GONE IN 60 SECONDS.
I’ve had my eye on Minit since I first saw it. Its unique art decision of being completely monochromatic mixed with its odd gameplay promise to have the character die after every minute interested me. Visually it also looked to play like The Legend of Zelda so I had a lot of hope that this game would be fun. I’m glad to say that it was (spoilers for the review I suppose.)
PLATFORMS: XB1, PS4, PC
MSRP: $9.99
PRICE I’D PAY: $9.99
The core of this game plays like the traditional Zelda titles. It is a top down action adventure game with the caveat being that the character dies and starts back at the house at the end of 60 seconds. The main hero happened to pick up a cursed sword which put them in this scenario and they now have to figure out how to stop the curse. Said hero can move in the cardinal directions or perform actions with one of the two buttons not related to movement. Generally these actions involve swinging a sword to solve most problems, however the hero can also use a few select other items which are always conveniently located outside the last house visited. Throughout the game there are additional houses that will allow further exploration in the world. The other button previously referenced immediately kills the hero and puts them back at the last house stayed in, which is more helpful than it sounds.
Success in Minit requires setting small goals then reaping the rewards of planning on the next loop. Most of those loops are spent solving small puzzles, however there is still plenty of combat (just don’t expect anything too deep). Make note that Minit is not a rogue-like; everything collected or completed in a minute carries over to the next minute long segment. Early on I received a watering can and then died. Next round I picked up the watering can outside of the house and went and watered a plant. I did this every time after every reset until it gave me an extra heart container. A character in the bar wanted to hear some music, so I did my best Fonzie impression and whacked the jukebox in the corner with my sword until I found the tune he wanted. I was rewarded with only an achievement, but it still was a neat little puzzle to solve. This is how most puzzles are presented in Minit. There is a limited arsenal, so players have to use what they have in interesting ways to solve problems.
Minit is a delight that never wanted to waste my time. It made almost every second I spent with it feel like I was accomplishing something, and even when I didn’t, the time limit placed upon me meant I wasn’t wasting all day on nothing. The characters were extremely charming and dare I say adorable. The soundtrack I would call wonderful if you enjoy chiptune with the perfect mix of ambient sounds. Puzzles were fun and sometimes fairly obtuse yet never unfair. For the whole 84 minutes it took me to complete the main game I was enthralled and I’d rather have a game that only lasts slightly over an hour and enjoy every second than play a game for 20 hours and only enjoy half of it. There’s also a second play through option that reduces the amount of time for each run to 40 seconds for all the masochists out there. I can’t recommend Minit enough.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
