A Tale of Paper: Refolded
A Tale of Paper: Refolded
Game
Game2021
Aspire: Ina's Tale
Developer Wondernaut Studio
Set out on a mystical adventure of self-discovery against the backdrop of fantastical landscapes of The Tower. Meet its dwellers and unravel their stories. Manipulate spirits to solve puzzles, and lead Ina on her path to freedom. From the Steam store page
195 reactions from 3 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon) · newest Oct 28, 2026 · last updated Nov 4, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
83
LovedLoved
151 positive · 31 negative
95% range 77–88%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 151 | 31 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 1 | 0 | 10 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 2 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
165 of 198 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
83% recommend · 156 yes, 31 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 187 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (391 of 471 positive).
Players praise the beautiful art style and music, often comparing it to GRIS. [1][2][3] The game is considered short but sweet, with a touching story. [4][5][6]
Liked
Representative posts
- [14]
Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5) I feel a bit conflicted over whether or not I should recommend Aspire: Ina's Tale to other players. Ultimately, I decided that I wouldn't so long as it is not heavily discounted. It pains me to say this, as the style and score are so beautiful and the puzzles are actually pretty fun to figure out. I loved these aspects of the game and I'm saddened that they alone weren't able to make this game …
- [1]
There are games that are so impactful that you’d want to remove from your memory only so you can experience them all over again. For many, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/683320/GRIS/]GRIS is a good example of that: playing through it left countless wanting more. Aspire: Ina's Tale comes to fill in this exact void, and while it does have a lot of similarities with GRIS, it can hardly be regarded as a mere …
- [4]
Short and sweet game with beautiful art style and music. There is no combat so you progress by avoiding threats, puzzle solving, and platforming. Basic combat that anyone can pick up and very generous checkpoints to avoid any frustration. The puzzles are the challenging part, as a couple of them had me stumped for a few minutes. Aspire is a nice rewarding indie experience that you can complete in a few hours. I …
- [10]
Aspire: Ina's Tale is a beautiful puzzle platformer featuring atmospheric music that is brought down by its frustrating controls and mediocre storyline. Saying it is a knock-off version of Gris is doing a disservice to both games - while the similarities are there (beautiful artwork/atmosphere, great soundtrack, female protagonist, puzzle platformer, etc) - Gris does them with style and skill that Aspire lacks. Yet, …
- [2]
Aspire is a side-scrolling platform game that has a 'GRIS-like' feel but requires the precision and timing of Limbo. You guide a small character, sideways, through a series of beautifully crafted environments with a lovely sound track. You meet other characters, evade beasts, and continue your quest to escape 'The Tower.' In each segment of the game, you receive different spirit powers that allow you to solve …
Summarised from 34 of the 200 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Players who liked Aspire: Ina's Tale talk about beautiful art style and visuals; those who didn't talk about frustrating controls and clunky movement. Which matters more to you?
Reactions
60 of 195 · most liked firstThere are games that are so impactful that you’d want to remove from your memory only so you can experience them all over again. For many, [url=https://store.steampowered.com/app/683320/GRIS/]GRIS is a good example of that: playing through it left countless wanting more. Aspire: Ina's Tale comes to fill in this exact void, and while it does have a lot of similarities with GRIS, it can hardly be regarded as a mere clone of it: it’s unique, breathtaking and heartwarming in its own specific way…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Review by [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/34633003-Gaming-Masterpieces/lists/] Gaming Masterpieces - The greatest games of all time on Steam. Is this game a masterpiece? Hm, no, but it is colorful. It is also a good puzzle platformer. You play Ina, a little girl able to learn magic abilities, but also trapped in a damaged magical tower. To escape, she has to repair the tower, while solving puzzles and avoiding the few monsters. And the endless pits. And the acidic pools. Most…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After winning Sounders U16s won final group stage game 1-0 over Aspire Academy (Omar Hassan scored), they face Real Madrid in semis on Thursday.
neutral · AI labelView post →Ina is unexpectedly awakened from a spell like slumber, imprisoned in a tower where here dreams have motivated its inhabitants. Nevertheless, she explores the tower for a way out, encountering characters who question her motives and reason for escaping. Along the way she will need to avoid dangers and solve puzzles by using her powers to manipulate objects and traverse platforms. Gameplay Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ULzEUWAdSM&t=455s 🤔Overall Impressions🤔 The start of the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Just saw some demos of some upcoming Aspire features. Will be a game changer for onboarding and setup of projects! #dotnet #aspire
neutral · AI labelView post →Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3/5) I feel a bit conflicted over whether or not I should recommend Aspire: Ina's Tale to other players. Ultimately, I decided that I wouldn't so long as it is not heavily discounted. It pains me to say this, as the style and score are so beautiful and the puzzles are actually pretty fun to figure out. I loved these aspects of the game and I'm saddened that they alone weren't able to make this game great. I say this because aside from the eye and ear candy, there wasn't…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →12 Days Of Christmas Giveaway! Game: Aspire: Ina's Tale Rules: Like, repost or comment your favourite puzzle game. Follow so I can DM you & for more Giveaways and content! Ends in 4 hours! #gaming #Christmas #giveaway #12DaysOfGiveaways #puzzles
neutral · AI labelView post →Aspire is a side-scrolling platform game that has a 'GRIS-like' feel but requires the precision and timing of Limbo. You guide a small character, sideways, through a series of beautifully crafted environments with a lovely sound track. You meet other characters, evade beasts, and continue your quest to escape 'The Tower.' In each segment of the game, you receive different spirit powers that allow you to solve puzzles to continue moving forward. Puzzles are about timing and pressing…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is absolutely frustrating for a "simple" plat-former game. Convoluted for jumping, switching and running, all while "beating" an invisible timer. Then when you loose it, the save game system does NOT save at the last checkpoint rather I've had to replay the same sequence 4 times and each time, the reload puts me way back in the story, that I've started to memorise all the dialogue. Needless, there was NO!!! reason for this game to be this difficult or convoluted. I'd rate the game…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sounders Academy u16s currently in Qatar at Al Kass International Cup. Lost their first game 2-0 to Rangers. They play Mohammed VI FA (Morocco) on on Saturday at 6:50am. The third group stage game is vs Aspire Academy (Qatar).
neutral · AI labelView post →It certainly is an interesting little game. I don't know about the "relaxing" part though... Some puzzles may hurt your brain. The difficulty of puzzles seem to spike randomly, causing you to wonder if it was just you or the game... XD I have no idea what's going on in the story. I guess it's open to interpretation. It has it's beautiful moments though, as the game IS really pretty. So if you want a kinda short, (I left my game running in the background at one point, so shave off some…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Full playthrough w/ all memory stones here: https://youtu.be/_W7s6xD_0ec This is a very beautiful game the art for the environment characters etc. is extremely well done the music is on point as well. The puzzles are a bit easy unless they have to do with the movement spirit those can be the devil actually. I loved seeing the world I wish I would have got a bit more back story for the characters with the memory stones, but it was a very nice heart warming game definitely recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TLDR; If you're looking for a good puzzle platformer, look for something else. If you're only interested in aesthetics and don't care about the rest, this could be your fit. Overrated. Expected something similar to GRIS, although not quite as polished. Unfortunately this game has nothing going for it except for it's art style and presentation, which is really good to be honest. Sadly the gameplay is totally bland. Your character feels slow, the controls are clunky and the puzzles are not at…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Based on the trailers and very favourable Steam reviews I was expecting that Ina's Tale would be reminiscent of Gris, but unfortunately it wasn't. The art style is very beautiful, and the sound track is athmospheric, but the gameplay was not fun at all. Ina's Tale is advertised as a puzzle platformer, but the platforming part is kind of lacking with clunky movement and frustratingly poor responsiveness. That only leaves us with the puzzles. However, the core puzzle mechanics are poorly…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Short and sweet game with beautiful art style and music. There is no combat so you progress by avoiding threats, puzzle solving, and platforming. Basic combat that anyone can pick up and very generous checkpoints to avoid any frustration. The puzzles are the challenging part, as a couple of them had me stumped for a few minutes. Aspire is a nice rewarding indie experience that you can complete in a few hours. I recommend for anyone who enjoys and appreciates an indie gem that gets you thinking…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →- The story is short and simple, and the music is engaging. - I love the art style. - The puzzles are fun and easy. Get it on sale
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →---{ Graphics }--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☑ Beautiful ☐ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{ Gameplay }--- ☐ Masterpiece ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ It's just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{ Audio }--- ☐ Eargasm ☑ Very good ☐ Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{ Audience }--- ☑ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☑ Grandma ---{ PC Requirements }--- ☐ Check if you can run Paint ☑ Potato ☐ Decent ☐ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🤣 Not a lot of people noticed the wrong logo being used during the .NET Aspire presentation. It was intended to be the #rustlang, not #rustgameengine logo. But it's so easy to do these things in #dotnet #aspire that @bradygaster.bsky.social made it so! github.com/bradygaster/...
neutral · AI labelView post →Bahh, in my opinion this is an incredibly overrated game. I didn't like it at all!! I just couldn't connect to the story, which is poor, unfinished, abstract. The same could be said about the shallow charachters. And neither was I compatible with the game mechanics. First of all, reading the reviews, I thought that ASPIRE is a relaxing platformer. But no, this is 100% a PUZZLE game. The platformer part is secondary. The puzzles are based on frustrating mechanics. You have to use certain…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →.NET Aspire is a game changer for the .NET ecosystem.
neutral · AI labelView post →That description had my interest. Then I saw it's an Aspire game and now it has my attention.
neutral · AI labelView post →An absolutely gorgeous little puzzle platformer that deserves your time. Each area has a new gimmick, so things never get old. The art and music are absolutely to die for, and the game tells an interesting little story with some fun characters. If you liked Gris for example, then I would totally give this a shot. Here's hoping it gets the attention it deserves!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It is a good platform-puzzle game, but why is it tagged as Casual is beyond me. Some of the puzzle require perfect timing, others will make your head spin while you wonder what to switch, rotate, push and things like that. AND when you consider timing you also have to take into account the (sort of) Prince of Persia platforming style, where the character grabs onto ledges and you gotta wait for the animation to play out before you move again. I did liked the Gris style visuals, but the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Was really excited as it seemed to be like Gris, one of my all time favorite games. Here the art is beautiful in most levels, the music was ok, but the gameplay was just not very good. Movement and controls were clunky. Puzzles were just ok. I stopped on the final boss area. I just wasn't enjoying it. Gris has these huge environments which are surreal and amazingly beautiful, and the journey is really an amazing experience like Abzu. But here in this game I didn't get that wow sense.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Well, I purchased this game on Fanatical for a reduced price. It was really a pleasant game, I liked it. I'm not a fan of complexe puzzle but that was OK. I finished it in about 4h30 without completing the achievements. It's really a good game but maybe buy it when he's in sold !
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →5/10 The visuals are fine but the rest is very weak. The duration of the game is 2h and 1h you'll spend on the dialogues. (I've reached 4h mark because i was farming the last achievement)
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Played Aspire: Ina's Tale, a short but beautiful game.
positive · AI labelView post →Aspire is clearly inspired by Gris but it can't quite live up to it. The gameplay is mostly little puzzles of moving blocks and light platforming. The puzzles are not too bad but there could be more variation. The visual and sound design is certainly good, but /compared to Gris) a little incoherent. The dialogues I found really cringy and there isn't really a story, it's more like a collection of vague ideas and suggestions. In the end I have to give a thumbs down because I found it too short.…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really wanted to like Aspire, and for the first few hours, I did. Beautiful, imaginative settings and vague hints to a kingdom that used to shine. The art style overall is really neat and I found myself drawn to the narrative. However... THE CONTROLS ARE ABSOLUTE BUTT. They are fine at first, but you are doing more puzzle solving than platforming at that stage. That's no issue. Once you get to the later stages where timing actually matters or else you die, it becomes so frustrating. Jumps…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Sights & Sounds - The visuals are a little inconsistent. The background art is amazing and very interesting to look at with the angular crystals and shard-like architecture. The character and enemy designs are, in comparison, fairly simple-looking and generic - The animation in this game is grim. It feels sluggish and looks awkward. You don't so much mantle ledges as you clumsily flop your way up them - The score is probably the high point of this game. From the tinkling, austere keys in the…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Aspire: Ina's Tale is a fun game with a decent story ,the same genre as Inside and Limbo . Easy game with some puzzles and secrets overall I give this one 6/10 .
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is very pretty and the soundtrack may well become my next concentration background music. I did enjoy the puzzles and the environments in each part. However at times I found it difficult to distinguish between foreground and background, which was frustrating, and jumping with a joystick was a bit of a trial. Some of the dialogue was intreiguing, but I feel like I never really found out what the "tower" or the "heart" was and why the other characters were in there.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Platformer puzzle game with nice atmosphere and beautiful art style. I might take like 2-3 hours to finish and it was worth the time! + art style + story + music + reasonable achievements - length (might be longer - consider getting it in sale)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I usually love atmospheric puzzle platforming games. The puzzles here are so simple, and the main issue I have is that the character moves so so so slowly, and the spirit transfer/absorb mechanism is so slow that you have to retry the same timed escape challenge over and over because you cannot tell where the hitbox is for the "spirit energy" input. You can immediately figure out what you're supposed to do, but actually getting Ina to do it is painstakingly slow and very unsatisfying. If you…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game definitely has GRIS as insipiration so if you enjoyed GRIS, run for it (or run for GRIS if you like that game, what are you doing, run, buy it, it's one of the best game EVER). I streamed the whole experience and it was relaxing and not complex platformer with little puzzles and a few moment where you have to rush (or die). The story is touching and the question you might have at the beginning (where are the ones who saved her ?) will find their answer in due time. There are 4 poems…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The art is amazing and the soundtrack is absolutely beautiful. The mechanics are a bit wonky and delayed in moments-just not quite polished on that front. It feels like the game is lagging but it's not, and once you 'touch' an edge the only direction you can go is up, even if you just clipped it on your way down. The game is short and the puzzles aren't too complicated but do offer some unique thinking to get through them. Many sections of the puzzles just feel finicky, though, rather than…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A beautiful game hampered by poor responsiveness to the controls. Most of the difficulty for me came from waiting for the game to accept keyboard input e.g. I'd be positioned correctly to pick up something but pressing the action key would do nothing for several seconds. One oversight in the game is that, if one drops an object near to a fixed environmental object (e.g. the uncharged flumyes) one won't (as far as I can tell) be able to pick up the object again. The puzzles are mostly fairly…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A short, but beautiful experience Pros -beautiful visuals -relaxing gameplay -easy puzzles deliver a sense of accomplishment often -while the story doesn’t deliver any out-of-the-box message, it talks about important ideas / ideals Cons -gameplay needs a 150% speed increase -easy puzzles wont challenge experienced puzzlers Despite the few cons, out of which probably game speed would be the biggest and most easy to fix in a whim, I can only recommend you give Aspire: Ina’s tale a shot. Think…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →---{ Graphics }--- ☐ You forget what reality is ☑ Beautiful ☐ Good ☐ Decent ☐ Bad ☐ Don‘t look too long at it ☐ MS-DOS ---{ Gameplay }--- ☐ Very good ☑ Good ☐ It's just gameplay ☐ Mehh ☐ Watch paint dry instead ☐ Just don't ---{ Audio }--- ☐ Eargasm ☑ Very good ☐ Good ☐ Not too bad ☐ Bad ☐ I'm now deaf ---{ Audience }--- ☑ Kids ☑ Teens ☑ Adults ☑ Grandma ---{ PC Requirements }--- ☐ Check if you can run paint ☑ Potato ☐ Decent ☐ Fast ☐ Rich boi ☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer ---{…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"Aspire: Ina's Tale" is a short experience that tells you a great story of a brave lady. It's told through well-thought puzzles and a beautiful environment and a touching soundtrack. I definitely recommend to all people who may have this opportunity. Waiting for the next Ina's story!!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →BEAUTIFUL. Reminded me of GRIS, in all the good ways. Challenging, but not too hard. MUCH too short, I wanted more! The developers are responsive, talented, and kind. Highly recommended!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →short and simple. Great art style. gameplay is basic. puzzles are somewhat easy to figure out. Story is simple yet it is presented in a philosophical way, thats nice. not a lot of dialogues but when there is some its good,makes you think. overall 3.5/5 for me
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Good story,great visuals,amazing music and some very challenging puzzles (I dont usually play puzzle games so I had to look for a video guide for a few puzzles),funnily enough the Ina Jones achievement (complete all the rope/chain sequences without falling) took me longer than The Watchful eye achievement (dont die during the last boss),because I skipped one of the 2 ropes next to each other during the first few chapters,and you need to have it fall to the ground for the achievement. Overall…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Short, simple, relaxing platformer with nice visuals and not too difficult puzzles. The game has got some very lenient system requirements too.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Really fun at first! Love the story and the visuals. I enjoyed it until I got to a puzzle that even though I figured out how to advance in theory, I am not a fast enough PC game player to make it happen with the timing of the elevators. I wasn't able to move forward in the game so I had to quit entirely. Sad. I'm sure more advanced gamers will enjoy this more!
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →4/10 its mostly just walking
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I didn't understand what's going on but I loved every second^^
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Truly beautiful game with soothing music and enjoyable puzzles. Definitely recommend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Aspire: Ina's Tale is a beautiful puzzle platformer featuring atmospheric music that is brought down by its frustrating controls and mediocre storyline. Saying it is a knock-off version of Gris is doing a disservice to both games - while the similarities are there (beautiful artwork/atmosphere, great soundtrack, female protagonist, puzzle platformer, etc) - Gris does them with style and skill that Aspire lacks. Yet, Aspire is still a fun, beautiful game in its own right that simply has some…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →beautiful visuals, excellent sound design, a couple of nice puzzles, relatively short (3-4 hrs max). optimal to play between two things.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →looks very beautiful , story is ok not deep at all , plays well but I did expect something relaxing like Gris but some puzzle are somehow a little tedious by the end of the game something about the switching mechanic between powers is not so good still a good game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is an "art form" game! From beautiful 2D art, wonderful soundtrack to POETRY! A game for those who prefer feeling than acting. If you are looking for an action game, innovative gameplay and a lot of "killing", I don't believe this is the game for you. However, if you are looking for a game with an immersive story, captivating characters and a beautiful message, you will certainly not be disappointed.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I loved this game. The artwork is excellent, maybe one of the nicest I've seen in a while (except for makeup mod for Lydia). I love the soundtrack and how alive it seems.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Aspire: Ina's Tale is a game that does what it does exceptionally well. Is it a sprawling world full of complex mechanics and endless collectables? No - and it doesn't need to be because of the deep and reflective narrative given by the story, the stunning visuals in every area and beautiful scores which fit perfectly to accompany it all. The game is not very long but certainly shows it's strengths. I would recommend it for anybody wanting a gorgeous casual game to play through with some…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →For the price is a steal. This isn't the best game on Earth but it is pretty good. Very recommended. It is on the genre of abstract aesthetic impactful games. You won't have answers to everything but poetry is there and there are nice esoteric elements. Again, for what you pay for this game it is more than worth. Music is nice. Puzzles are nice. Gameplay has some quirks but it flows. Overall again, go for it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you like atmosphere-driven 2D platformers with very simple puzzles: here's another one. Most of the game is OK but the last part is tedious because you have to quickly see what to do and perform it exactly, in time, or restart the segment. 2H to complete the game
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Truly loved this game. The art & soundtrack are beautiful. The puzzles build up as you gain skills thru gameplay. The game is short and grabbed my attention enough to replay for missed achievements. Lovely game.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →A walk to the right simulator. Not enough game here.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Gameplay: 6/10 Graphics & Sound: 9/10 Narration: 6/10 ✔️ The game is pretty short and self-sufficent. ✔️ Some interesting game mechanics. ✔️ Intriguing, though rather cryptic, narration, with some charming characters. ✔️ Very beautiful environments. ✔️ Nice music. ❌ The platforming gameplay is very rigid - which doesn't matter much most of the game, but when the game throws actually challenging platforming at you, prepare to cry from frustration. ❌ The puzzles are sometimes a bit obscure…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Beautiful game. It was a nice way to spend an evening. It's short, the story is not complex, but the flow and art work is captivating and engaging. I enjoyed just watching the backgrounds scroll across the screen. The puzzles were fun. The challenging areas did not take too much repetition to overcome. This is where many games fail where things need to repeated over and over again until fun gets overwhelmed by frustration. This game is not that. It's worth getting. If anything…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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