Microsoft Game Studios

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Lore & Background

Microsoft Game Studios published Braid through its Xbox Live Arcade service in August 2008, making it one of the early indie titles to achieve critical acclaim on the platform. The game was developed by Number None and designed by Jonathan Blow, who self-funded the three-year project with about US$200,000 of his own money. Blow worked with webcomic artist David Hellman to develop the artwork. The game received critical acclaim and praise for its mechanics, puzzles, graphics, and soundtrack, eventually becoming the highest rated title on Xbox Live. It is considered a keystone title in the growth of indie game development. The game had total revenue nearing $6 million as of 2015, which Blow used to fund his next game, The Witness, a 3D puzzle game released in 2016. A remastered version titled Braid, Anniversary Edition was released in May 2024 for multiple platforms including Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S.

In Their Own Story

In August 2008, a small indie puzzle-platform game called Braid appeared on the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service, published by Microsoft Game Studios. The game featured a protagonist named Tim who could rewind time, and its narrative unfolded through text passages revealing Tim's quest to rescue a princess from a monster. The game's six worlds each introduced unique time-manipulation mechanics: Time and Forgiveness allowed rewinding actions; Time and Mystery introduced green-glowing objects unaffected by time; Time and Pace linked time to horizontal movement; Time and Decision created a shadow of the player's rewound actions; Hesitance provided a magic ring that slowed time nearby; and the final world, labeled simply "1," had time flowing in reverse. The story's final level revealed that Tim himself was the monster from whom the princess was running. The game won the "Innovation in Game Design" award at the 2006 Independent Games Festival for its preliminary version, and the final version received additional accolades. Blow and the game's production were documented in the 2012 film, Indie Game: The Movie.

Reader's Guide

Braid is played by solving physical puzzles in a standard platform game environment. The player controls Tim as he runs, jumps, and climbs across levels, defeating enemies by jumping on them, collecting keys to unlock doors, and operating levers to trigger platforms. The defining element is the unlimited ability to reverse time and rewind actions, even after dying. The game is divided into six worlds, entered from different rooms of Tim's house, and the player can return to any previously visited world to attempt missed puzzles. Each world has its own time-based mechanic: World 2 (Time and Forgiveness) is a standard platformer with rewind; World 3 (Time and Mystery) has green-glowing objects unaffected by time manipulation; World 4 (Time and Pace) links time flow to horizontal movement; World 5 (Time and Decision) creates a shadow of rewound actions; World 6 (Hesitance) provides a magic ring that slows time near it; and the final world (labeled "1") has time flowing in reverse, with rewinding returning time to normal. Each stage contains puzzle pieces that must be collected to create jigsaw puzzles telling the story and to unlock the last stage. After completing the main game, a speedrun mode becomes available for select levels and the entire game. Eight stars are hidden throughout the world of Braid, corresponding to the stars in the constellation of Andromeda outside Tim's house.

Did You Know?

• Braid was originally released in August 2008 for the Xbox 360's Xbox Live Arcade service, published by Microsoft Game Studios.
• The game had total revenue nearing $6 million as of 2015, which Jonathan Blow used to fund his next game, The Witness.
• A preliminary version of Braid without final artwork won the 'Innovation in Game Design' award at the 2006 Independent Games Festival.
• The final world in Braid is labeled simply '1' and has time flowing in reverse, with rewinding returning time to its normal state.
• Eight stars hidden throughout Braid correspond to the stars in the constellation of Andromeda just outside the main character's house.