Braid, Anniversary Edition

I love the original Braid and this version makes that love even stronger
This Anniversary edition is what makes this game stand out among other video games
✅ Updated graphics
✅ Same amazing music
✅ Extra puzzles
✅ Tim
The explanatory commentary also proves that the original version of the game was handcrafted masterfully with caution in some aspects, extreme detail in some others and many many references that you definitely missed

Love it once, love it forever

I did not think it would be worth it, but the improvements to the original game are very noticeable. The game looks 10 times better but mechanics feel exactly the same.
Also there is like 10 hours worth of commentary and a few new levels. The commentary ranges from sleep-inducing to very insightful and interesting.
Overall, buy it if you really like the original game and want to replay it or if you just really like Jon Blow's voice.

It's pretty hard and quite interesting and engaging.

I've just completed the game for the first time (missed the original release).

This is more an art item than a game. I wouldn't say this is necessary a good thing. I love games and I'm not a huge fan of art. That said Braid has some straight genius levels and mechanics. It is enjoyable as a game.

I'd say this puzzle platformer is one of those games that you simply must play at least once.

So yep -- recommended.

Pretty good and classic indie game. Will give you a couple hours of fun. I recommend

Big fans

I'm aware its an old classic indie but couldn't get into it. Puzzles are not my type of game and I had no idea what was going on or the purpose so dropping this one.

The platforming was bland, music annoying and the game felt soulless. It also felt smug and entitled.

Braid is a bona fide masterpiece through and through, and the Anniversary Edition adds an astounding amount of depth and content that's absolutely worth the price. A perfect way to further polish a game that was already perfect.

The higher quality visuals are definitely worth it, and the game itself is still excellent even years later.

The commentary is... alright. It very much is insightful, but similarly to other works of the creators, it definitely does not respect your time as a listener. It's 15 hours of conversation about a 5 hour long game, where both the form and function require you to play the game, and not play the game at the same time - as in, just have the game focused and have Tim standing still for upwards of ten minutes not doing anything and then running to the audio marker located one meter away and repeating the process.

I enjoy the discussions themselves, but especially the ones about design would be better off if they were made available as a regular "two dudes talking" style podcast.

Just finished last two stars and it was worth to stand for 1.5 hour on that cloud :) Everything just like I remember, 13-14 years ago. But I didn't get why there were no bomb sound when I "catch" the princess?

The best game I played in 2024. I bought the game with some reservation as I don't know if this is the kind of game for me, but I was blown away by how perfect every aspect of the game is.

Support Jonathan Blow and Thekla Inc. and help them finish up the JAI programming language and release it!

Revisiting one of my favourite puzzle games ever is something I did not expect this year, but it's definitely appreciated.

I remember playing the original game when it came out, and I remember it's interesting mechanics and beautiful soundtrack.

And while those things persist, I've noticed some flaws as well.

While the puzzles are intriguing and somewhat challenging, they do require high dexterity to execute successfully most of the time, which is frustrating (while the game mechanics themselves account for that and allow hassle-free retries most of the time, I still find such elements of gameplay tedious and unfitting in a puzzle-oriented game).

Another flaw I would mention is, that while the soundtrack is beautiful, most of the time you cannot appreciate it as the game world is either stopped or moving backwards at some random speed while you are solving the puzzles.

When it comes to story, it is present and presented (heh) through a few pages of narrative. It's decent, metaphoric.

I can't say much about the commentary or the speedrun aspects of the game (only tried the commentary for a bit, and I do think it's a cool touch you can toggle between original and updated visuals, haven't tried speedrunning).

Overall I can recommend this game at a discount, at full price I feel there just isn't enough to appreciate and can become frustrating with it's dexterity requirements.

Great game

Braid has been one of my favourite games of all time since I first played it. Always stuck in my mind.

Having just made the move to 1440p this version is absolutely night and day difference. Incredible job.

10/10

Looks really nice.

Beautiful puzzle game! Artstyle, audio and the puzzles themselves create an amazing, dreamlike atmosphere. One can switch between the old sprites and the updated graphics and it shows how much work went into this new edition. It was absolutely worth it. Most puzzles are not too difficult, but at times they need quite some agility.

Outstanding game design!

I'm about 5 hours in (on World 5 now), and there's much more depth and variety to the puzzles than I ever would have imagined. This is a deep game. The puzzles are highly inventive and quite challenging, so solving them feels really rewarding.

The difficulty ramp-up with the puzzles is also really well done. New concepts/tricks are introduced gradually and it's easy to go back and revisit old puzzles.

Probably doesn't need saying, but this game is only for people who like solving challenging puzzles.

A+ from me.

When someone asks me "What's your favorite video game?", Braid is usually the first one that comes to mind, for the past 10 years of my life. The remaster only confirms this thought. Masterpiece. I'm so glad that I know about this gem.

All time classic. True art

good indie title
fan favorite of many with an enormous influence on later titles in the indie industry, would certainly recommend for anyone looking forward to discovering a nifty piece of the aforementioned industry

One of the greats of an era of greats. Glad to play the remaster, though the improvements appear invisible. Which, I think, is good.

genius game design, puzzles are satisfying, poignant story

Many many years since its breakaway success in 2008 and it is clear for me that it isn't some deep seated masterpiece that goes in a hall of fame.
HOWEVER, the level design and the progression/layering of the time control mechanics are sublimely paced and simply 'pure yoy' to play through and earn those juicy aHA moments.
Along with the vivid and painterly artwork, which have been lovingly restored, it makes for a rock solid puzzle platforming experience.

Don't think too hard about the story or meaning of the game - the creator isn't good at engaging writing, but back then everyone with a passion for the larger gaming medium were desperately looking for narrative and story that went beyond blockbuster aspirations and so it got a lot of undue/unbalanced credit for that.

At its core, Braid is a puzzle-platformer, but to call it just that would be an understatement. The game plays with the concept of time in ways that are as inventive as they are challenging. Each world introduces a new twist on time manipulation—be it rewinding, parallel timelines, or objects immune to temporal effects. These mechanics aren't just gimmicks; they are deeply interwoven into the puzzle design, demanding both creative thinking and precise execution. Solving each puzzle feels like a revelation, a moment of intellectual triumph that few games can replicate. And best of all, each one of those little revelations is BY DESIGN. Many of these little tricks the developers use can be willingly "spoiled" to you if you follow the commentary.

Speaking of, the developer commentary offers a rare glimpse into the mind of Jonathan Blow and all the wonderful people who came together to help make this game as brilliant as it is. These commentaries are a treasure trove for anyone interested in game design, shedding light on everything from level construction to the game's thematic underpinnings. Whether you’re experiencing Braid for the first time or revisiting it after many years, this edition is a reminder of why it remains a benchmark for artistic and intellectual excellence in gaming. It is a remarkable piece of media that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys pushing the boundaries of their problem solving skills.

The art style always turned me off, but I thought I'd give the remaster a try and pay homage to the game that started Xbox Arcade and indie all those years ago... I have 47 minutes in this game at the time of review and managed to complete and solve world 2. Getting those last two puzzle pieces in world 2 was just an amazing puzzle to solve and was beautiful when I figured it out. Sold this game on me completely. This game is an absolute masterclass in game design.

An engaging platform game with stunning visuals and immersive environments. Some levels will truly challenge your brain, making it all the more rewarding. Give it a try!

A great remake with amazing graphics and sound improvements. The narrations add a lot of depth for people interested in the game design and philosophy.

This has been my first time playing Braid and I'm stuck between saying "how have I never played this before!" and thinking that it's for the better now that I can have more mature approach to the story with my own interpretations.

Braid isn't just a puzzle game, but also a game filled with plenty of symbolism. Each world tells a different chapter of the story while introducing new mechanics... mechanics that I think are tied to the story itself.

The puzzles are great and the game requires no tutorial, which is honestly so mind-blowing. Each mechanic is introduced in a manner where you have enough time to experiment with it's core rules and how to apply them on the levels. And when the solution still isn't evident and you get stuck, you can simply progress further and, by doing so, see a new perspective and deepen your understanding. Which on it's own is rather symbolic: how in life you don't have a strict list of events and you can revisit some while being more knowledgeable.

And since I keep mentioning symbolism, it's time to talk about exactly that. I'll be focusing on my interpretations as to avoid spoiling anything.

Braid tells a story about committing mistakes and learning from them while in a relationship. Not all mistakes can easily be fixed and there's things that persist even tho we're doing better. Sometimes nothing will change if we stand still, but trying to move will be so confusing it might create an appearance of regression, something we can't judge properly in the moment and yet have to be really careful about. Or how certain things will happen even tho we took steps to avoid them, but since we're already aware of them we can try our best to act accordingly.

And how we might only only realize certain things while reminiscing about the past, after it all happened. Whether it is to think back with fondness or regret. To sort out our feelings, to learn that things might've been different than they seemed to be, to realize we've forgotten how we thought in certain situations, and how we only really understood one side of the story...

Overall I'm so glad I finally got around playing Braid. This review only covered the game itself and not the commentary. I might update the review once I get over the commentary, which I will as I'm an aspiring game developer and would love to create experiences that can reach others as well.

I have the original version of braid but could never finish it because i changed my system from pc to mac.
i fell in love with this game when i saw "indie game: the movie" where it was featured many years ago.
now i found this remaster by pure accident and it also works on mac!
i play it on a mac mini m2 with a xbox controller (wireless).
it works right out of the box.
this is my early xmas present, i will have some cosy gaming sessions now.
thx to the devs for doing this remaster i really love this game <3

I didn't play the original game back in the day, it released when I was 7 and at that time I played only free2play stuff or other local pirated games. So I heard about Braid only after and since then remembered that there is such a game and it's awesome. Still, I for some reason never tried it myself. And now when I was digging more into Jonathan Blow himself, watched "indie game the movie" and learned about his views on programming and other life topics I found out that he is, with a team, preparing anniversary edition. So I started to wait for the preorder. Preordered it. And... I finished it on release day in a couple of hours. For some reason, somehow, I felt like this game touched my soul, I felt strange warmth. It was unusual, cause I never felt something so intimate from a game before. Even though I didn't catch all the deep meanings of it, like reference to Hiroshima and Nagasaki through boss fight and the release day of the original game, which I learned after watching one specific video on youtube 👀 still, as I said, it managed to touch me deeply. I personally didn't tried every commentary lvl right away, but as a gamedev myself I admire Jonathan and his views, and I see these commentary lvls as a knowledge book for the craft of creating video games, so I definitely will go back to it in nearest future. As for the game itself, the new graphics are just gorgeous, switching back the original ones in just 1 key press is cool to see the difference. And honestly, the new version is a cut above the original. The music, it's just fitting so fucking good to the whole atmosphere and feeling of the game, it's just beautiful. Gameplay and puzzles sometimes gave me mixed feelings. From time to time I was thinking that I completed the level in a not intended way, cause I was trying and trying my own solution instead of finding the "right one", so I don't know if I really did something "wrong" or it's just one of the ways to play. Other than that the levels sometimes are easy, sometimes intriguing, and not that straightforward, and sometimes they are really hard and make you just stay for minutes to think of all options you have on that level and how to use them. Really great puzzles overall. So if, for some reason, you, like myself, never played the original, you definitely just MUST give it a try, it's truly is a classic of video games as a whole. If you played the original and liked it, I think you should buy it as well, new levels to solve + see old ones with updated, remarkable, it's not even graphics at this point, it's just drawings (style of the game is awesome btw) and replay this masterpiece after years, personally I would do just that in couple of years. It's a shame that, not just only visual, remaster of such a good game with detailed commentary on different topics (programming, art, design, sound, etc.) sold so poorly. I highly recommend Braid and am looking forward Jonathan's sokoban in the future. Hope it would do great, so we will all see more games from such a visionary person!

This is an excellent game development tool to be honest. The developer commentary system has wayy too much effort put into it. Definitely worth if you are interested in that.

It also comes with a great puzzle game that uses variations of the classic time travel mechanics with a very weird and incomprehensible story.

My favourite game of all time. The anniversary edition is great, extra world brings fun NEW levels!

Beautiful art rework. The addition of commentary shows the brilliant game design and concepts that Jonathan and the studio went through to make this possible.

This game is great, but this upgrade is not worth it if you have already played the previous version

Too stupid for this game. Still enjoyed it tho, good palate cleanser.
I think the new graphics elevate the depressing & gritty atmosphere to the next level; much better sound quality & music than in the OG release.

Truly one of the most beautiful and brilliant games of all time. This is a must have for puzzle platformer fans looking for a challenge!

A buetifally astetic for a game the developer commantary is alone 10 hours of just learning the process if you look into the story you can see the twists and lies that it takes you down amazing game worth the price

This game is simply perfect, a true masterpiece.
All the elements fit together flawlessly: story, visuals, soundtrack. Everything contributes to a magnificent experience.

Note: I’ve been in love with this game since childhood, as I used to watch my brother play it. Over the years, I had almost forgotten about it, but finding it here and finally playing it myself, I can confidently say it’s an incredible game.

I have no doubts about recommending it.

Great game, but my only problem is that the price feels just a bit too much. On even a slight sale buying this game is a no brainer.

The most amazing thing about this game is the graphic.
puzzles not that much even boring at some times.

A great way to revisit this classic game. The developer commentary is a nice touch, but I wish there was an easier way to listen to all of them. Sitting in a level for 5 minutes jumping around isn't always the most fun.

Amazing puzzle game, Played this way back when and then now. better visuals for todays standards. all in all great game.

Good game, but consider buying it on sale if you've played the previous one, as the changes are minimal.

This game remains as great and important and impactful as the first time around.

Braid it's still one of the best puzzle games ever made. The level designs and creativity in every world it's impressive even years later. And this version brings even more content. It's the best for old and new fans!!!

Still fun to play after all those years, although the 'magic' of indie-games isn't the same it was back in the day when the game initially was released.

guy who makes this is antivax and thinks woman are biologically averse to programming so fuck him but this game was incredible.

this is the perfect puzzle game difficulty. not easy but also no guides needed. clearly a landmark puzzle game but also still a great game with all the legacy removed.

Jonathan Blow is a good philosopher but a bad game designer...

There are two parts to Braid, one is an incredible 10/10 game, and the other is a needle in a haystack.

On the surface Braid is a perfect game. It is beautiful to look at, the puzzle are ingenious, and the soundtrack is incredible. This game was featured in Indie Game: The Movie (2012), and was used to heavily promote Xbox Live Arcade in 2008. This surface part of the game where you are collecting puzzles through six worlds is worth both the time and the money. This puzzle game is on the same level as Portal, Antichamber, or Fez.

The needle in a haystack portion consists of the stars, the commentary, and the speed run. There are game-beyond-the-game segments where you really get to know the designer, Jonathan Blow. Here you have some incredible ideas (the needle) but they are mired with multiple elements (the haystack) that don't respect the player's time. Jonathan Blow views this game as "multidimensional" with puzzles that are deep and rich with meaning, but he is too comfortable wasting the player's time in order to communicate that meaning.

Here are some examples: The stars are hard-mode puzzles, but one of them takes two hours of waiting, and another is missable which requires you to restart your entire save if you want to try to acquire it. The commentary is new but it is over-bloated and presented in a way where you can't just sit back and enjoy it, or actively engage with it. The experience is like listening to a 20-hour conference seminar where you are forced to switch seats every 3-5 minutes on average. The speed run returns from the original 2008 game, but must be completed in a single 45 minutes, meaning that you have to 100% memorize all of the puzzles in order to run them perfectly, which will ruin the player's ability to come back years later and experience the puzzles again once the solution has become a fuzzy near-forgotten memory.

Braid is a game that I would recommend, but I would be hesitant to ever suggest that someone complete the entire thing. There is a new world 7 puzzle that is sitting at 6.5% completion, which shows there are some obvious mistakes in the design. Jonathan Blow doesn't mind this consequence, and leans into it by calling those rare players the "special forces". My (hopefully constructive) criticism comes from my experience being one of those few players. However, even I have to admit that attitude displays a level of pretentiousness that the majority of players who actually enjoy the game will be put off by. The time wasting elements feel more like an incomplete sketch rather than a polished painting.