Our way down

Overview:
'Our way down' is a top down 2D walking simulator where you play as "Alagossa", a female monster-looking being with lots of human resemblances finding her way through a tunnel that teleports her to a completely different realm, one of horror and mystery. Fortunately, she also runs into another individual that met the same fate as her by the name of "Hector". Together, they begin devising a plan to escape the strange reality they found themselves in and hopefully make it out alive.
The story is pretty okay with nothing too out of the ordinary along with some actually decent suspenseful moments. Personally I'm not a fan of this type of genre and prefer my story telling told from a first person perspective. I like to feel like I'm in the person's shoes but 'Our way down' does a pretty good job at keeping the player on their toes despite not actually being super scary. Much of the game is focused around narratives rather than interactivity and puzzle solving. If you're the type of person who enjoys a narrative driven story with light elements of horror and suspense, then this one is a decently short one lasting around 30-40 minutes depending on how fast you can read.
Gameplay:
So as mentioned, you're mostly just running around exploring and reading text boxes as they come up. The game itself plays from a top down perspective where you can only move in four directions which slightly bothered me. There really isn't much to play as there is to read since majority of the game consists of the player either conversing with Hector, inspecting certain objects or reading journals on computers. No jumpscares are present in the game and the existence of a hostile monster chasing you is also nil. There are only a few instances where a fetch quest presents itself to the player in which you have to find a key or a specific item in order to progress, everything else just comprises of reading for the sake of the plot.
This is the most gameplay you're going to get aside from running around figuring out where to go next. Much of the world is actually pretty empty and bland, most halls are empty, open areas are void of substance and are very barren making exploring not very enjoyable. Seemingly interesting items that you do encounter usually serve no purpose and are just there to take up space. The problem is even with them existing, the world is still heavily empty and is kind of boring to explore since most floors and walls are one static color with only a few items laying around. The world itself just doesn't really have much life to it and I know it's not supposed to be a lively atmosphere, but many unsettling, creepy horror games are able to do the environment and setting justice, why not this one?
Something I also enjoyed was the ending where you can check out the development of 'Our way down' and the types of quirky events that the developer went through during the creation of the game. It adds a bit of novelty to the entire title. Honestly, I'd only see this piquing the interest of people who enjoy dark storytelling games with a bit of exploration. But if you're not one of the sort, then this particular title might not be your cup of tea. That being said though, it isn't my cup of tea either per se but I actually did find it enjoyable so regardless of interests and preferences, I'd say give this short experience a try. It might still not suit you, but the fact that it did for me is more than can be said.
Controls:
Just move around and interact with things. Again, only being able to move in four directions is a slightly uncomfortable feeling and makes me wish you could move diagonally. Other than that, there's not much to really do in the game since most of it is story focused as I've already said many times over. A control menu is absent and the only settings relative to controls are toggles for running and command remember (which I'm not sure what it does).
Graphics:
Looks like many games created with typical RPG makers. That's not to say it's a good thing but the game does unfortunately look well, not the best. I'm not really into this type of artistic style so this (along with pretty much everything in the review) is subjective and if you like the art, then good on you. For me however, to have anything void of proper lighting and shaders which lacks depth doesn't look visually appealing to me. The good thing is that the story was enough to keep me engaged and immersed in the story despite the lack of visual detail.
Audio:
Almost nonexistent with the minimal amount needed for the game to function. Music is essentially moot since there isn't much of any soundtrack throughout the game. There are some slight touches of ambience in certain areas which add to the setting but most of the game is silent, with just the footsteps of the character keeping the players' ears company. There's no voice acting so the sounds of the characters' voices is up for the player to decide. Despite there not being much audio at all, it actually compliments the game as it makes the entire setting more uncomfortable and unsettling since you're sitting in practically dead silence for much of the game's duration.
Conclusion/TL;DR:
'Our way down' is a top down 2D walking simulator where you journey through a dark and mysterious world trying to find a way out. Most of the game is comprised of reading and exploration with a touch of fetch quests on the side. It's a relatively short game lasting between 30-40 minutes depending on player read speed and isn't a bad experience although it does hold a few flaws including limited movement (cannot move diagonally), and bland, empty maps with little to nothing in them. Nonetheless, it's a pretty decent game simply because the storytelling overshadows the rest of the games flaws. And with the game mainly being story focused, this helps it immensely. However, this is only really good if you're into reading stories with darker themes, otherwise you probably won't like it (unless you got lucky like me).

I love Hector, good game, especially with Hector. I wish for more content with Hector.
But actually, I really liked this game. It was fun to just have something to play when my sad Lil brain is bored. I don't really play horror games but this had no jumpscares so I don't consider it a horror game.

Alright. Our way down is done and dusted. I was going through my unreviewed Robilar's Reviews curator licenses and saw this. Figured I'd give it a go. I do note that the game is free to play, so there's already no real reason not to try it out.
Anyway, you play as Alagossa, a girl with monster eyes, quickly teamed up with Hector, who is essentially a SCP operative. The two of you have found yourself in a mysterious place with only one potential way out: through a door.
Going through the door, you find yourselves in a mysterious, mostly empty office building. And your goal is essentially to find your way out, and back to your normal world again. I use the term "normal" loosely. We all can see IRL that our own real world isn't so normal lol.
Anyway, this game is all about the dialogue between Alagossa and Hector, with one other NPC who was honestly kind of awesome, and an implied monster that you never actually see. I thought it was fun.
The other part of the game is simply finding your way through the lite labyrinthine office building, which is mostly white, brown, grey, and black with splashes of reds, greens and blues. It's minimalist, but cool.
I can't say I recall the soundtrack. I'll just say that the game's sounds kinda blend into the background.
The post game content was a nice touch, and I appreciated the glimpse at the rough drafts and such.
It was Steam Deck compatible with zero tweaks needed.
Took about 40 minutes to complete. I'd say definitely give this game a look. It's cool, it's free, and you've probably got up to an hour or so to spare. :)
If you found this review helpful and would be interested in supporting my Curator group, Robilar's Reviews, it would be appreciated. Cheers.
Also follow IndieGems for more reviews like this one.

LOVED IT SO MUCH but holy crap I wish there was a full game to this because it felt like a demo with the way it ended so abruptly. 10/10

Walking sim with horror elements. Pretty good.
Would've really liked if the game had voice acting, the one in the trailer was nice!
Recommend checking out more games from the developer if you enjoyed this.

Our Way Down is obviously inspired by the SCP universe. That is not to say that the title is not an original work of art. I loved the concept since the very start. Although this is a short psychological experience more so than a game (I finished it in approximately 40 minutes of play), I already fell in love with the main characters, Hector and Alagossa. Despite the short length, the game establishes a canon of sorts, alongside developing the main character somewhat. I would love to see more from this creator, and why not, more from this universe. Would recommend.

I'm going to miss your style of games, Basim. Between the artstyle, choice/style of music, and story, you had created a truly enthralling atmosphere to explore and learn about. Wishing you the best in your future endeavors!