Go to the game's main page
Review
Note: The game’s itch.io site says that there is a commercial version of the game available. I'm reviewing the non-commercial version.
I was drawn to Within Rotation due to its colourful cover art and uplifting slice-of-life focus. Its central message is: Brief encounters with strangers can bloom into something enduring and fruitful. When focused on daily life, it’s easy to overlook the talents, insights, and perspectives that surround us.
Why make space for strangers?
To explore this question, the game gives the player an opportunity to witness the kind of “fleeting moments” that can occur between strangers- and see the impact that grows from this initial meeting.
The gameplay uses a candy machine to illustrate the concept of chance encounters. You click on the screen until two random pieces of candy roll out of the machine and transform into two humans- strangers- who meet and start a conversation. After a brief chat they disappear. The process is then repeated.
What tanked my experience were the lag issues. I don’t know if the issues were on my end or if that’s the case for everyone, but the screen would freeze or I’d get these “This page isn’t responding” messages. The candy machine segments became tedious, interrupting the flow of gameplay.
The characters’ conversations are meaningful. When two meet, they introduce themselves, ask open-ended questions, and inquire about each other’s interest. They then finish the conversation by making plans to further the connection they’ve made. For example, Party A has a neat shirt. Party B likes photography. Their conversation results in Party B recruiting Party A for a photoshoot at a later date.
As the game puts it: That all who are intimate start from anonymity.
Watching these conversations unfold left me with the sunny feeling of, “wow, what a wholesome, well-balanced conversation.” But from a gameplay standpoint, they aren’t particularly engaging, especially after the first few conversations. Plus, once you run out of candy (strangers), (Spoiler - click to show)the game is like, “The end. The game is over.” I sat there thinking, wait, is this it? Of course, I would have enjoyed it more without the lag issues.
To be fair, there is tremendous replay value. The version I played has eight strangers that can be paired, meaning that it’s possible for, say, Mira to have seven separate conversations. The randomization keeps the player guessing at what combination they’ll get, and I appreciate that the game allows you to “refill” the machine with candy that you’ve already used. Also, the character art is polished.
Final thoughts
I’m reluctant to rate Within Rotation because I have this feeling that I’m overlooking some important detail. Overall, I didn’t have the best experience, particularly due to the lag issues, and I’m not sure if I can rate it fairly.
That said, while it doesn’t really feel like a game, the deeper themes of expanding one’s horizons via basic interaction with strangers is something that we can all embrace and benefit from. Within Rotation provides the basic building blocks on where to start.
