The Indie Informer

Every so often, I like to jump into a game that pulls a “What the actual hell is going on?” out of my mouth. Sixty Four is that kind of experience and I wasn’t prepared for it. This is very much by devious design. The innocuous-seeming description on its Steam page is proof. It insists the game consists of transforming “simple machines into a thriving factory.” But it’s truly about transforming my sanity one click and cube at a time, and I can’t stop the madness.

The description isn’t a lie, exactly. That’s what makes it feel all the more like a betrayal when the story begins to unfold. This happens fairly early on via a text conversation between me and an offscreen friend. And I want to emphasize the “me” in that last sentence because the creators have accomplished something I love in games which is conflating the player with the main character.

Am I going mad? Why can’t I stop the clicking? How do I get out of here even if I wanted to stop? These are all questions that work just as well in my real life experience playing the game as it does in the virtual narrative. Seriously. Watch what happens when you click save.

It’s true the veneer of the game focuses on constructing machines that harvest resources. The more I harvest, the more equipment I unlock. The loop holds my mind for ransom. Numbers go up. New machines unlock. Fresh resources need harvesting. I spent over an hour just ceaselessly clicking. But when I question how I’m spending my time, the narrative sneaks in to reignite my need to discover what’s at the bottom of all this.

After two hours of playing, I still have questions.

Sixty Four is set to release next Monday, March 4, but I plan on satisfying my curiosity in this game long before that. Those players who enjoy messing with their mind once in a while should join me as soon as they can.