Much like Drizzlepath, Bottle feels like a shallow imitation of a game like Dear Esther. They check all of the boxes - you're placed in a pretty environment, you walk through it, and along the way you get bits of a story. But they fail to make real connections between the environment and the story, or tell much of a story at all.

There are unnecessarily long stretches between events - I spent 35 minutes in this game, and it could have easily been 5 if you removed the long walks in which I assume you're supposed to admire the scenery.

You're free to wander from the path a fair distance, but I never found anything doing this, and it only left me with the frustration of having to slowly trudge back to where the game wanted me to be. At one point, particles swirled around me, and my speed increased for a brief period, as if the game could sense my boredom and sped my way to the next event. While the speed boost was welcome, it felt random and made my normal walking speed feel even slower afterward.

The same thing happens in every event - a woman stands there, some backwards VO plays, she disappears as you get close, and you're left with a note that makes no sense. It's clearly trying to be deep, and maybe there is a meaning to be deciphered from them, but they all fell flat.

But the most ridiculous parts were the two instances that incorporated some 3D platforming to get to the woman. This game is actually 95% walking simulator and 5% platformer. Given the little attention generally payed to movement controls in these games, it was not a welcome addition.

I wanted to like this game, just as I wanted to like Drizzlepath, but both left me with the feeling that these are just slapped together assets with very little care and understanding of the medium, just to tell a story that never really comes through. It's a game that asks more of the player than it offers in return. I'm skeptical, but keep a tiny bit of hope that the developer will learn from these games and eventually come out with something a little more polished.

Much like Drizzlepath, Bottle feels like a shallow imitation of a game like Dear Esther. They check all of the boxes - you're placed in a pretty environment, you walk through it, and along the way you get bits of a story. But they fail to make real connections between the environment and the story, or tell much of a story at all. There are unnecessarily long stretches between events - I spent 35 minutes in this game, and it could have easily been 5 if you removed the long walks in which I assume you're supposed to admire the scenery. You're free to wander from the path a fair distance, but I never found anything doing this, and it only left me with the frustration of having to slowly trudge back to where the game wanted me to be. At one point, particles swirled around me, and my speed increased for a brief period, as if the game could sense my boredom and sped my way to the next event. While the speed boost was welcome, it felt random and made my normal walking speed feel even slower afterward. The same thing happens in every event - a woman stands there, some backwards VO plays, she disappears as you get close, and you're left with a note that makes no sense. It's clearly trying to be deep, and maybe there is a meaning to be deciphered from them, but they all fell flat. But the most ridiculous parts were the two instances that incorporated some 3D platforming to get to the woman. This game is actually 95% walking simulator and 5% platformer. Given the little attention generally payed to movement controls in these games, it was not a welcome addition. I wanted to like this game, just as I wanted to like Drizzlepath, but both left me with the feeling that these are just slapped together assets with very little care and understanding of the medium, just to tell a story that never really comes through. It's a game that asks more of the player than it offers in return. I'm skeptical, but keep a tiny bit of hope that the developer will learn from these games and eventually come out with something a little more polished.