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In August 2020, it was announced that the 2008 indie classic Braid would be getting a modern remaster in the form of Anniversary Edition. Originally slated to release in 2021, the project has quietly remained in limbo for years, but developer Thekla Inc. has revealed that it’s finally arriving on April 30.
Braid was first released for Xbox 360’s Live Arcade on August 6, 2008, and stars Tim, a boy searching for a princess captured by a monster. The 2D platformer centers on time manipulation mechanics that players utilize to solve puzzles and locate/assemble jigsaw pieces. The strong mechanics combined with its contemplative writing made Braid a critical hit, with many hailing it as a masterpiece. Braid has since been credited as the primary title that brought widespread interest and awareness to the indie gaming scene.
This remastered update features enhanced visuals in the form of repainted graphics by original Braid artist David Hellman, animated brush strokes, and smoother animations with additional frames. You can also switch between the updated visuals and the original presentation on the fly. The audio boasts improved sound and new mixes and variants of the soundtrack by Martin Stig Andersen (Control, Inside) and Hans Christian Kock.
Braid: Anniversary Edition also includes over 15 hours of commentary about the game’s creation and legacy from creator Johnathan Blow and other creators/historians, including David Hellman, Marc ten Bosch (Miegakure), Brian Moriarty (Trinity, Loom, Alvin and the Chipmunks:The Squeakuel), Casey Muratori (1935, Handmade Hero, Computer, Enhance!), Cris Moore (resident faculty at the Santa Fe Institute), Frank Cifaldi (Video Game History Foundation), Martin Stig Andersen, Hans Christian Kock, and Jakob Schmid.
“The goal is to make it the craziest, most-in-depth commentary ever put in a video game,” said Blow in a press release. “You can follow particular threads of commentary spatially, through wormholes that go from level to level to see evolutions of particular concepts; the commentary has lots of markup so we can circle stuff on the screen, point arrows at whatever visual detail we are talking about, show diagrams, play back recordings of gameplay to show what happens if you try doing this or that in a particular level, and many other capabilities.”
Braid: Anniversary Edition will be available for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, and Netflix.