Chants of Sennaar

Play it on: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Switch, Windows (Steam Deck OK)
Current goal: Become fluent
Buy it from: Humble Bundle

I’m currently racing to finish smaller 2023 games that came to me highly recommended but which I couldn’t fit into my schedule earlier in the year. Chants of Sennaar is at the top of that list, and it hasn’t disappointed.

It’s a linguistic puzzle game in which you decipher languages to help people communicate, otherwise known as “The Tower of Babel: The Game.” Its retina-frying color palette and low-key soundtrack are just set dressing for the enormously engaging and rewarding gameplay trick of negotiating multiple perspectives and the space between. You do this by seeing alien phrases and attempting to associate them with the correct ideas, even when they’re contested.

I don’t normally like linguistic puzzles. They can be wishy-washy and too open ended. What I’m loving most about Chants of Sennaar so far is that it doesn’t feel like a guessing game at all. Instead it feels precise and meticulous in a way that breeds revelation rather than bewilderment. — Ethan Gach

Check out | Chants of Sennaar | ’s demo

If Chants of Sennaar has piqued your interest, you can try it out via a free demo on all major platforms.