By Linette Marte

I usually don’t play puzzle games, but Minos definitely captured my attention! You mainly play as a minotaur called Asterion in a labyrinth where you must protect your sanctuary from enemies coming from different directions. 

You also take control of a character named Daedalus in which you can change the paths of the labyrinth itself, leading you to guide enemies into traps you’ve placed. As you venture through levels, you get more insight on the ongoing story between Asterion and Daedalus. Daedalus acts as a father figure for Asterion as he guides him through the depths. Asterion later turns into the famous minotaur as the game progresses, and realizes that he is a beast, yet Daedalus still believes there is a small part of humanity in him left, even if he’s stuck in this dark labyrinth away from the much of light and sound he knew from the world beyond the maze. He slowly descends to his monstrous nature the deeper you go. Eventually, you will be faced with the final options on what Asterion will do with the labyrinth. I warn you to be wary! This game is also a roguelite, so be careful on how you play.

I was intrigued by the game mainly for its artwork. I’m a sucker for cooling looking designs, so I was bound to check Minos out! I also really enjoyed the character designs and the look of the game is very stylized, it’s interesting looking at all of the details put into the different areas and structures you go through.

The artwork isn’t the only intriguing thing though, as it’s compelling to see Daedalus and Asterion’s interactions with one another, adding onto Minos’ immersive nature.. It’s also cool to flip the switch to become a baddie as you are technically the villain. You are the monster people want to kill just to get fame and riches. But you won’t let that happen. As the game goes on you encounter more varied enemies,, making sure you keep an eye on Asterion and not let him die.

While you’re playing, reading dialogue and hearing the wonderful and clear voice acting, you’ll begin to hear the soundtrack of the game. The music itself is very atmospheric, it doesn’t distract you from the journey, which I like. It helps you concentrate on what your next move is without having to turn the volume down because it’s blaring in your ears. While music in games is very important and you may want to hear some more exciting tunes, it’s nice to chill out and focus on the task at hand with the music supporting it rather than smothering it.

Speaking of focus, the gameplay is actually very easy to grasp! Simply click to add or destroy walls, and click to place traps. Once you start the hunt, you can control the minotaur to kill enemies if they happen to pass by your traps. Sometimes the gameplay can drag on for a bit, however. Despite that, there is a speed up option, so movement can be made faster if you’re not the biggest fan of waiting. 

Don’t let the simplicity fool you, though. Minos can also get a bit difficult at times as resources are scarce in the beginning and you’re easily prone to dying. But it’s nice to stimulate your brain and try to conquer everything. I’ve certainly had some frustrating moments where I ran out of traps and there were too many enemies left to defeat, which ended up in me dying a few times. But there are also upgrades you can give to Asterion so he will slowly become more durable.

Overall Minos was super intriguing and a little bit out of my comfort zone. But I feel like that’s the best part about it! I can definitely see myself playing this game for hours. Even if I may get frustrated, that’s part of the fun about it. Being able to get the hang of it feels so good and it’s honestly a little addicting. I even played a few rounds of it before typing this.  I think you can tell how enthralled I am.

If you’re looking to stimulate your mind and strategize, Minos is certainly for you. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go back to playing. I have some sneaky, war-waging adventurers to defeat!

Writer Linette Marte is a Bronx native who attends the Jonas Bronck Academy

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