Reader reviews for Faust: The Seven Games of the Soul

I played this game a couple months ago and I’ll start this off with saying there has not been a single day since that I haven’t thought of it. It’s a very deep and well thought out work that left me confused at first- but taking the time to go through the game’s notebook and cutscenes really helped. It’s an even more interesting experience if you’re familiar with more Faust adaptations.
The gameplay can be frustrating and not conveyed well at times. Even then, a ingame hint system is there to help you and most times I’ve found myself able to get through most puzzles without issues! The gameplay is probably the biggest flaw to the game. For example, there’s a puzzle where you have to unseal a letter. It’s ill conveyed where you have to click and it’s very easy to mess up the puzzle- this is one of the few ones where you have to click in an exact spot to get it working.

Story, I’d rather not spoil, but if you like deep, flawed characters and character analysis, this is definitely your thing. There’s no characters I didn’t like and even if I dislike some of their actions, I won’t argue with the fact that their flaws are human. Mephisto is also a wonderful guide and host throughout the story and seeing his personality shine through in episode introductions and cutscenes made me very attached to this character.

I recommend this to anyone looking for a unique and dark adventure game experience.

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Time Played: 5-10 hours
Difficulty: Just Right

I’d say it is worth exploring if you can find it somewhere. An interesting experience and rather unique. Not quite horror, but something close.

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Time Played: 5-10 hours
Difficulty: Hard

I have first played this game when I was around fifteen years old. My brother played it too. We recommended it to our cousin and he liked it a lot too. It actually prompted him to read the Faust influenced “The Master and Margarita”.

This game has it all. There is a great story, an intriguing mystery, sometimes thrilling suspense, challenging puzzles (sometimes too challenging) interesting characters and a depth that is rarely seen in a computer game. The depth pertains to both moral questions presented therein and the story with complex motives of the characters which are unraveled in layers as if they were embodied by an onion.
I have played this game again about ten years later and I discovered some new things within the story that escaped my attention before!

The story as well as the whole game is divided into seven chapters which are interconnected through interpersonal relations between the main characters of each one of the chapters.
The mechanics and puzzles of the game are not always on a point and click basis but can often require to hold and drag which is a nice addition in terms of the player environment interaction.
The game is beautifully set in an old theme park and the graphics are well done and pretty although the human characters move a bit unnaturally.
The music is outstanding! It consists of some old jazz and blues songs that fit very well with the game’s theme and are great to listen to on their own.

Despite it’s all strengths, this game has some minor flaws. The first one is that the puzzles can be sometimes very difficult but considering that this game is for rather mature audience (or at least mature-ish teenagers) the sometimes higher difficulty doesn’t seem to be a deal breaker here.
The other flaw is actually mainly there just because of the way the game was marketed and it could be easily avoided. The game was marketed as non-linear and with multiple endings. Well.. it’s mostly linear because the split occurs just before the end and that’s how the multiple endings are achieved. So as long as you don’t expect a truly non-linear game than there will be no disappointment.

I think that this is an undervalued gem that deserves a try from any adventure enthusiast or anyone interested in the moral, mature, religious, and slightly supernatural topics.

This game is for: serious and meaningful story enthusiasts, amateur detectives, fans of themes in Goethe’s literature, patient people
This game is not for: action driven story seekers, comedy seekers

Story: 5/5
Puzzles/Mechanics: 4.5/5
Setting/Climate: 5/5
Aesthetics: 5/5

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Time Played: Over 20 hours
Difficulty: Hard