Poor Explanations
Easily the worst part of The Cave is how poorly everything is explained. Like every character has a special ability, but these aren’t detailed outside of a small “how to play” section in the pause menu. The “how to play” section doesn’t appear to cover the collectibles, so it’s entirely possible to miss them over a lack of understanding. The biggest “secret” is that every character has a good and bad ending (hence the five cycles mentioned above), since there isn’t an ending listing for it, nor is it made that apparent. For those wondering how you unlock the other ending, you need to merely give back the item you want most at the end of the game. This was made apparent by a sign saying “No returns”, the shopkeeper being rather preachy and finally the last voice over imply there is another option for the characters.
Characters Aren’t Likable
Despite The Cave having a fairly diverse cast of characters, just about every one of them is unlikable. The Knight is a coward, the Scientist is greedy, the Monk isn’t very focused, the Twins are evil, though even the Cave is rather cynical and boring himself. Even when The Cave tries to add some comedy to the game, the jokes typically fall flat and considering the game doesn’t have a lot of diversity, you will end up hearing the same statements five or more times if you want to unlock every ending. After only three cycles I was sick of it, so I hate to see how I feel after all six.
Not a Lot of Value
No matter how you slice it, The Cave isn’t a very long or deep experience. In fact, most of your time will be spent running around the maps since most puzzles require a lot of running to solve them. There are some extra objectives like cave panting (character backstories), although most are along the way and don’t really offer much if any depth for the character. As you start to memorize the puzzle solutions, it becomes increasingly easier to rush though the game in an hour. Considering most of the value is dependent on you doing the same task several times over, it’s hard to feel like you got your money’s worth.
Verdict
The Cave is an interesting game, but it could have been a lot better. Between the unlikable characters, flat jokes, poor explanations and rehashed content, it’s hard to justify the purchase. This is a real shame, since some of their earlier titles like Brutal Legends were a unique and interesting experience. Unless you just have to experience this quirky adventure today, I would wait for a discount before buying.
[Editor’s Note: The Cave was reviewed on the PlayStation 3 platform. The game was provided to us by the publisher for review purposes.]
