Do you remember when you were a baby and someone covered their face with their hands, disappearing completely from existence, only to come back and scream at you? It has to do with something called object permanence, an idea of ​​understanding that even if you can’t see something, it still exists, something that babies really struggle with. So how about a game that puts this to the test? Enter Object Impermanence, a puzzle game where nothing exists unless you look at it.
Let’s put this into perspective. Object Impermanence looks like it went to the Portal School of Puzzle Design. By this I mean that there are objects that must be held and placed in particular places to open doors, for example. In this case, they’re alien-like balls (the entire game takes place on a planet that you and your scientific expedition have been sent to take a look at when, uh oh, you crash into it, so you’re investigating the ruins of a seemingly long-dead society).
These balls must be placed in certain places, but the problem is that if they disappear from your sight, they cease to exist. Suppose you roll a ball down a pipe. If you don’t try to look at it through the gaps in the pipe, it won’t roll anymore. This titular object impermanence also exists for other things in the world, like a sewer grate that you can’t walk through… unless you turn around so you can’t see it anymore and walk backwards.
It’s all quite intelligent, and even a little tense at times; there’s a moment in the trailer where a wagon almost hits you, but if you look away quickly enough and just like that, no more wagon. I’m curious to see what other kinds of tricks (and treats) await you in Object Impermanence, whose approximate release window is Q4 2026. You can wish it on Steam and try its demo, right? here.
