14 DAY TRIAL // 
Humans are complex organisms, with many biological, cultural, and societal differences between individuals. But most if not all of us, at some point during our lives, walked into a room, saw a picture hanging a little askew or a few glasses that were not perfectly aligned, and decided to quickly set them right. Didn’t bother telling anyone, felt a little proud of ourselves. There is great satisfaction in fighting against entropy, even in this small way, even if chaos always creeps back. As soon as A Little to the Left asked me to adjust the angle of five different framed photographs in a way that would not work in the real world I knew that I liked what it had to offer. And that it allowed players to battle entropy in many ways not available in their actual lives.
The game is developed by Max Inferno and published by Secret Mode. I played it on the PC using Steam and it can also be bought on the Nintendo Switch. The title delivers a cozy take on the puzzle genre.
It offers no complex narrative to engage with and it’s unclear whether the cat is doing the puzzle work or if she’s there simply to mess things up as soon as the player orders them. Despite a lack of dialogue, the game manages to conjure a comfortable, lived-in, autumnal universe.
The featured cat is fluffy and cute but in some ways she feels like the creature in Alien, revealing only a little of itself as players push forward through the world of A Little to the Left. The developers make a great choice by offering players space to project their own fantasies onto its world.
Gameplay is all about puzzles, mostly centered on crafting order out of chaos. Put things in descending order of height or discover how a torn-up piece of paper creates a simple drawing. Everything in the game is built around household objects, all of them presented in s slightly stylized manner. This creates familiarity and puts the player at ease, paradoxically increasing his ability to deal with the puzzles, which can get quite complex.
How do more than a dozen batteries fit into a box? Get five cat-themed fridge magnets to work just right. Decide how to align different shapes of pasta. Take a look at a shelf of books and decide how to best order them. What is the best way to organize screws? These are activities that make intuitive sense but that most of us will not engage with in the real world. The game makes them fun, with a touch of whimsy.
There is a lot of variety in A Little to the Left. Seeing what’s coming up is as exciting as solving a section. Some of the puzzles have simple solutions, while others are headscratchers that ask gamers to shift the way they see shapes, colors, and other attributes. There are more than 75 challenges to play through. They are organized into chapters, moving players through the house, adding new concepts, and slowly pushing the difficulty higher.
A Little to the Left stands out from the puzzle crowd with its Let It Be feature. If one of the problems seems too hard and you don’t want to spoil yourself by picking up a hint (which is as easy as using an eraser to reveal a solution on a whiteboard), you can simply move to the next one. The idea fits very well with the overall spirit of the experience and eliminates frustration, which can be an issue for any title in the genre.
Make no mistake, the challenges can be tricky and often ask gamers to look at objects from a new perspective. But there’s no feeling that they were designed to be difficult just for the sake of it.
The development team is also offering a Daily Tidy feature, which offers players access to a new puzzle each day. It’s an interesting way of keeping players engaged with the title. Solve the day’s puzzle and then work on a few that you skipped before, or maybe try for some alternate solutions.
I liked spending time in the game’s world and was genuinely surprised by the creativity of the puzzles it presents. The experience puts no pressure on the player and it is a pleasure to spend 20 to 30 minutes in its company each day until I solve all the puzzles.
This is a rare experience that many players will actively want to save and play over as many days as possible. The whole package works because everything is familiar, there are no abstract rules to learn, and the atmosphere (with a solid contribution from the cat) is immersive.
A Little to the Left uses an art style that matches its laid-back approach to gameplay, with muted colors and slightly fuzzy shapes. The game's design makes it easy to focus on the puzzles and the sound effects, with satisfying musical notes when a part of the solution is revealed, contributing to the serene nature of the entire experience. Some people might find the cuteness a little much, but it is hard to resist the charm of the experience. The soundtrack matches the rest of the presentation in quality terms, giving players space to focus on the problems they are solving while also immersing them in the cat-driven world of the title.
The Good
- Excellent puzzles
- Unique style
- Great atmosphere
The Bad
- Limited narrative
- Cat needs to be more involved
- Hint system is too simple
Conclusion
The colors, the music, and the items you work with, all evoke peace, warmth, and slight mental exertion. Never play more than three or four puzzles in one sitting, be prepared to skip any with no solution in sight. A Little to the Left is a great puzzle experience that will appeal even to players who are not fans of other titles in the genre.
A review code was provided by the publisher.
