Jonathan Blow on how to start your game #2

Storyline / Premise

• The video shows Jonathan Blow playing a puzzle “snake” game where progress depends on understanding spatial rules and constraints (e.g., not going “under” certain paths, and interpreting how objects must be traversed).
• There isn’t a traditional narrative story in the subtitles. Instead, the “story” is essentially the player learning the game’s logic through increasingly complex levels and rule-based challenges.

Gameplay Highlights

• Snake movement with strict path constraints

  • The player repeatedly encounters situations where leaving the intended route—or going off certain edges—is lethal (e.g., “going off the edge kills me”).

• Ring/number-based puzzle mechanics

  • The demo includes rings and numbered markers (e.g., “What does five mean?” and “three”), suggesting puzzle states and required ordering.

• Knot-like traversal concept

  • A recurring mechanic involves entering/overlapping paths to form a “knot.”
  • The player explains that success can depend on going over vs. under, and that the “math” functions more like inferred logic than a visibly labeled formula.
  • Once the player understands what constitutes the knot, the solution often becomes “obvious.”

• Trick-based reasoning

  • Some puzzles initially feel misleading (“jabaiting me”), tempting the player into an incorrect sequence.
  • The correct route depends on what traversal order preserves access to later possibilities.

• Limited undoing

  • The game features no “take backs”—mistakes can’t be easily corrected, so players must commit to the right traversal.

• Open-ended feel

  • The player describes it as “Open world snake holio,” implying the full game may support exploration rather than only linear puzzle rooms.

Strategies / Key Tips Mentioned

• Don’t assume the first reachable option is correct

  • The game “jabs” the player into choosing something tempting first, but the setup implies a different choice is required.

• Focus on “over vs. under” rules

  • A key rule of thumb is to either:
    • never go under (in certain circumstances), or
    • use the over/under relationship to construct the intended knot structure.

• Use alternative routes when blocked by geometry

  • If a “bottleneck” blocks a direction, the workaround is to route around it rather than trying to force through.

• Experiment briefly, then lock in what the game expects

  • The player tests behavior (e.g., trying a “weird bizarre hack”) and then confirms the correct interpretation before continuing.

• Follow the puzzle’s implied ordering

  • Progress can require completing rings in a specific sequence (e.g., moving from “the four to that second ring” because it’s the only way upward).

Featured / Mentioned Gamers or Sources

• Jonathan Blow