I just don't know about Jonathan Blow.
 
Heh. That rhymed.
 
No but seriously, I don't know. I liked Braid from a gameplay standpoint, even if I never beat it because it was fucking hard as balls, and I appreciated how the game mechanics tied into the story in a meaningful, thematic way.
 
But on the other hand, that story (at least what I played of it) was so immature and self-important, and it's presentation was more than a bit obvious. The violin music and painted backgrounds were just a little too artsy. 
 
The dude put in a quote from a poem into his credits. Like, come on, dude. Have some sense of self-awareness.
 
And now it comes out that he put his new game out on the show floor at PAX, but didn't tell anyone. And sure, he could say that he wanted to reward people for seeking out something special, or that he didn't want people to feel pressured by long lines, but it also comes off as cocky. "Yeah, I ain't gonna show you my game. You gotta come find it, 'cause I'm Jonathan fucking Blow and you'll do it because I'm so fucking great." And then it turns out to basically be just Myst.
 
I don't know. Maybe I'm reading too much into things. Maybe he's a fine guy who doesn't have a high opinion of himself or his work. But that's the impression I've gotten from his writing and his interviews and stuff.

I'm not sure how I feel about quests. On the one hand, I appreciate forum metagames. On the other, it's all just mindless busywork for some experience that really does nothing.
 
Oh well!

It smells like victory.