Paper Trail

One joy of minimalism is seeing just how much one can make with as little as possible. The only things Paper Trail has are a grid, some squares, and two inputs. But from that it creates more tension than players would ever imagine.

Paper Trail is a new twist on the classic “Snake” gaming concept. Players guide a lengthening line towards through the grid towards the endpoint. The line can never cross itself or go outside the boundaries and into the gaps - otherwise it’s game over. Complementing the simple mechanics are the plain visuals. The colors are basic but functional and the grid has a neat, subtle depth to it, almost like Q*bert.

But from these humble origins the game manages to create constant nail-biting, life-or-death experiences. When players start each round, the line starts advancing on its own, square by square. Players then tap left or right to change directions. However, while players do have enough time before the line inches forward again to make a decision, time is still short enough to force them to make a decision faster than they’d probably like. Thinking and acting are so compressed it might be better to just not think at all and make moves based on pure instinct. The stakes become so heightened that victories feel even more exciting while failures are more frustrating. And since levels are randomly generated, every game of Paper Trail is like this. Players can improve their skills but they can’t memorize layouts. They are always thrown in cold.

The game’s scoring system also pressures players to perform. Each level contains several gems and players earn a point for each gem they collect before reaching the end. They don’t have to collect every gem, but for each one they miss, a point is deducted from their score. Once the score dips into the negatives it’s game over. Stacking two survival criteria just ratchets up the tension even more and it’s great.

It may look unassuming, but Paper Trail is a surprisingly demanding test of one’s ability to make split-second choices on-the-fly. You’ll never look at squares the same way again.