What could you do in 60 seconds? You could run on the spot, put your dirty clothes in the wash or make a sandwich, okay that last one might be a struggle. Minit is a fast-paced, against-the-clock puzzler which challenges you to complete tasks in 60 seconds. Fancy the challenge? Read on!

Minit features a monochromatic world and leads with a classical visual style. Utilising a top-down perspective, you must explore the lands and in doing so discover your next steps to progress. The one biggest obstacle to all this is the 60 second timer, which is visible in the top left along with your health bar. The whole idea is you explore, find a way to progress, run out of time and then try to action your discovery to progress.

It’s safe to say you won’t be finishing the game without dying or running out of time. It adds a challenge to the gameplay though, one that once I reached desert stage had me struggling to go forward. For some it may be a frustrating feature racing against the clock, but for others it will be a welcomed challenge, as it makes the game feel completely different to anything else I’ve played in a long while.

The game area plays in a 4:3 format to keep up this retro game vibe, but in terms of gameplay it’s very intuitive. Your trusty Cursed Sword picked up early on the game is your most useful tool, clearing bushes that block your path and hide new pathways to new areas. These new areas hold the key to going further in the game’s story.

Also along the way are new huts and places to set your spawn point. Reaching these are like checkpoints, as they grant a new spawn point for 60 seconds to start again. The action feels franctic but rewarding at the same time, particularly if you discover new shortcuts to aid tour journey.

Another noteworthy feature is that every item picked up from a sword to a lantern are kept in your inventory on your next life. Rushing to get an item is actually vital for exploring news areas, so it’s encouraged by the devs.not only that but particular events are logged. For example I chose to let a lost explorer in the desert die of thirst and on every life if I return there, I see their corpse.

There’s also a retro soundtrack which sounds fantastic and hides the fact that voice acting for characters you encounter are a mix of beeps and boops. All jibberish really, not that that matters as gameplay is king on Minit.

You can definitely see a lot of influences here from old handheld titles such as The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, which used a similar limited timer for levels. Minit takes these concepts and presents itself to us in the modern day fantastically, with cute well thought-out animations such as the game’s characters reactions and the tiny sparks flying off your boots when you run.

Would I recommend Minit? Absolutely if you like challenging puzzlers with a sense of adventure. The 60 second timer creates a frantic playing experience and has you rushing to get to A to B whilst also being precise where you go. Obviously this isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea.

You can download Minit here.