One of the best things about the indie gaming space is that the more you swim in its waters, checking out experiences from a variety of genres, the more you learn that there are no rules. Miniatures absolutely exemplifies that spirit, letting you choose from 4 distinct objects in a box, with each of them taking you on very different trips in terms of the style of play, the art direction, and their general themes.

Playing through the first that you choose you’ll get a specific impression of what the game may be trying to do, but the moment you start with the next object you’ll realize all expectations you’d had are mistaken. Some are more serene and simple, some have relatively basic puzzle elements, and some just seem to be determined to just do their own weird thing. 

The challenge here though is that, at best, these are all appetizers… but there’s no full meal to be found. I’m not sure there’s anything that truly unifies these varied glimpses of play, and if nothing else there’s simply not enough substance to any of them to be able to really build bridges to the others. Since you can finish it all in roughly an hour, I have no doubt that will be a stumbling block for many gamers. The thing is, despite its brevity and lack of some greater apparent point, I will admit that it made for an interesting journey, I just wish there was more of it.