What is Fixing Time?
Fixing Time is an arcade platformer created by Air Guslar in 2024 that turns personal movement history into a physical hazard. Taking the role of scientist Professor Tim, you scramble across a testing facility to gather broken clock components after an experimental temporal engine fails. Every retrieved chronometer conjures a phantom copy that retraces your recent strides, demanding careful pathfinding to prevent a timeline collapse. You can play directly inside modern desktop and mobile browsers without downloading extra software.
Key features
- Temporal echoes: Retrieving any timepiece activates a phantom duplicate that retraces your exact path across the screen.
- Instant failure conditions: Colliding with your prior historical self sparks a paradox that wipes out the attempt immediately.
- Flexible participant count: Complete stages independently in solo play or tackle rooms cooperatively with another person at the same keyboard.
- Hardware accessibility: Full optimization allows smooth play across desktop setups as well as touch-enabled mobile devices like phones and tablets.
- Platforming puzzles: Navigate ledges, jumps, and tight laboratory corridors while anticipating the future trajectory of your moving clones.
How to play
- Assess the room upon starting to note where all broken clocks are stationed.
- Direct Professor Tim toward an initial target using your movement controls.
- Jump across gaps and platforms to secure the first clock item.
- Track the movements of your new clone as it retraces your opening path.
- Navigate toward remaining objectives while maintaining distance from all active past selves.
- Secure every scattered clock in the room without causing a paradox to complete the stage.
Controls
| Action | Keyboard |
|---|---|
| Single player movement | Left arrow and Right arrow keys |
| Single player jump | Spacebar |
| Player 1 movement and jump (2 players) | Up arrow, Down arrow, Left arrow, Right arrow keys |
| Player 2 movement and jump (2 players) | WASD |
Temporal loop mechanics
Success in the laboratory hinges on managing your chronological footprint. The instant you touch a timepiece, the game logs your preceding run and creates a moving double. This duplicate mirrors your precise speed, jump arcs, and pauses. If your current position touches any earlier iteration of yourself, an irrecoverable time paradox occurs. Clearing stages requires leaving corridors open and avoiding redundant backtracking so that future routes remain unobstructed.
Tips and strategy
- Survey the arena first: Inspect the positions of all clocks before sprinting so you can establish a clean collection sequence.
- Run direct routes: Hesitating or pacing back and forth creates erratic clones that are difficult to anticipate later.
- Keep jumps purposeful: High jumps create airborne duplicates that might clip your character during subsequent platform traversal.
- Coordinate board coverage: In cooperative play, divide the laboratory into separate halves so both players do not cross paths.
- Leave emergency escape routes: Always ensure you have open floor space to retreat if an oncoming clone approaches your landing zone.
Game modes
Single-player mode
Solo mode puts you in charge of Professor Tim as you collect every broken clock across the chamber. You must balance agility and forward planning while steering clear of duplicates spawned from your own prior steps.
Two-player cooperative mode
Cooperative mode allows two friends to share one keyboard at the same computer. One person navigates using the arrow keys while the second uses WASD, working alongside each other to clear the facility without colliding with past iterations.
Similar games
If you like precision platformers and puzzle challenges, consider trying these games:
- Swingo blends bouncy momentum with grapple swinging as you propel a round creature toward tasty fruit.
- Parakite Ninja combines ninja traversal and glider mechanics to dodge obstacles across hazardous terrain.
- Rustyard challenges your logic and timing as you guide an automaton through complex industrial machinery.
Other titles by Air Guslar include Shady Bears, Lords of Gomoku, and Gem 11.
Developer and history
Fixing Time was created by Air Guslar and launched in October 2024. The puzzle platformer centers on temporal duplication puzzles, challenging players to navigate past their own recorded movements. It is playable directly online across desktop computers and mobile devices.
