Sometimes game names are pretty self-explanatory, as with PixelJunk Shooter or Puzzle Quest. On the other hand, you might assume that a name like The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom doesn't really tell you anything. But you'd be wrong. Sure, the name doesn't relay that Winterbottom is in fact a wonderful, challenging, and incredibly rewarding puzzle game that involves twisting time and creating clones of yourself, but it gets one thing across very clearly: It's not a game that takes itself too seriously, and it's not afraid to get downright silly.

And the silly nature of Winterbottom goes a long way. It's refreshingly ridiculous, from the game's goofy-looking titular character to a story in which Winterbottom pursues a magical dessert that can distort time and conjure clones of himself. The storybook-esque scenes that unfold between levels, combined with the silent-film-style presentation of Winterbottom's world, definitely charmed the hell out of me. Plenty of puzzle games get by without any story at all, but Winterbottom's is just scarce enough to not overshadow the game's main focus. And more importantly, it's absurd enough to tell you that the people who made it were more concerned with creating a great puzzle game than trying to change your life with some heavy-handed story.


Presentation goes a long way in indie games, but it's rarely informed by the game's mechanics. Such is not the case with Winterbottom; despite being developer The Odd Gentlemen's first game, they skillfully use their visual aesthetic both as a hook to catch your eye and as an integral part of gameplay. The silent-film scenery dressing is for more than just good looks, as much of the game involves rewinding time and creating Winterbottom doppelgangers in order to make forward progress.

The main goal in each level is to collect all the pies, but in order to do so, Winterbottom must create clones of himself by first recording his actions, then allowing the resulting clone (and often several clones) to mimic those actions in a way that allows Winterbottom himself to complete the task at hand. The aesthetics make you feel as though you're recording short films, with grain effects and projector sounds accompanying the clone-creation process. It's really a minor bit of detail, but elegant in how it ties the puzzle game back into the stylistic choices that make the game so initially striking.

A lot of indie games get so caught up in the way they look that they neglect the fun, resulting in a novelty we tell our friends to play in order to see, rather than to enjoy. Thankfully, the developers put care into the "game" part of their vision as well, creating a puzzler that constantly introduces new elements but always stays focused on teasing your brain. Usually, an introduced mechanic -- such as the ability to only make clones in certain places, or levels where pies have to be gathered in a very specific order in a small amount of time -- gets carried over into a few levels, but the game changes things up enough that the main objective ("gather pies to win") never feels repetitious. On the contrary, gathering pies in Winterbottom is a consistently challenging and rewarding goal, right up to the story's conclusion.


The one real downside to Winterbottom is that you can complete it in just a few hours. I understand the value proposition that goes into buying any game, but my time with Winterbottom was more enjoyable than many of the hours I've spent with full-price retail releases. Try it and you'll probably end up like me, telling your friends to play the game not just because it's a stylistic novelty, but because, like any good pie, it has both a delectable crust and a delicious filling, which make P.B. Winterbottom a memorable treat to enjoy.