Braid (video game)

Braid is a platform/puzzle video game developed by independent software developer Jonathan Blow. The game was released on August 6, 2008 for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service. A Microsoft Windows version was released on April 10, 2009. Hothead Games ported the game to Mac OS X, releasing it on May 20, 2009 and the PlayStation Network on November 12, 2009. The enigmatic story, at its most basic level, describes the attempt of a man named Tim to rescue a princess from a monster. Clues embedded in the plot have led to multiple metaphorical interpretations, such as a tale of a faltering relationship, or even the development of the atomic bomb. The game features traditional aspects of the platform genre; the player runs, jumps, and climbs through a linear set of stages, while solving puzzles and defeating enemies. The player may also control time, allowing actions to be "rewound", even after death. Using these abilities, the player progresses the story by finding and assembling jigsaw puzzle pieces. Blow designed the game as a personal critique of contemporary trends in game development. He funded the project with his own money and spent three years creating it.