Step into a world where a sci-fi side scroller intersects with a man’s complex thoughts. Minds Beneath Us, Developed and Published by BearBoneStudios, offers a unique blend of action and emotion. Get ready to be captivated by this thrilling adventure.

You embark on a journey in a thriving Asian city filled with artificial intelligence (AI). Unfortunately, AI may have gone too far by mixing human brains into the worldwide system, and it is up to you to confront the impending doom that has been set upon you one step at a time.

You begin the game with a small tutorial, which is also the intro, teaching you the basics of how the game works. I also noticed a few grammar issues but remember that this game is not native to English. You wake up in a hospital as in a foreign body who is a crime boss in a locked room with his loyal partner. But not everything is as it seems. You are in a fake room being monitored by humans who can reset the simulation and render your colleague unconscious from a vial in his neck.

They force you to test your colleague to see what he knows, but everything goes haywire when your partner finds out that his brother, whom he cared deeply about, has died, sending him into a rage. Luckily enough, you also possess powers to render people unconscious by force.

Once you complete the intro, you wake up in your apartment, where you meet your lovely girlfriend. As you get accustomed to the apartment and solve problems, you head out for your job interview.

Throughout the game, you will meet new faces who will either aid you or try to take you out. There is also a lot of dialogue and story that follows you throughout the game, bringing a tremendous story-driven atmosphere, but sometimes it does feel too often as it slows down the game a lot. The early stages of the game felt a bit slow, but as you play, it starts to grow rapidly as the story progresses.

Although there is a lot of dialogue, it’s well worth reading everything as you will need to reply to some conversations, and saying the wrong thing may impact the game path as everything you do can alter the outcome. As expected, with it being a new game, there are still some sound effects and performance issues.

The controls are straightforward, with only a couple of buttons to use with a mouse and keyboard: A and D for side-to-side movement, Shift for sprint, and E for interacting with doors and switches and using the mouse to inspect items. The game also fully supports a controller using the most common controls for movement and interaction. There are also quick-time events for dodging and attacking.

Despite being a side-scrolling game, Minds Beneath Us doesn’t disappoint in the immersive experience. The developers have created a visually stunning world with a vast background and exceptional detail, creating a world to view that draws you in. Even the simple act of evading attackers with quick-time events becomes a thrilling experience as bullets fly through the air.

Now, the sound feels very genuine and authentic to its nature. Every aspect of the game and every scene has its unique background sound that fills in all the blanks, like a room full of people chatting, blending well into your current game progress. Although there was no voice acting or character sounds, their movements and actions give you a great idea of what the characters are feeling and going through, making for a grand old time.

Overall, I’m so blown away by the amount of graphical detail and effort put into the story, helping make this a fantastic title for everyone to enjoy. Although some aspects did feel a little slow, it helped make up for it in other areas. Although there were some issues with grammar and sound effects, they are known issues, and the developers are constantly updating and making their game smoother and more exciting to play. I think many people will love this title as it’s unique, with advanced graphics in a side-scroller game. I can’t wait to see the updates and changes they bring to the table.

Written by: TypicalCambieAU