The Repairing Mantis

The Repairing Mantis is a short and surreal game in which we take on the role of a Mantis who wants to repair a bridge - the means in which we do this are incredibly bleak, which really is a consistent theme throughout the entire narrative. Everything is so dark and existential, I actually came away from this experience feeling pretty down. There are many content warnings around this game, so heed them well as it certainly isn't for the faint hearted - even if it is over in an hour. The developers successfully fill that time with an overwhelming barrage of gore, despair, and hopelessness. The minimalist environments, while thematically appropriate, don’t offer much visual stimulation, and the repetitive tasks can feel more like a test of endurance. Still, the oppressive atmosphere does a lot of heavy lifting. Even when I wasn’t enjoying the gameplay, I couldn’t deny that the experience held my attention. Certain scenes will likely stick with me for a long time. I’m left wishing Steam offered a neutral review option.

Gotta edit my review again (a bit late, but better late than never, I suppose), since the dev responded here. Primarily, I was kinda on the verge of not recommending, because of the lack of save feature and not having it being mentioned anywhere in the game. The dev added the info about that within the game, so I'm skipping that part of my review from the past. Still, keep in mind that, if you can't finish the game in one go, that's a big issue, bcause you'll have to start all over again from the beginning. Other than that, I don't mind recommending the game. It's not bad. As I played it, it was ok. For some, it's gonna be quite heavy and disturbing. Reasonable so. If you play it, you know. The dev puts the warning about the content that you'll encounter, so you know what you're signing up for. I do wish we had more choices but I guess, I might be asking for too much. My only grip with the game is still that there's no save feature, since my game bugged out and I lost my progress. I don't think anything else was lacking in the game. Not that I remember, at least. I enjoyed the heavier tone. And I'll add one more thing that I didn't say before, because now that I think about it, I…

all I've been wanting is the end of all wanting

Well that was VERY weird and messed up...

A neat little game about how dreams cause suffering but are necessary to remain hopeful.

This game really leave you with a void in your chest. The story is really cruel but in a way misterious enough to let you grasp the metaphore of it, or at least I got that feeling. An experience I suggest to play to anyone who doesn't stop at what's right in front of them and likes to think more of what's beyond the mere visible layer