Alchemia (2018)

Developer: Matthew Brown
Platforms: Windows
Genres: Indie
Rating: 3.8 of 5, 84 player ratings
Typical playtime: about 34 minutes
Where to get it: Steam

The 3D catalog: game boxes on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalog in 3D

The same catalog has a room you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real games from it when you tell them what you feel like playing. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this game is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A solitary, thoughtful experience that demands patient research and code-breaking like deciphering an old manuscript.

crypticpuzzlingdifficultmysteriouscontemplativesingleplayercasualtouch-friendly

What players say

Players say this is less a game and more a book of cryptic puzzles with no feedback or way to enter answers. You flip pages and do all the solving outside the program, often needing Wikipedia and Google. It is extremely difficult, and players disagree on whether it is a clever challenge or a scam.

Screenshots

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More by Matthew Brown

This page is from Underplayed Gems, a catalog of older and overlooked games. Not quite it? You can browse by platform and genre, or take this one into the 3D catalog and ask the Catbot for something closer.