{
  "id": 4258663,
  "title": "I’m catching up on two of the best time loop games from 2021",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/29/im-catching-up-on-two-of-the-best-time-loop-games-from-2021",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-08-29T19:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "TechRadar",
    "slug": "techradar",
    "url": "https://www.techradar.com/gaming/im-catching-up-on-two-of-the-best-time-loop-games-from-2021"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In 2021, three time loop games were released, capturing the attention of gamers worldwide: Deathloop, Twelve Minutes, and The Forgotten City. The Backlog series highlights these overdue first-plays, revisiting classics, and rediscovering established favorites through new lenses. Time loop games captivate players by offering a unique narrative puzzle, with new details revealed in each cycle and gameplay elements transformed into invigorating investigative work.\n\nTwelve Minutes, a top-down point-and-click game, features Hollywood A-listers Daisy Ridley, James McAvoy, and Willem Dafoe. Set in a nightmare of Freudian proportions, the game begins with the player arriving home after work and settling down for dinner with their wife. A violent scuffle ensues, and the cycle restarts. The repetitive nature of the game, however, leads to tedious cycles of violence. Twelve Minutes ultimately struggles with these cycles of brutality and its twist ending, which remains distasteful upon re-experiencing it.\n\nThe Forgotten City takes a different historical approach to the time loop mechanic. The player stumbles upon a portal that transports them back to ancient Rome, where the inhabitants must follow the Golden Rule at all costs. The player's primary objective is to break the cycle and uncover the identity of a would-be sinner. The game showcases well-developed characters with personal stakes in the hellish reality and intriguing twists rooted in a historically accurate setting. However, some quibbles persist, such as the helpful Galarius companion's tendency to complete tasks the player has already done, and some inexplicable coincidences in the story's conclusion.\n\nDeathloop, the player's favorite among the three games, uses the time loop conceit wisely, avoiding tedious repetitions. Set on Blackreef Island, the player wakes up every morning at a deserted beach, eventually realizing they must kill eight individuals to break the loop. Unlike its counterparts, Deathloop injects new ideas into the formula, preventing the cycles from feeling trite. The game's unique approach to the time loop mechanic keeps players engaged and intrigued throughout their investigative journey.",
  "summary": "I’m catching up on Deathloop and The Forgotten City, two of the best time-loop games from 2021.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}