PAPER TRAIL - The fold creates, remakes and undoes | Review

The background

Without going into too many details of the narrative, leaving here only the context in which the game takes place: Paper Trail tells the story of Paige, an 18-year-old girl who dreams of being an astrophysicist, who, even though she got her spot at a university, her parents denied her wish because they couldn't imagine life without her, while at the same time they couldn't imagine her without them. Amidst all of this, Paige decides to run away from home towards her dream, leaving a farewell letter to her parents. It is from this point that the game begins and you, controlling Paige, embark on a journey in search of the place where her autonomy and dream reside, doing whatever is necessary, including bending space-time – literally, yes, you heard that right –.

In Paper Trail, the narrative progresses slowly as you complete the puzzles – we will talk more about them later – and it reveals few details about the characters. From what I understand, the story does not develop much in a 'verbal' way, that is, through texts and dialogues, but rather in a conceptual and sensory way, demonstrating through audiovisual art and the difficulties of the puzzles how Paige's experience unfolded. Overall, although I realize that the characters don't gain much weight throughout the game, I feel that the game is about showing Paige's experience and the challenges and obstacles encountered in her transition to university, with no loss in keeping the characters superficial.

The space-time origami

One detail that Paige tells us herself is the fact that she has the ability to make origami, those paper folds that take shape and turn into art. However, another piece of information, which may be a bit more important, is that, in addition to folding papers, the girl can also bend space-time, just like she does in her origamis.

This is a concept that, when applied to world design and combined with the way the puzzles were developed, generates a very innovative, fun, and satisfying result – the word satisfying comes as a great adjective to characterize the feeling when you make a fold on the map and progress in the game –. I will try to describe it in text and ask you to use the images displayed during this review to try to understand the game's mechanism.

So, in Paper Trail, we visualize the world as if it were maps laid out on a table, literally. Thus, with Paige's ability to bend space-time, we can make folds on the map, actually enabling us to recreate our possibilities of moving through space. In this way, in places that do not have a passage or in any obstacle that hinders you, you can fold, reinvent, and create a new possibility to reach your destination.

It is a completely innovative mechanic that whenever I pick up to play Paper Trail, I end up being surprised again. In addition, when we add this to the quality of each map and/or visual art, it becomes a delightful experience.

Enchanting maps

The visual art of the game is very beautiful, its colors are vivid and evoke feelings. The character design, although very simple and without any facial expressions, is also beautiful and evokes feelings based on its color schemes. The maps, even though set in the same "background," are unique and creative, and when we are talking about maps that are from different stages, they are rich in details, colors, and liveliness, being very different from each other.

The animations in Paper Trail are very minimal, however, they are sufficient for the game's purpose – which is to showcase the map folds well –. As I mentioned earlier, it is not a very energetic game and the animations contribute to that...

Extraordinary soundtracks

Everything in this game that can be seen as artistic is very well conceived and produced. There are games that are very similar to sports and there are games like Paper Trail, which are art, where the goal is to express oneself and convey a message – and I'm not saying one is better than the other, they just have different focuses and I love playing both types of games, each has its shining moment... –.

In the case of this game, the soundtrack, being an original composition, is not only creative but also enchanting and fits perfectly with what the game proposes. The songs are emotional, immersing you in the beautiful maps and corroborating with the emotions that the colors evoke, and relaxing, making your experience with the puzzles more enjoyable, too.

Taking advantage of the fact that we are talking about the game's soundtrack, I would also like to talk about the sound effects and the characters' "voice-overs." The sound effects, like the animations, are very simple, after all, it wouldn't make sense to have numerous sound effects without visual effects to accompany them. But, once again, it is not a feature that is lacking in the game.

Finally, speaking about the characters' voices: the characters mumble, as in other games we have seen before – the best example being The Sims, where the sims have their own language –. Although it is not a new concept – you can't create everything either... –, the tone and the way the characters speak in Paper Trail bring a playfulness and a relaxing vibe that I can't quite explain where it comes from. Thus, the characters' "speeches" end up tying, together with all the other artistic aspects of the game, a simple, yet creative, beautiful, and pleasant bond.

The game is very innovative in several aspects, from the most basic mechanics to how its progression unfolds, the visual art, the soundtrack, and the world design, as well... It is a very rich and conceptual game! But, despite loving the game, it is not a game that I would recommend to everyone. Many players lean more towards action and a more energetic gameplay. For those, I would not recommend Paper Trail. However, for those who are looking for a new experience or to broaden their worldview a bit, learn new things, or simply appreciate good art, it is definitely a game to try out. 

We thank Newfangled for providing a game key so that this content is possible.