Kid A Mnesia Exhibition

Radiohead's Kid A Mnesia Exhibition is a pretty strange beast indeed. The project is a celebration of two of the band's most acclaimed works - Kid A and Amnesia - which have now turned 21 and 20-years-old, respectively. Kid A Mnesia Exhibition originally was planned to be a physical installation, but it later shifted its focus to the digital realm due to the Covid-19 pandemic. What we have here isn't a traditional game, but rather an interactive experience that delivers an extra visual dimension to these celebrated albums.

If I had to compare Kid A Mnesia Exhibition to any other games on the market then I'd perhaps lump it into the same category as Gone Home and Everybody's Gone to the Rapture. Here you walk between several different trippy set pieces and the accompanying music changes as you progress. In one room, for example, a wall of hand-drawn sketches flickered violently around me to mirror the music's change in tone. Another saw me gazing out towards a moving version of Kid A's mountain range cover artwork, whilst the concluding strings in Motion Picture Soundtrack rang out.

The music here is absolutely flawless, with it containing highlights from both the aforementioned albums as well as a handful of unreleased tracks. I was pleased to see that deep cuts like 'The National Anthem' and 'In Limbo' were given the chance to grace the spotlight along with more obvious picks such as 'Pyramid Song' and 'How to Dissapear Completely.' These tracks aren't just played in full either, as select samples have been used in order to effectively blend them together. The hairs on the back on my neck stood up at the very start when Kid A album opener 'Everything In Its Right Place' beautifully weaved itself into the closing moments of the title track. As a fan, it was just a joy to hear these songs stripped down and repurposed in brand-new ways two decades later.

You can tell that my general feelings are pretty positive, but that doesn't mean that Kid A Mnesia Exhibition doesn't have its drawbacks. The bright flashing lights and rapidly moving visuals can feel intense and are best avoided for anybody suffering from epilepsy. The game is also pretty short when it comes to length too, with it clocking in at about an hour to complete. I can see this dividing the opinions of fans because on one hand there is no filler content, but on the other hand, you can see pretty much it has to offer in one sitting.

In addition to this, I also kept falling off the map and being forced to hit the reset button. Occasionally, I got lost and ended up falling off the stage and there was no way to make a return after falling through the darkness. Having to restart the game was frustrating, but due to its short length, it meant that I never lost too much progress. I should also mention here that the game is free on PC and PS5, so I can't be too critical overall of its mistakes.

After playing Kid A Mnesia Exhibition I couldn't help but wonder why more artists haven't embraced this medium before. The experience, whilst short, provides an extra trippy dimension to these beloved tracks, and the songs featured are beautifully remixed. Whilst I would wholeheartedly recommend it to fans of Radiohead, I can't say, though, that it will please everyone. There is little in the way of gameplay besides absorbing the gorgeous music and artwork, and the constant flashing lights can feel like sensory overload.