The Epic Games Store is not a stranger to making fantastic games completely free for its customers. While thisstrategy often loses the Store money, it also manages to get huge numbers of players on board and using the storefront. Until August 12, gamers can log into the Epic Store and claim bothA Plague Tale: Innocenceand the much smaller titleMinit.Both titles offer interesting takes on their respective genres.
However,Minitprovides a unique experience not on offer in most games. The one-minute time-loop mechanic, while initially seeming restrictive, reveals an incredibly ambitious indie game quickly.Minitwas only a very recent addition to theEpic Games Store’s August lineup. The store originally hadSpeed Brawlslated for the August 5 free slot, but swapped it out at the last moment forMinit.The game received a lot of high praise from critics at launch in 2018, so it looks like gamers have not missed out.
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Why Is Minit Free On The Epic Games Store?
According to the Epic Games' official Twitter account,Speed Brawl’s free release on the storefront “has been temporarily delayed” due to a technical issue. With the Epic Game Store team working on fixing the problem, it is likely thatSpeed Brawlwill be ready to play relatively soon. Whether the game will still release as afree Epic Store game in Augustis unknown, but is certainly possible.
TheEpic Games Store swappingSpeed BrawlwithMinitmakes perfect sense. Both titles are fast paced, withSpeed Brawlusing that speed for its chaotic combat action, whereasMinitplays with the tiny time loop in a slightly more cerebral manner. Alongside the game’s pacing similarities toSpeed Brawl,Minithas already been free on the Epic Game Store. Many games appear free multiple times on Epic’s “Discover: Free Games” section, so seeingMinitback again for free is not too surprising.
What is Minit?
Released in 2018,Minitis a time-bending adventure puzzler published by Devolver Digital. The game is not the product of a particular indie studio or one creator, but a collaboration of four different independent developers: Kitty Calis, Jan Willem Nijman, Dominik Johann, and Jukio Kallio. These creators have worked on other titles likeNuclear Throne,Disc Room,Fall Guys,and even higher profile titles likeHorizon Zero Dawn. The industry prestige does not go to waste inMinit. The game is arguably the perfect example of a time-loop experience, as it boils down the mechanic to its simplest possible form.
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While othertime-loop games likeThe Forgotten Citymight bring flashy graphics, intricate philosophical narratives, and voice acting to support their timeline-jumping shenanigans,Minitis a game that is so uniquely confident in its base mechanic that the game removes anything that might distract from it. In fact, the game’s entire aesthetic draws attention to the tiny time limit, building to some incredibly tense moments of play (in spite of the game’s adorable presentation).
Is Minit Worth Getting For Free?
Minitis worthy of any gamer’s time, especially now that it’s free on the Epic Games Store. It is rare to see a title as utterly coherent asMinit, where every single aspect of the game’s production plays off the next in some perfect synergy. To some degree, this is to be expected from a game produced in part by Devolver Digital and Vlambeer, teams that specialize in releasing some of thebest indie games.
Minitalso knows exactly when to play with the premise oftime-loop gamesand mock the player. For example, there is one NPC particularly early on that speaks slowly. The dialogue text appears at a painstakingly glacial pace, creeping across the screen as the clock counts down without remorse. The game is testing the player’s nerves by placing essential information in contrast to this main mechanic.
The structuring of the game around this one core conceit makes it so satisfying to eventually master. Like withDarkSouls' difficulty, once a player starts to internalize the game’s mechanics, the experience changes. From the very beginning, players are able to end the 60-second loop whenever they want, and be warped back to the last saved “home.” When players memorize parts of the game’s layout, this can make for an incredible feeling as they zip across the game to complete their various tasks.
Minitwill be free on the Epic Games Store until August 12.
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