Volume

VideogamerSteven Burns

8/10

Early-game issues aside, Volume is an entertaining and addictive mix of Metal Gear Solid and Trials.

GamingBoltRavi Sinha

8/10

Volume mixes familiar stealth controls and perspectives with a bevy of intriguing, new mechanics. While its enemies won't really hound and hunt you - and the checkpoints provide more than enough support - Volume is a nice, low-fi experience for both casual players and hardcore stealth fans.

GameSpewEmily Sowden

8/10

But that’s a single droplet in the ocean of brilliance that is Volume. One thing I do have to mention – because it sent me absolutely giddy – is our found ability to interrupt guard patterns by whistling or making noise. The amount of games I’ve played where the A.I. is drawn to the point of said noise before falling back into its predetermined pattern is frustratingly high, and after witnessing one of Volume’s guards slipping back into formation but out of sync, I’d made a noise I’m fairly sure only dogs could hear.

GamereactorMike Holmes

8/10

Indeed, cohesive is the key word here. Once again Mike Bithell has crafted a focussed and purposeful game. There's elegance in its design, and the constant stream of bite-sized challenges will keep you engaged until the credits roll. Is there enough to keep you coming back for more? It's hard to say with The Phantom Pain looming on the horizon, but speed-runners and puzzle fanatics will certainly find reason to revisit each level more than once. Either way Volume is worth your time, and proves that Mike Bithell's first album wasn't a fluke. His second might not be quite as charming, but it's a...

GameSpotMike Mahardy

8/10

Cyber stealth.

PC GamerTyler Wilde

72/100

Fun, not-too-hard stealth puzzles that look great, wrapped up in a humdrum story with a boring protagonist.

TechRaptorJason Ashman

6.5/10

This game is not bad by any stretch, it just might not hold your attention for long enough to get through it all. A little more variety in the game and the way you play it would go a long way.

Volume deserves credit for being fresh and accessible, but after a couple of dozen levels or so, it starts to grow repetitive. It was easy to pick up the controller and play, but without a lot of new innovations and a middling storyline, it was also entirely too easy to take breaks and move onto something else.

DestructoidDarren Nakamura

6/10

However, a lot of where Volume suffers is in what’s not here. I wish I could pan around a level to formulate a plan before diving in. I wish I were given incentive to play well instead of just adequately. Volume is not a bad game. But it still leaves me wanting for something more out of it.

VGChartzVGChartz Staff

Unscored

Dan takes a looks at Mike Bithells second outing: Volume, and investigates whether Mike was a one hit wonderVolume is what happens when you focus purely on nailing the core mechanics of a title. Strip away [...]

EurogamerDan Whitehead

Thomas Was Alone creator Mike Bithell bypasses the difficult second album hurdle with a simple, elegant and carefully paced stealth puzzler.

PolygonColin Campbell

Unscored

Volume features a level-creation tool that I played with too briefly to critique, but it's likely to spawn many more maps, many more patrols and patterns. I'm looking forward to playing the best of them. Bithell's sophomore effort is a lovely thing made up of spellbinding puzzles that demand the player's attention. Its beauty, wit and intelligence are nicely offset by its quiet anger.