The Turing Test (Steam, Xbox One)
With more than a whiff of both Portal and The Talos Principle to it, The Turing Test looks a little derivative at first glance. You play Ava Turing (okay, the name is slightly on the nose), awoken from cryosleep by an artificial intelligence that tells her her crewmates are in danger and she must act fast to save them. To do this, she must solve a series of puzzle rooms utilizing various gadgets. Each room forces you to utilize a new set of skills, even as you ponder the philosophical conundrum of artificial intelligence vs. human consciousness.
Admittedly, Portal did this kind of stuff about as well as it’s possible to do a decade ago, but The Turing Test is not without its own charms. There’s an intelligence and warmth in the design, from the faux-Rembrandts hanging on the walls to the slow trickle of narrative information as you realize that *shock* the AI might not be so trustworthy.
It’s not the hardest puzzle game in the world, nor is it the most original, but it’s a satisfying, compact gaming experience that deserves more attention than it got.