General Information
Most games don't make us think about breathing, which makes sense as we rarely focus on it in real life. Some games touch on it - steadying your aim in Call of Duty or feeling winded in Souls games - but none have made breathing a core mechanic until the clever, silly, frustrating, and unsettling Mask Quest. Here, you must manually control your character's breathing by pressing a button to fill a cartoon lung diagram. Forget to breathe, and you're done for in seconds.
This adds a hefty challenge to an already tough game. Mask Quest is a punishing platformer where even grazing a hazard means instant death. You'll dodge bullets flying in opposite directions across multiple platforms, or navigate ladder mazes while drones harass you. Now imagine doing all that while remembering to breathe. Simply mashing the breath button won't cut it - there's a carbon dioxide meter to watch, and rapid, uncontrolled breathing leads to hyperventilation. You must keep a steady breath rhythm while timing your moves to avoid relentless police officers who, eerily, don't seem to need air at all.
Mask Quest isn't your typical "political" game. It's more of a quirky dive into a specific moment in history than a preachy message. Your goal? Find a common blue-white Covid mask in a modern city. As you jump and dodge, you'll see protesters with signs about harsh pandemic rules, surrounded by cops.
The game doesn't argue against Covid protection. But in its basic plot and rough, bathroom-wall-style writing, it shows mixed feelings about enforcing social distancing. It hints at how these rules might stop people from gathering, and points out unfair policing.
The game looks at systemic racism, seemingly inspired by real-life tragedies. I won't spell it out, but your character is Black, all the bad guys are police, and the whole game is about trying to breathe. It might also touch on how public spaces can be unfair to disabled people, though that's not the same as racism. The cops don't seem to need air. By making you breathe manually, the game turns breathing into your challenge.
Mask Quest really makes you dislike police. When you die, the game always blames you - it's "you got shot," not "a cop shot you," or "you touched a cop," not "a cop beat you." But while it paints the police as monsters, it also turns them into game objects with set behaviors you can learn to beat with lots of focus and tries.
Some cops jump at you yelling - time it right, and you can slip under them. Others just shoot back and forth. Some have riot shields that bounce you around, helping you reach high spots. Some throw gas that stops you if you try to breathe. Worst are the drones that follow you like angry bees, even when you're hidden. They move oddly, sometimes letting you trick them into traps, but they can also surprise you.
The game's unique breathing mechanic adds a whole new layer of difficulty. You have to press a button to fill your lungs while dodging all these threats. It's not just about mashing the breathe button - you need to watch your CO2 levels and avoid breathing too fast. All this while timing your moves to avoid relentless cops who, creepily, don't seem to need air themselves.
Mask Quest is a tough, thought-provoking game that makes you think about breathing in ways you never have before. It's a challenging platformer with a twist, forcing you to balance your breath with your actions in a tense, politically charged environment.
Your only weapon is your breath. Exhaling can push drones away briefly, giving you a moment to escape, but it's not a reliable tactic. You can also use your breath to move sailboats, including those with police on board. At its most optimistic, the game suggests coordinated breathing as a form of protest, creating a wind that disrupts the forces of control. As you explore, you'll meet allies who can be called upon to blow on statues, breaking them and distracting angry enforcers from previously blocked areas.
Blowing hard at drones and statues looks ridiculous, of course. Mask Quest treads a fine line with its humor. It can be funny when you fall in water, accidentally inhale, and have to spit it out when you reach land. There's a slapstick quality to coughing while hopping through tear gas, even as your oxygen levels drop dangerously low. The dialogue is silly: protesters yell things like "no U". But the rough humor doesn't hide the harshness. It's part of the unfairness. You're always the punchline.
The game's visuals seem intentionally basic, like a mix of Canabalt and Kid Pix, but the breathing animations and sounds - provided by co-developer undefdev - are impactful. Your character's mouth opens wide like Kirby when you hold the button, and you can almost feel the life-giving air rushing in.
The game's level design is as double-edged as its humor. It cleverly turns the typical game structure of goals and punishments into a political statement. At first, you might admire how ingeniously the platforming elements combine with the breathing mechanic. Later levels become more abstract, moving away from the city setting. You'll ride super-fast platforms, jumping over bullets as you try to keep up. You'll use riot shields like pinball bumpers to soar over gas clouds and gulp fresh air. It often reminded me of indie hits like Fez and Braid from the Xbox Live Arcade era.
It makes me think about how breathing mechanics could be used in other games. Or if existing game mechanics, like finding safe spots in bullet hell shooters, could be reimagined as breathing exercises. But I'm not sure the goal here is really to introduce a new game design tool.
Mask Quest is undeniably harsh: I've faced countless deaths while playing. The game's one mercy is its generous checkpoint system with quick reloads, which sometimes only intensifies the frustration as you repeatedly attempt pixel-perfect challenges. I haven't cursed out loud or rage-quit so frequently in years, which feels fitting for a game that so hilariously and horrifically systematizes injustice. Perhaps the best approach is to stop seeking enjoyment and simply accept that the game's demands are incredibly unfair.
