Monochroma trailer sets the scene on a dystopian puzzler

It's hard to know the extent to which this "cinematic" Monochroma teaser reflects the final game—especially as its claimed the finished thing will contain no cut-scenes. Nevertheless, I am smitten with the animation, which is what I imagine South Park would look like had it been made in Arstotzka. And the regular art style is no less striking, showing a grey and red world for the story's two brothers to puzzle-platform across.

Monochroma is drawing influence from the developers' childhood move into urban Istanbul, as well as the violent police response to Turkey's Gezi Park protests . If that wasn't enough to convince you of its lofty ideals, check out this quote from the game's producer, Burak Tezateşer, delivered via press release:

"Monochroma is a game that questions the essence of playing a video game. A game might entertain players, make them feel good about themselves, or even help them socialize; but a good game should also be able to satisfy players emotionally and intellectually, make players think about their lives, society and the system they are living in the same way a good movie or novel does."

A trailer from early-2013 gives an idea as to how the game will play, or you can check out this demo , available from the Monochroma website.

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.