This at first sight strange puzzle game is somewhat reminiscent of an escape room: you don’t really know where to start, but the more you search, the more clues you get.
Amnesia patient: Robert Hill
You wake up in a cell-like room. There is a bed, table with breakfast and computer. It’s day 1 and you have no idea who you are or what you’re doing there. The more you search around the room, the more you learn about yourself, but also where you actually are.
You soon find out that your name is Robert Hill and you are in a mental institution. You live like a real patient, so there is also a strict routine in every day. Every day Robert wakes up at the same time, eats breakfast, brushes his teeth and does a memory test.
When a caregiver comes by, you have to answer questions about yourself. The answers can be found in the room. If you have passed the test, you will be given some food and some time for recreation. At ten o’clock every day you go to bed.
Clues in the form of reminders
But then it gets really interesting. In your dreams you see a little bit more of what happened and what the reason is that you are there. You are, as it were, in Robert Hill’s memory. In the background you can hear him tell what he remembers about the time just before he was recorded. You turn out to be a real detective and find out that something is not quite right.
Puzzle and search
Every day, after every dream, new clues and puzzles also appear in the room. It is not always entirely clear what the intention is, but that is also part of the game. For Robert Hill it is also not clear and most things remain mysterious.
Yet you begin to understand more and more. If you search the room well you will always manage to solve a puzzle. You even sometimes have the urge to grab a pen and paper to write down directions.
Looking for color in your life
The great thing about the game is that you really are Robert Hill the moment you play it. You even have to pick up your own toothbrush every day and move it back and forth to brush your teeth. It also includes flushing your toilet.
If the voice-over says during a reminder: “I took a sip of my coffee” then you actually have to bring the cup of coffee to your mouth. When the voice says “suddenly the curtains opened”, then you have to open the curtains.
The game has a distinctive drawn style, with an overview on the left and the perspective of Robert Hill on the right. It starts in black and white. The further the week goes, the more color you will see. You work towards it to exit your room in the institution through the white door.
A quiet game, but hard to put down
The White Door is a very quiet game. That also means it can be a bit boring at times. The fact that you follow the same routine every day is realistic, but also quickly becomes monotonous.
That doesn’t mean you can easily put the game down. The story is intriguing and you want to learn more and more about what happened to you. The puzzles also become a bit more difficult. It is also nice that there is no time pressure behind it. It is therefore a relaxing game that you can play at your own pace. If you like puzzling and tracking, then The White Door is the right place for you and it is definitely worth downloading.