Review · Adventure · macOS · PC
Through The Pain
Reviewed: 09 Jun 2026
macOS · PC
Legged Barrel studio · 2025
Ludograph rating
Growth (BDS)
42
Risk (RIS)
20
Daily limit
90min
Age guidance
7+
Developmental benefits
| B1 | Cognitive | 0.54 | |
| B2 | Social-emotional | 0.13 | |
| B3 | Motor | 0.55 | |
Through The Pain offers a unique and highly challenging adventure that significantly develops cognitive skills such as spatial awareness, learning transfer, and adaptive challenge. Players will hone their hand-eye coordination and emotional regulation as they navigate complex obstacles and learn from their mistakes. The game's core loop of persistent effort and eventual triumph can be deeply rewarding.
Design risks
| R1 | Compulsion-loop pressure | 0.43 | |
| R2 | Monetization | 0.00 | |
| R3 | Social risk | 0.00 | |
The game's design, inspired by 'Only Up!', heavily leverages compulsion-loop design mechanics. The constant threat of losing all progress (loss aversion) and the 'just one more try' loop (stopping barriers, escalating commitment, near misses) can make the game extremely difficult to put down. While there are no direct monetization or social risks, the intense challenge and frustration could lead to prolonged play sessions.
Content (not in risk score)
| R4.1 | Violence Level | 0.00 | |
| R4.2 | Sexual Content | 0.00 | |
| R4.3 | Language | 0.00 | |
| R4.4 | Substance References | 0.00 | |
| R4.5 | Fear / Horror | 0.33 | |
Content risk is displayed separately and does not affect the time recommendation.
Regulatory design checks · DSA — Assessed: meets criteria·GDPR-K — Assessed: meets criteria·ODDS — Assessed: meets criteria
- DSA:What Ludograph checks: whether the game's design gives minors the transparency the EU Digital Services Act expects: plain terms, honest defaults, and clear reporting routes.: Estimated from review data. No dark pattern or child-targeting concerns found.
- GDPR-K:What Ludograph checks: whether age assurance and consent flows are designed for under-16s, in the spirit of GDPR Article 8.: Estimated from review data. No privacy or child-targeting concerns found.
- ODDS:What Ludograph checks: whether paid random-reward drop rates are disclosed, as required in China, Japan and South Korea.: Estimated from review data. No paid random-reward mechanics found, so drop-rate disclosure requirements do not apply.
These reflect Ludograph's assessment of the game's design practices against each framework's criteria, not a legal compliance determination.