The Turing Test is a sci-fi puzzle game from 2016 set in a remote facility on Europa. It was created and published by indie developer Bulkhead, and despite the obscurity of the source, it launched to generally favorable reviews. Puzzle games are common in the sci-fi genre, with the titanically successful Portal series standing as an obvious example. Less famous examples include The Witness, which became a major success in its own right when it came out in 2016. The Talos Principle and its recent sequel are other prominent examples. The Turing Test might not have reached the same acclaim as its fellows, but it’s still a thought-provoking and meditative experience. If you want to give it a try, here’s what you need to know.
The Turing Test Premise
In The Turing Test you play as an engineer named Ava Turing, who is sent with a research team to excavate the moon of Europa. Some time after the team sets up the facility, Ava is awakened from cryosleep by the AI overseer, T.O.M. The other members of the research team have disappeared, and the facility has been rearranged, populated with strange puzzles which Ava must solve to progress. Over the course of the game, Ava must solve not only the puzzles in her way, but the overarching mystery of what happened to the rest of her team, and what T.O.M. really wants of her.
Like Portal and the other games mentioned above, Turing Test is a first-person game. Your main method of interacting with puzzles is through a special tool which fires power spheres. These are used to activate doors and other pieces of machinery throughout the Europa facility. In true puzzle game fashion, more complex obstacles are introduced as you proceed. Later levels will also see you piloting remote robots and interacting with security recordings.
The Turing Test Main Characters
The Turing Test does not have a huge cast of characters. The disappearance of the Europa team sets up high stakes for the adventure, but it also means there aren’t many people around to interact with. The game is a meditative and introspective experience, which benefits more from extended periods of silence and reflection than from constant dialogue. That said, there are a few major characters in The Turing Test that shape how the story progresses. Here’s a list of the major players.
- Ava Turing: Ava is the only member of the Europa Team who did not disappear under mysterious circumstances at the start of the game. This means she is also the only one who can determine the fate of her coworkers.
- T.O.M.: The Technical Operations Machine is the AI designed to assist the Europa team on their mission. As Ava explores the facility in search of her missing colleagues, T.O.M. assists and guides her. While his help is valuable, it’s unclear just what role he might have played in the disappearance of the other researchers.
- Sarah: One of the sole survivors from the original ground team, Sarah holds the key to unraveling the mysterious past of the Europa facility.
The Turing Test Cheat Codes
Unfortunately, The Turing Test has no formal cheat codes. Since the gameplay is puzzle based, the best way to cheat it would be simply to look up a walkthrough. Not everyone can solve puzzles with ease, and if they’re holding you back from experiencing the story, there’s no shame in looking up the solution. If you’d prefer a more legitimate way to conquer this game, here’s a full list of achievements for The Turing Test.
- Complete Chapter One: Finish the first chapter.
- Complete Chapter Two: Finish the second chapter.
- Complete Chapter Three: Finish the third chapter.
- Complete Chapter Four: Finish the fourth chapter.
- Complete Chapter Five: Finish the fifth chapter.
- Complete Chapter Six: Finish the sixth chapter.
- Complete Chapter Seven: Finish the seventh chapter.
- Complete the Game: Finish the game.
- This Is A Lock: Beat the first optional challenge.
- A Polite Conversation: Beat the second optional challenge.
- The Universe’s Machine Epsilon: Beat the third optional challenge.
- Algorithmic Composition: Beat the fourth optional challenge.
- The Chinese Room: Beat the fifth optional challenge.
- Boolean Logic: Beat the sixth optional challenge.
- Thinking Outside of the Box: Beat the seventh optional challenge.
The Turing Test FAQ
How long is The Turing Test? Most online sources put the length of The Turing Test at around 5-6 hours. There are a few optional challenges you can find and beat for extra achievements and access to story content. Even if you factor those in, though, it remains a pretty compact game. Some players might appreciate this; with major releases getting longer and longer, a brief puzzle experience might be a nice palette cleanser between large open-world titles. Some might instead view the game as too short to be worth the $20 price tag. It’s up to you if the cost of entry is worth delving into this mysterious sci-fi world.