Print I Love U

Print I Love U came out of nowhere and really made me think on a perfectly ordinary Friday evening. It's short, intense, personal, and at times, uncomfortable. It's not a masterpiece, but it doesn't need to be. Instead, it's a small game, albeit one with a great desire to say something.

The game is less than $2 on Steam, so the entertainment cost per hour is not actually that bad. The question is, though, are you willing to play through the same three tedious mini games multiple times to reveal the branches in the story of what is essentially a visual novella? There was some potential here to explore the themes of love and obsession in more depth with a longer playtime and less reliance on the mini games, but what you’re left with is a diversion that’s just sort of interesting story-wise and a bit tedious gameplay-wise.

Print I Love You is certainly a unique experience. Its found-game concept, intentionally rough presentation and increasingly uncomfortable romantic undertones create an intriguing psychological-horror setup that initially had me eager to discover what was hiding beneath the surface. Unfortunately, repeatedly playing the same three simplistic mini-games makes uncovering that mystery more tedious than it needs to be. The novelty carries the experience for a while, but after several endings the repetition quickly starts overpowering the intrigue. Players who particularly enjoy experimental psychological horror and meta-narratives may get considerably more out of Print I Love You than I did. There are some genuinely interesting ideas here; I simply didn’t enjoy the process of uncovering them enough to keep falling in love with it.

Print I Love U isn't a polished experience, and it's not meant to be, but I don't think its unique premise is enough to warrant a purchase.