The Honours Project Review – An Impressive Walking Simulator That Explores Loss and Game Development!

The Honours Project is a game that was released a couple weeks ago on Steam, and continues to be one of my most popular titles from my Friday’s Free Games series (link to my prior post that mentioned the game)!

According to the Steam sales page, it is an exploration of being a student and also a game developer. The narrator of the game has to think of a project to develop during his schooling at the university. Basically, the game walks the player through his struggles with various ideas that he considers, while also reflecting on loss and other challenging topics.

Most of this is done through a light figure who speaks with you as you travel through vignettes from his life, many of which are in the form of hallways. All the while, you come across pictures and notes worthy of reflection. Many of these moments are narrated by an excellent voice actor who adds a lot to the game.

Also, high quality are the graphics, which are straightforward but effective. The lighting and animations of the narrator are well done, as are the lighting reflections off of walls, floors, and water at various times.

There are about 5 short “levels” in the game, many of which could be completed in about 5 minutes, but looking around the different locations and listening to the narrator slows things down quite a bit. This makes the game a more impactful, reflective experience. It isn’t about getting done with it as quick as possible. Rather, it’s more like we are walking alongside the developer, and just listening to what he has to say.

One consequence of this is that there isn’t really much gameplay in this title, just as one would expect. The closest things that we get are searching for a note in each stage, playing simple Simon Says mini-games with piano keys, and solving a puzzle. These feel like addons to the game. The Honours Project is more about the experience and reflection, not gameplay. It took me about 55 minutes to complete the game, while taking my time and exploring additional content.

Although there are a lot of things I like about this game, it’s not all great. Playing with a controller was basically impossible. The sensitivity for the analogue sticks were set way too high! Also, left-clicking with my mouse essentially never worked! I ended up using my mouse to look, WASD to move, and E on the keyboard to left-click. In regard to the story, certain aspects were irritating. Specifically, the cussing that is used for much of the game. At one point I wanted to tell the narrator, “Yes, you’ve made your point, tone it down now please!” At least the language isn’t extreme, and it makes sense in the moment. Especially if that is how the developer felt at the time. In that case, at least it is authentic.

Reflecting on the experience as a whole, I can’t help but give The Honours Project a positive rating. While it isn’t that long, it’s still extremely touching and poignant. It ran me through a wide gamut of emotions, and it has quality art direction and audio design. I recommend playing it if it sounds interesting to you.

Title: The Honours Project
Genre: First-person Walking Simulator
Year Released: 2025
Developer: Scott Cambell
Played On: Steam
Price Paid: Free

Remember, we can have different opinions about the games we play. If you like something more (or less) than I do, both of our perspectives are valid.