Monument Valley

Princess Ida walks silently through towers and staircases that loop back on themselves, and the player’s job is to bend that architecture until a path appears. Monument Valley was made by ustwo games, the games team of the London design firm ustwo, in the Unity engine. It came out on iOS on April 3, 2014 and on Android on May 14, 2014, and it is still sold on Google Play for $3.99.

What Is Monument Valley

Each chapter is a single structure drawn in an isometric view, inspired by M.C. Escher’s impossible buildings. You tap where you want Ida to go, and she walks there if a path exists. When it does not, you rotate a section, slide a platform or turn a crank until two paths that should never meet line up from your viewpoint. Because of the flat isometric view, a staircase that appears to connect really does connect, which is the whole trick of the game. There are no lives, timers or scores, and Ida cannot fall, so a puzzle only ends when you spot the right angle.

Ida, Totem And The Crow People

Ida is trying to return stolen geometry to the monuments and to be forgiven for something she did, which the story reveals slowly. Crow People march along set routes and block her path, so some puzzles become about trapping or redirecting them. Totem, a tall living pillar who joins Ida in later chapters, is the character most players remember, because he acts as a platform, a bridge and finally a friend. There is no dialogue beyond short notes from a ghostly figure.

Chapters, Length And The Forgotten Shores Expansion

The main game has ten chapters, and most players finish in about 90 minutes. Forgotten Shores, an expansion of eight new chapters set after the main story, reached Google Play on November 24, 2014. Ida’s Dream, a short extra chapter, was made for Apple’s (PRODUCT)RED campaign in 2015. The short length was the main criticism when Monument Valley launched, even from reviewers who loved it.

Awards, Sales And A House Of Cards Cameo

Monument Valley won a 2014 Apple Design Award, was named Apple’s best iPad game of 2014, and took BAFTAs for Best British Game and Mobile and Handheld Game. It sold 1 million copies in its first three months and passed 26 million by May 2016. A cameo in season three of Netflix’s House of Cards, where Frank Underwood plays it, gave sales another lift.

How Monument Valley Compares To Its Sequels

Monument Valley 2 arrived in 2017 with a new heroine, Ro, and her daughter, and played with a mother and child moving together. Monument Valley 3 launched in December 2024 as a Netflix Games exclusive, with boats and a larger world. Netflix also added the first two games in autumn 2024 for its subscribers. Among fans, the first game is often called the purest, because its puzzles rely only on perspective and rotation, while the sequels add more mechanics and a stronger story.

Does Monument Valley Still Play Well On Android?

Yes. It is live on Google Play, with an update as recent as October 2026, and it runs smoothly on modest hardware. Players who want a calm puzzle game with no timers or failure screens will get the most from it, while veterans of hard puzzle games may find it easy but still worth the short trip for the art and music.