#MaybeInMarch 2024: The Cave review

I have no idea how The Cave ended up in my Steam library.

As explained during the #MaybeInMarch announcement earlier this month, I discovered that the game which had spent the longest on my backlog was Double Fine Production’s puzzle-platformer. It would therefore become my focus for the event and I’d attempt to complete it on stream.

My Steam account showed that I’d purchased it in July 2013. Due to the other releases bought at the same time, presumably during the summer sale, it looked like I’d done so in order to review it for a former blog. The team’s mission back then was to experience every entry in the 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die book and The Cave was one we obviously hadn’t made it around to.

But it turns out that I was wrong. During our #MaybeInMarch stream a couple of weeks ago, a friend in chat asked how the game had been added to my library as I’m not a big fan of platformers. I explained the story but there was some confusion over the release date: the book above had been published in August 2010 but the game hadn’t been released until January 2013.

I therefore have no clue as to why I bought it. Perhaps it was because it had been created by Ron Gilbert, the man behind my beloved Monkey Island series. Maybe I’d become aware of the game after backing the crowdfunding campaign for the ‘Double Fine Adventure’ that went on to become Broken Age. It could have been because it had appeared during the Steam summer sale at a reduced price that persuaded me to give it a try. It’s a mystery that will forever remain unanswered.

What won’t remain unanswered though are the mysteries of the titular cave itself, as I completed the game just over a week ago and can therefore consider this year’s #MaybeInMarch as a success. But this didn’t happen on stream. I managed to get through around three and a half hours on Twitch before giving up because I just wasn’t interested in continuing. Despite declaring that I probably wouldn’t go back to The Cave, I picked it up again a few days later and reached an ending for three of its characters.

For thousands of years, people have gone to the cave in search of what they want the most – although few find what they’re looking for, and even fewer leave. Seven individuals have gathered outside the opening on one particular night and players are offered a glimpse into a dark place in each of their hearts. Through levels including a subterranean amusement park and medieval castle, you’ll learn the truth behind why they’re here and the consequences of their selfish desires.

Your first task is to pick three characters to form your party, each of whom has a unique ability which will allow them to progress in a different way. For example, the Knight remains invincible after pressing a button on the controller for as long as he stands still. The Hillbilly can hold his breath under water and therefore reach areas that others may not be able to go to. And the Time Traveller can phase through objects, allowing her to quickly pass through locked doors.

The party then heads into the cave and must combine their skills to overcome obstacles and solve puzzles. As a single player, I was able to switch between my three chosen protagonists at will. The Cave does offer local co-op so you can explore the depths with a friend, but it’s something that Pete and I were unable try as we couldn’t find our second controller in time for the stream. No tutorial is provided so it’s worth checking out the ‘how to play’ section in the pause menu to get a feel for the buttons.

As mentioned earlier, I generally don’t like platformers. It’s a genre I typically steer away from as I don’t have the coordination or patience for them (hence the reason why The Cave being in my library is so weird). Fortunately, this game is very forgiving. Most of the jumps can be easily achieved using any character even if the controls do feel a little imprecise. If you happen to meet your demise after missing a ledge or being flamed by a dragon, the only penalty you’ll receive is being placed back a very short way.

On that note, I should point out that I don’t think this release is a platformer first and foremost. A couple of friends remarked that the platforming elements were rather poor in the Twitch chat during our stream, but it doesn’t feel as though this side of the game is in any way The Cave’s focus. The impression I got was that it’s more concerned with the puzzles and the mechanic of having several characters work together to solve them, along with the dichotomy of being part of a team but having a selfish motivation.

This leads us on nicely to the puzzles themselves. Most of these start with moving a particular protagonist past a barrier that only they can overcome with their ability, before manoeuvring the rest of the party to the end of the level using a series of levers, pressure plates and movable blocks. Some areas are specific to a character so, if you don’t include them in your party, you won’t have you complete it because you don’t have the necessary skill. There are 13 levels in total but I only had to go through nine of them.

This sounds like it should provide plenty of replayability. With seven characters in total, my assumption is that three playthroughs are needed to see everything and each will last around four hours. It’s sad then to report that I have no desire to ever return to The Cave. There is just so much backtracking involved in solving the puzzles and getting through the levels that the experience became repetitive and tedious for me – the main reason why I didn’t want to continue playing on stream.

The most frustrating thing is that you do all this work for very little story reward. The characters’ backstories are haltingly told through stills that are uncovered by reaching certain ledges within the environments; and when you reach the end of the title, all that happens is that their last couple of images are shown. There are no cutscenes, there’s no big reveal, and there isn’t much payoff. I don’t want to have to replay the game another two times to see the narratives for the protagonists I didn’t choose.

On paper, The Cave should be a really interesting game. It features a cast of characters who are in no way perfect and who are each are hiding a dark secret that’s waiting to be uncovered. The layout of the setting and puzzle solutions effectively change depending on who you pick for your party. The humour is amusing and the way that the cave itself narrates the plot is entertaining. And the graphics and animations are nice, making for a release which looks pretty good despite being almost 11-years old.

But unfortunately, it’s not for me. I’m never going to enjoy puzzle-platformers to the extent that I enjoy the adventure genre. I need more challenging puzzles to keep my brain engrossed and a stronger narrative to make me want to progress through them, rather than some ledges to jump off and the risk of death. The Cave isn’t a bad game though. There are many players who hold a different opinion to my own and it currently has an 87% positive rating on Steam.

I realised something during our stream. For the past #MaybeInMarch events, I’ve played Limbo by Playdead, Thomas Was Alone by Bithell Games, Papo & Yo by Minority Media and now The Cave by Double Fine. This leaves me with two questions. Why on earth are there so many puzzle-platformers in the dark corners of my Steam library? And will I have to play yet another one for next year’s event?