Does it, though?

The controls are tight, and the graphics are crisp. And early puzzles show that its "floor is lava with deadly shadows" premise is more nuanced than it sounds.

But the puzzle designs also turned me off a bit, with poorly-telegraphed obstacle timings leading to instant death -- granted the checkpointing is generous, but it still feels cheap. And "Virgil," the voice-in-your-ear Cave Johnson-alike, comes across as a shallow imitation.

Lightmatter doesn't seem that bad, but it also doesn't have enough personality to stand out from its clear inspirations. Why not add some ancient cosmic evils, or non-Euclidean space?

Progress: Solved some light-throwing puzzles, gave up about 30 minutes into the free trial.