Nintendo’s recent exploration of 2D surfaces in 3D space (via cat suits, wall-melding bracelets) finds its most charming expression in Captain Toad. Who else could make such delightful dioramas? Who knows better the pleasures of space and all its secrets? This is the game Monument Valley wishes it could be.

But the Nintendo limits remain. Each jeweled micro-world is perfect in its way, and yet I can’t help but long for a way out of these immaculately manicured 3-secret cages. To explore a wider world of topological play. With secrets more radical, yet still uncovered with Toad’s deliberate little steps.