Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes - Explosive!

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes is an indie PC VR title released by Steel Crate Games in 2015, in which the player has to disarm a bomb that has a timer on it. While a last-second bomb defusal is a very cliché thing in movies, this game not only allows this to become a reality - it makes it a very common occurrence. However, this isn't a Hollywood movie bomb, where you cut the red wire and everything's good. Not even close. This device features a hell of a lot of complex codes and various decoding systems, which wouldn't be that bad if you just had the manual - but you don't. The other person that you're playing with has the manual with all the instructions on how to solve the puzzles and help you defuse both the situation and the bomb, and if he doesn't, well, let's just say that your face won't be as pretty as it was before.

The rules are very simple: you have 5 minutes to disarm the boom-boom and the other person is supposed to guide you through it. Not only do both of you have to be accurate, but you also have to be fast and consistent. Three mistakes and you're out. 
The main difficulty, however, is not the complexity of the puzzles - it's that they always change. You never get to cut the same wires, you never get the same codes. There many variations of the puzzles and the puzzles themselves also change. The bomb will feature batteries, modules, buttons, keypads, Simon Says, Morse codes, wires, memory, maze and all sorts of other mini-games. 
To surpass all these challenges, you and your friend both have to be cooperative and have synergy, because frustration and accusations never lead to success. The atmosphere is very tense, with the nerve-racking clock ticks reminding you of every second passing and making you more and more enticed and worried with less and less time left. 


Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes supports VR headsets and features the best experience on them

The game mechanics, unsurprisingly, feature no bugs or glitches, because the entire gameplay is just you sitting on a chair clicking on various parts of the bomb or reading a manual and telling your friend what to do. While it might not be much, the game keeps you entertained and on-edge all the time, and does so for the mere price of 7.49$, being 50% off from 14.99$ as the WEEKEND LONG DEAL offer is available until February 18.
The studio also released a modding kit available for anyone that is willing to go over to their workshop and has the base game to test their mods, of course. There are many great mods that feature new puzzles and bomb disarming methods, with some of them completely changing the game, for example: not only do you have to disarm the bomb, but you also have to drive a car at the same time as to not make a road accident.



Overall, the game is very fun and tense, is good looking for such an early virtual reality release, features good narrating, tutorial and game mechanics. Being made in 2015, it was one of the earliest titles that supported HTC Vive Virtual Reality sets and allowed the player to explore their potential. Since then the game has received many additions and even had a complete manual makeover and also gave the players the ability to customize their games with their own or others' mods. I have no complaints.
The game currently costs 7.49$ and supports Linux, VR headsets, Windows, OS X, Playstation 4 (VR), XBOX One, Nintendo Switch, Oculus GO and even Android.

Verdict: Steel Crate Games, being such a tiny developer team, did and still are making a great job at updating at sustaining the immersion of Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes. In my opinion, one of the better virtual reality titles that are worth giving a try even if you don't have virtual reality equipment, which can't be said for many released made specifically for these kind of platforms.