Thank you Kasedo Games for sending us a review code!

In Filament you find yourself aboard The Alabaster, a spaceship which is unusually vacant and it’s up to your robotic character to rescue the trapped crew members. Between you and your shipmates are over three hundred puzzles that have to be solved. The ship has many sections with groups of puzzles that need to be completed to advance to the next area. You can solve many of the puzzles in any order you choose.

Normally, your character has an endless supply of cable, and to clear a room/puzzle you have to have your cable touching all of the pillars to open up the exit. The pillars are usually gray and often illuminate to white when they come in contact with your cable. You have to plan your moves so that you don’t block access to an exit or another vital area in the room.  Some puzzles have multiple pillar/tether colors to work with. 

The angling of your cables is vital and changes as you connect different pillars. To help, you’ll have some posts and fences that you can use to guide your cabling. Some of the pillars are connected by circuits and you’ll be able to open up closed doors by illuminating the connected pillars. Many of the pillars have a column on one or multiple sides limiting where your cable can touch them. Some puzzles have only one solution.

Filament is played from an isometric perspective. The puzzle rooms often have a monochrome look to them, but there are some colorful levels later in the game. As you’re spreading the thick (usually) white cabling across the pillars it looks more like toilet paper than cable.

This game prides itself on being challenging and it doesn’t take long for the difficulty to ramp up. It is quite rewarding to solve a puzzle that’s been stumping me for several minutes. I also welcomed help from people watching me play during my stream. I appreciated the relaxing background music that was both futuristic and soothing.  There are multiple guides and walkthough videos available to utilize if you get stuck.

As you’re exploring the ship, you’ll learn about the other crew members by reading their logs and having things described by the narrator.  For example, you’ll discover why there’s a swimming pool onboard and who’s outlandish request it was.  

There’s little to complain about morally. The word d*mn was used in the dialogue. The Lord’s name is used in vain too, with a lowercase g.  The pilot talking to you is humorous to listen to as she discusses the various pranks she has played on the other shipmates.  Lastly, there’s a reference to alcoholic beverages being on the ship.

If you enjoy puzzle games and spaceships, Filament is worth checking out. As nice as the character buildup was, I found the ending rather disappointing in comparison. The game is both challenging and fun for people who love thinking puzzles.  If you’re looking for a solid story, you may be disappointed.  According to my Switch, I have played for over 5 hours, but I think it's been more than ten.  There are lots of puzzles to solve in this title!