction to this game, and you cannot unsee what you have seeEEeen (wiggly spooky fingers). It's a fairly large (7Mb) load, but I think you'll find that the wait is worth it. Your progress will be saved automatically, and you can choose to start at any level you've completed if you reload the game.
Analysis: The only real letdown here is in the actual platforming. Jumping is inconsistent while going down slopes, and sometimes it's hard to tell when a wall will block you or support you. Although each puzzle has a logical solution, the physics may not consistently work the way you expect, leading to some trial-and-error deaths and restarts. There is often a sense that you can glitch your way to the exit without finding a proper solution. None of this is so bad that it ruins the game, but it can be enough to occasionally break your involvement.
Everything else, though, is remarkable. Closure tells a complete story almost entirely without language. There is a smattering of text in the game, but it mostly exists to introduce the controls and accent the atmosphere. Everything else, including the ambiguous ending, is done through Jon Schubbe's stark and deliberately primitive background artwork. The main character drawing reminds me of Alberto Giacometti's sculptures, in the sense that it resembles not the human figure but the shadow that is cast—which of course is your first clue as to what is happening in the game.
This is a perfect marriage of genre and concept—illness, coma, or any other dramatically altered state of consciousness can leave you cycling through psychological loops, struggling to make incremental breakthroughs which may or may not have any bearing on the real, physical world. Very much like a puzzle game.
The graphic style resembles a film negative, either under-exposed or over-exposed depending on the conditions, which reflects the reality of the protagonist's situation. When you are sick, because of illness or in this case, violence, you may retreat into a world of pure consciousness, populated by memories and fleeting images of your surroundings. Your mental world exists only insomuch as you are able to cast your attention on it, and that is your struggle here: to shed light on what is important.
Is there a chance that I'm over-interpreting? No, I don't think so. While it's great that Closure (unlike pure art games such as Passage or I Made this, You Play This, We Are Enemies) stands solidly as an innovative but traditionally-structured puzzle game, Glaiel has built meaning into it deliberately. This is the journey of Jacob Singer and James Sunderland. If it doesn't quite have the emotional resonance of Jacob's Ladder or Silent Hill, it's not for lack of effort.
This is the most important thing to hit your browser since Aether. Whether you're looking for fresh new gameplay, or you're interested in games with subtle emotional values, Closure is where it's at.
Walkthrough Guide
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Complete Closure Walkthrough:
Level 1
Right arrow to walk right, up arrow to exit through door.
Level 2
Walk right until you drop; then walk left until you drop. Walk right, up arrow to jump, continue right to door. Up arrow to exit.
Level 3
Down arrow or space bar to pick up orb. Down arrow or space bar to drop orb into stand. Jump right to other top platform. Take orb from stand, walk right to door. Exit.
Level 4
Pick up orb, walk to second orb (will light up when you approach). Take turns walking orbs to the edge of light, so that you ultimately get both over to the door. Two orbs needed to illuminate door! Exit.
Level 5
Pick up orb. Walk right to light up second orb. Place first orb in front of fire hydrant, jump over partial wall to the right orb.
Pick up orb, place in stand. Walk above stand as it moves right. Take orb from stand to fully light up door. Exit.
Level 6
Place orb in stand. Wait for moving lamp to partially light up wall in front of you, jump on top of the wall as it forms. Do not jump into middle section - this is a DARK orb, which gets darker as you approach, so that you cannot stand on anything around it.
Take light orb from moving lamp when it stops. Walk right, drop down, walk right to door. Exit.
Level 7
Pick up orb, walk right to moving lamp. Place orb in lamp, ride lamp down.
Get key from left of new stand. Remove orb from stand so that moving lamp returns to original place (you won't be able to see it). Replace orb in stand after a minute, jump on top of wherever the lamp currently is and ride back to top. Take orb from lamp, take turns walking orb and key to door. Exit.
Level 8
Pick up orb, leaving key for now. Go left, drop down to lower level and place orb in lamp.
Ride over lamp as it moves. It will rise, and partially illuminate the key, which you should take quickly. Stay over lamp as it crosses to the right. It will end at the door. Exit.
Level 9
Place orb in stand. Walk with stand as it crosses to the right. Drop to lower moving platform as they pass each other.
Take orb from this stand and walk to the far right, where the key and a dark orb are lying. Replace light orb into stand, pick up key. As stand moves to the left with light orb, you will be able to drop down onto lowest platform with the key.
Switch orb from right stand to left stand. Quickly pick up key, follow stand to far left where the door waits to be unlocked. Exit.
Level 10
Place DARK orb into stand. Pick up light orb and walk right.
Drop light orb. Wait for moving lamp to go down, when it comes back up for second pass, quickly take the dark orb from it (yes, while it's moving). Quick switch - place light orb into moving lamp.
Walk above moving lamp to the right. Take orb from lamp to door, exit.
Level 11
Place orb in spiky stand [spiky stands disappear when you place an orb into them!]. You will drop down onto a moving lamp. Stay above it as it moves right, then up the vertical wall.
Jump left to lighted stand. Take orb, drop down into hole to the right. Place orb in spiky stand.
Drop down, take light orb from new stand. Walk right to door. Exit.
Level 12
Place light orb into moving lamp. Stay above moving lamp until about the center of the screen. Remove light orb from lamp somewhere along this middle platform. Both lamps will return to original starting point.
When the other lamp returns to its starting point, it will be near you on the platform. Place light orb into this moving lamp and follow it right and up. Swipe orb from lamp at the top of the vertical wall. Walk to door, exit.
Level 13
Place light orb into either stand or moving lamp.
Pick up dark orb and walk to the right.
Jump over first step as it begins to light up, place dark orb in stand on right.
Go up the stairs as the moving lamp lights them up. The lamp will stop at the top; so should you. There's a dark orb in the stand to your left, so be careful.
Tentatively move left - you want to jump over the wall, but it will disappear more and more as you approach the dark orb in the stand. Best way is to do a small jump onto the right side of the wall, you'll end up on a small segment, and from there jump over the dark orb to the left.
Take dark orb from stand; replace with light orb. Pick up key and jump down to original starting point with it. Remove orb from stand, wait for lamp to return. Replace orb into stand, grab key, follow lamp to the right. Exit.
Level 14
Pick up light orb, place in first stand you come to. Four stands will light up, and moving lamps will begin to climb in the middle of the screen. Ride the lamps to the top, jump off to the top left platform.
Use light orb from this stand to help you get key from left end of platform. Replace orb in stand.
Wait for lamps to get to the top again. Jump across to top right platform with key. Take orb from stand, walk orb and key over to the door.
Drop orb to the left of the door so you have room to jump down at far right onto platform below.
Take this orb and place into the bottom right stand. All stands light up, you now have a new orb in the top right!
Ride lamps to top, jump off to the top right platform. Get both light orbs to the door so it has enough light. Use key. Exit.
Level 15
This one will probably take a few tries. Walk right, past three arrows that point left. You should be at the spiky stand between arrows that both point away from it.
Stand to the right of the spiky stand. Be ready to immediately and forcefully jump to the right. Place orb in stand, and JUMP up and right.
Try to land on the platform by the door! Move orb from stand to door. Exit.
Level 16
Take orb to the right until the second orb lights up. Place first orb on the ground, far enough back that you'll be able to jump over the partial vertical wall.
Jump over and get the second orb. Walk far right to moving lamp, place orb inside. Follow orb left, up, then right, wait for lamp to stop.
Drop carefully down to where the lamp stopped, remove orb.
Place orb in the leftmost of the three lamps in your little section. Follow it left, up the same wall as before.
Watch for the key on your left! Grab it quickly and continue to follow the lamp to where it stops.
Take orb from lamp. Place in middle lamp. Grab key and follow lamp directly down and left. Drop carefully down to the door. Exit.
Level 17
Place orb in moving lamp. Follow it to the top of the screen.
Take orb from lamp, walk right to light up a new orb. Place first orb into stand.
Pick up second orb and drop down to key on the right.
Walk orb left, to the space between striped "no-drop" zones. Drop the orb here.
Go back for the key. Bring it to the same location and drop it.
Go back for the other orb. Take it from the stand, walk left, past the orb and key on the ground. Place the orb in the left most stand. An orb will light up above you.
Get key, drop it near the leftmost stand. Also get orb from between the no-drop zones.
Place this orb into the open stand, so that both are filled and the moving lamp starts to move again. Pick up the key and ride the lamp to the top of the screen.
Take orb from lamp and walk right. Take turns walking key and both orbs to the door at far right. Exit.
Level 18
Place orb into lamp. Follow it right (careful of one jump you must make early on), it will go far right and then come back a bit and go up some stairs.
Stay ahead of the lamp so that you can get above the last vertical wall and up to the top platform before you're closed in.
Take orb from lamp and walk far right for key. Walk both orb and key back to far left.
Tricky! Drop key over edge by standing at very edge facing left. Do not go with the key! ☺
Pick up orb and follow the key over the edge. It's waiting for you at the bottom! Place orb into moving lamp, pick up key and follow lamp to the right.
Drop key just to the right of the striped "no-drop" zone. Continue with lamp til it comes up to where you can remove the orb from it as it moves.
Take orb back to the right, light up door and pick up key. Exit.
Level 19
Pick up orb, and place it in the rightmost stand.
Follow moving stand over to the right, where it will stop.
Pick up orb from ground and place in remaining (middle) stand.
Take orb from rightmost stand and allow the now-dark moving stand to return to its place at far left.
After a few moments, place orb back into the stand you just took it from.
As moving stand crosses the center gap, use it to cross to the left platform again.
Take orb from stand, and place it in the stand to the left (not the moving stand, which will return and be the far-left stand in this area). This triggers moving lamps going up both sides of the screen.
Quickly jump onto left vertical wall, and ride the moving lamp to the top.
Jump onto left vertical wall. Take orb and walk right til you come to the small ledge. Jump up to the right onto the platform with the door. Leave orb near left edge of this platform.
Jump back down for key; move it up to the left, just below the ledge. Take orb from stand (other stands will go dark!) and move it slightly up to the left, so you can use the little ledge to jump up again. Pick up key, jump up to the right. Move the orb up here to the right in front of the door. Exit.
Level 20
This one takes some crazy coordination. Place orb into the moving lamp and immediately jump onto the first raised area to your right.
Quickly and constantly jump up and down, so that as the lamp moves up you can keep catching the platform above you. Don't move left or right, just go straight up the column you are in!
Follow lamp across top platforms, jumping over gaps, past door and to the right. You'll follow it straight down a series of platforms that is the same as what you just navigated on the left.
Lamp will help you go right to retrieve the key from the bottom right corner.
With key in hand, jump onto the same platform as where you started on the left so that you can follow the lamp straight up the platforms the same way. Again, don't move left or right, but jump quickly and constantly so you stay ahead of the lamp going up.
Follow lamp til it stops in front of the door. Exit.
Level 21
Pick up the orb on the right, and jump down to the right.
Place orb in left lamp space. Moving lamp will begin in upper right corner and make a complete circuit of the screen.
Wait for lamp to finish its circuit. Then take the orb from the lamp space in front of you, and place it immediately into the other lamp space on the right.
Follow this lamp to the left, use it to jump up to where the other orb rests. Pick up this orb, jump down to the left.
Holding the orb, wait for the moving lamps to pass one another here.
As empty lamp passes on its way back around, place the orb you are holding into the lamp. It will reverse directions and move to the right in front of the door.
Pick up the key and quickly follow this lamp to the door. You'll have to exit quickly before the lamp leaves the door area. Exit.
Level 22
Pick up dark orb. Jump left onto next platform and place dark orb into empty stand. A stand will move below you.
Drop down to your right to where the light orb is, near the door. Pick up the light orb.
Move the light orb right so that you can retrieve the dark orb from the stand. Walk the two orbs to the far left.
Place the light orb on the ground between the wheelchair and empty stand. Pick up dark orb.
With dark orb in hand, jump to the left and stand on stair-looking platform.
Drop dark orb over onto tiny edge of platform below you.
Jump to the top stair platform. The dark orb will light up and trigger a light orb to light as well. Oh, and there's a key!
Get key and return to right side of screen. Walk light orb and key across to the door at far right. Exit.
Level 23
This is a fun one!
Descend to where the two light orbs are. Pick one up and jump up to your left, up to where you see a potted tree and spiky stand.
Place orb in front of tree. Return for other orb.
Place second orb into spiky stand.
Pick up first orb from in front of the tree. Drop down into the pit just to your right. Place this orb such that the left vertical wall is just starting to flicker. You want as much platform extending to the left as possible, but don't want the vertical wall to block you.
Climb up to the top right where the light orb appeared.
Take orb from stand and place into moving lamp.
Climb down the big stairs to where you placed the light orb before (near the bed). Wait for the moving lamp to come around.
When you can see the key, quickly jump over for it, and jump back! Be careful not to take too long, since the lamp will stop and you'll be trapped by the vertical wall.
Jump up to your right onto the first big stair. Drop the key.
Take the orb from the stand on the next big stair. Place it on the small ledge to the left of where the key is waiting. It should light up a small part of the slanted platform across the gap.
Pick up the key and take it carefully to the small visible portion of slanted platform. Leave it there and go back to the light orb you just placed.
Take this orb up with you and take turns walking it and the key over to the door on the left. Exit.
Level 24
Pick up orb and walk to the right until the orb in the center is illuminated.
Bring orb back up to the left and drop it right at the edge of the no-drop zone.
Descend in step-wise fashion to the light orb and key at bottom right.
Pick up orb and place it in stand on the right. Left space will light up.
Take orb from stand and put it back about where it was. Pick up the key and jump back out in a step-wise fashion to the top left.
Move top left orb so that you can see the narrow channel leading down below. Drop key through this channel but don't go with it!
Take light orb now over to the top right. Drop it at the edge of the no-drop zone.
Descend in step-wise fashion down to the left. Move the light orb to where it will allow you to jump out as you did from the bottom right. Pick up the key and climb out to the top right. Move orb (careful not to drop it down the channel!) and key to door. Exit.
Level 25
Place orb in first stand to your right.
Jump over this to the right. Pick up orb and walk to the right, place the orb on the ground before the step.
Climb up to platform above you and pick up the orb from there. Come back down and place this orb as far left as you can in the bottom area, such that you can still go right and get up the stairs.
Take the orb from the top of the stairs and place it into the moving lamp on the right.
As the lamp moves down, drop straight down and pick up the light orb from the ground. Quickly place it into the spiky stand and follow the moving lamp to the left.
Follow the moving lamp all the way to the left. As it rises, take the orb from inside it and set it on the ground next to the one lighted stand.
In a similar way, return to the right and pick up the rightmost orb. Place it in the moving lamp, follow it to the left, take the orb and place it on the ground. Repeat for a third orb. You want to have a pile of three orbs on the ground on the left.
Return to the right. Place the final orb into the lamp and follow it to the left. This time, allow it to keep its orb and continue its path. It will go up the screen and then come back down.
While the moving lamp goes up, quickly take the three orbs on the ground and, one-by-one, place them into the empty stands on the large stairs. You must be back down on the ground level by the time the lamp gets back down there!
Ride the moving lamp up the far left side of the screen. Walk across to the door. Exit!
Level 26
Pick up orb and walk right. Drop into pit and place orb into left stand.
Jump over to second stand. Take orb from it and walk right, lighting up a new orb on the ground.
Place the first orb back into the stand. Pick up the new orb and place it into the moving lamp space.
Jump left to where first stand was. Take light orb from regular stand and place it into the spiky stand instead.
Fall down onto the moving lamp. Ride it to the left. As soon as you see the key, immediately pick it up and jump up to the right. Any hesitation will result in you not getting out of this pit and you'll die as the bottom disappears.
Jump right on to the little "C" of land surrounding the lighted stand in the bottom middle of the screen. Drop carefully to where the stand is.
Take the orb from the stand. Walk orb and key to the right of this area. Place orb into moving lamp on the right.
Grab key and ride lamp to the right and up. You'll need to move the orb from the lamp to the door to give enough light. Exit.
Level 27
Oh boy, this one takes some coordination!
Pick up the light orb and place it first into the left stand. A small area will light up with a new orb and two stands.
Now place orb into the stand on the right. It will move left, then back to the right across the whole screen. You need to move fast!
Pick up the key and leap up over the partial wall into the area with orb and two stands. Drop key, grab orb and place into spiky stand. Pick up key and leap into newly lighted area to your right.
Again, drop key, grab orb from regular stand and place into spiky stand. Pick up key and leap to the right.
You need to make it over here while the moving stand is still here! Drop the key immediately and grab the orb out of the moving stand. Phew, you can take a breath now!
[If you have trouble timing this, here's a tip: you can get through this faster if you drop the key right in front of the spiky stand each time; then, when you place the orb into the spiky stand and it disappears you can immediately grab the key again without moving.]
Move your two orbs and key over to the door. Exit.
Level 28
Place orb into rightmost stand. Follow it to the right platform.
Pick up new orb from ground and walk right. Drop it and pick up key from far right. Drop key between stands, and place new orb into empty stand on right.
Remove orb from left stand. Moving stand will leave and go back to left platform. Place orb on the ground so it gives you enough wall to jump onto and make it back to the left platform. Take the key with you!
Drop key. Move orb from stand into moving lamp space on your left. Grab the key and ride the lamp up the wall on the far left.
Walk orb and key to the right until you get to the door.
Take orb to the far right side of the screen. Place it into the moving lamp space.
Follow moving lamp left, and drop down onto lower right platform.
Place light orb into stand and wait for the moving lamp to come down around to the bottom.
Use moving lamp to help you cross to the left platform.
Take orb from stand and place into empty lamp space on your left (same as before). Ride this to the top of the screen on the left.
Take the orb from this moving lamp and walk to the lamp at far right. Walk both orbs back to the door. Pick up key. Exit.
Level 29
Pick up orb and walk left til you fall off the edge.
Walk right to see the dark orb on the ground. Drop light orb and place the dark orb into the stand.
Place light orb into moving lamp. Follow lamp up to the left as it moves.
Ride lamp up to middle section where a light orb is resting. Pick up orb and place it into moving lamp space to its left.
Follow this lamp to the left where the key is. Be careful to wait for it to pick up the key, since the area below is lighted in part by the dark orb in the stand. It'll disappear beneath you!
Drop into lower area. Take dark orb from stand, and place light orb into stand. Pick up key. Jump into next bottom space.
Drop key, move light orb to the right so you can jump over the next partial vertical wall. Don't place the orb in the stand - there's no point.
Pick up key and jump out to the right. Take light orb from the stand, walk it and the key over to the door. Exit.
Level 30
Just pick up the orb and walk to the right!
Congratulations, you're out!!
Posted by: Elizabeth | January 27, 2009 1:13 PM