KO_OP's Goodbye Volcano High was first revealed during Sony's 2020 PlayStation Showcase. Featuring colorful dinosaurs in their last year of high school, the game has been subject to numerous delays. The first came in 2021, when countless other games were subject to the same fate due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022,? it was pushed to this year and then delayed again after missing its June 15 release date.

//twitter.com/KOOPMode/status/1693691706737103311

Its August 29 launch date appears to be the one to stick, as KO_OP has announced that the game has gone gold. The announcement congratulates the team for their "huge achievement", which is understandable, as it appears development was a trying proc?ess. Finally, almost four years after the first reveal, we'll fin??ally get a taste of what the studio has been cooking up.

[caption id="attachment_397940" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via KO_OP.[/caption]

What to expect from Goodbye Volcano High

Fang, Reed, and Trish, members of the band VVORM DRAMA, are three dinosaurs in their final year of high school. With only a limited time left, they'll have to make some tough decisions. In a PlayStation blog post, KO_OP described it as a cinematic game that's meant to feel like binging on a series, though "unlike with TV, you’ll have the power and the emotion in your hands as y??ou guide our characters through a branch??ing narrative."

The game has rhythm elements to complement its musical themes and features an original soundtrack by Montreal-based artist Dabu. A demo of Goodbye Volcano High is available on Steam for ?players to discover more about what the?? game has in store.

The post Goodbye Volcano High has finally gone gold appeared first on Destructoid.

Star Trek Resurgence is Resolute

Captain's Log: Star Trek Resurgence succeeds at telling a gripping story, like many episodes of the long-running series. However, in this game, you're taking on the important role of First Officer Jara and Petty Officer Carter on the U.S.S. Resolute. You'll make impactful decisions, solve mysteries, and truly think on your feet. It's exhilarating as a casual Star Trek fan, but the game does?? suffer from annoying bugs that detract from the?? experience.

[caption id="attachment_381702" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Star Trek Resurgence (PS5 [reviewed],  PC, Xbox Series X/S)
Developer: Dramatic Labs
Publisher: Epic Games
Released: May 23, 2023
MSRP: $39.99

A logical storyline

Over 20 former Telltale staffers—including writers, developers, designers, artists, and producers—are involved in Star Trek Resurgence, and it's clear their story-forward gameplay focus hasn't changed one bit. You're playing as two separate characters—Petty Office Carter and First Office Jara, second in line to the Captain—who have alternate missions throughout the narrative. Both of them have their own relationships they nurture or ruin ?as we've seen from Telltale games in the past. Thankfully, the vague meme of "blank will remember that" is replaced. Instead, there's a detailed explanation of each character's feelings toward your actions. It's a somewhat evolved form of the ?tried and true Telltale formula.

The narrative revolves around Jara and Carter as they face a new ancient threat. The game constantly switches between the characters as the plot moves on with each chap??ter. I won't go into spoilers, but the U.S.S. Resolute faces much more than a diplomatic matter between the Alydians and the Hotari, who are fighting over a valuable resource called Deurideum. As the plot continues, there are shocking mysteries you'll discover that lead to a grand threat to the galaxy. The U.S.S. Resolute and its crew will be fighting for their lives. Carter wants to protect his dear friends, while Jara hopes to maintain a steady ship that's lost so many lives before her tenure.

Difficult decisions

While I'd like more focus on side charac??ters as the series does, the personalities truly shine through. The Vulcan Chovak is frustratingly hard to impress, while Captain Solano is more selfish and wants to preserve his own career over the cre??w.

Like any other Telltale narrative game, the new studio Dramatic Labs makes your decisions difficult. Each decision carries weight on the characters surrounding Jara and Carter. You'll impress one character, and the other will become upset by your actions. They'll also reference their issues or successes from your past judgment later on. Your decisions matter, and trust is a major factor in the game. As I reached ?the climax, I felt my choices mattered??, and tension hung over me as I was forced to choose. The stakes of your decisions actually shocked me; it's a matter of life and death for your crew.

A slow start

Unfortunately, the plot is somewhat slow and meandering during the first quarter of the game as it dives into the conflict between the Alydians and Hotari. Trekkies will enjoy the deep-dive science found in the sci-fi genre. However, the pace was slow until the antagonist showed their face. It gives a bad first impression, but as the story continues, the riveting plot thickens. This is thanks in part to the excellent voice cast and the well-thought-out script.

As a casual Star Trek fan, there were some terms I didn't understand. It does??n't overall hurt the narrative, but it would have been helpful to have some so?rt of encyclopedia about the races or a character bio of each person you meet.

Something that cou?ld be worked on in a potential sequel is the ability to casually chat with your crew members. We go through the basics with each character's back??story, but I'd like to know more about Commander Westbrook or Lieutenant Bedrosian, for example. They weren't developed enough for me to care.

Almost a Star Trek simulator

[caption id="attachment_381342" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Many aspects of being a Sta??rfleet First Officer and Petty Officer are included in this game. You'll be scanning objects with your handy Tricorder, ??flying a shuttle, and, of course, setting your phaser to stun as you shoot down enemies, among other activities. There's a certain attention to detail to each object in the game, and the Tricorder being used in puzzle segments is genius. As you're scanning, you're revealing hints about the plot and lore of these worlds.

It's cool to interact with the  U.S.S Resolute's functionality, like the transporter, and even harness technology from other ships. When you go out exploring each world, it's a rush, especially if you're a Star Trek fan. Dramatic Labs is even faithful to all of the ship and gadget sounds, and the visual aesthetics match the timeline this game is set in.

There is one particular mini-game that isn't explained well. At a few points in the game, you have to configure the Buffer Integrity, Signal Harmo??nics, and Pattern Gain to increase power. Unfortunately, the bars keep moving abruptly, reducing the power meter. For many minutes, I w??as so confused until I realized that the waves inside the bar determine the wavelength of your power bars. This wasn't explained at all, leading to much frustration.

In addition, flying a shuttle is boring. These sections last too long, and the controls aren??'t the best as you move up and down space. Other than avoiding rings?? in front of you, there's not much going on with the shuttle sections other than some conversations between your character and a crewmate.

A somewhat rough launch

[caption id="attachment_381343" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

With prior Telltale games, you expect jank, and despite using a new engine and forming a new studio, Star Trek Resurgence is no different. Despite the multiple delays, the game's pretty buggy. Faces blur, and hair loses focus whenever a character moves. I experienced moments when dialogue was repeated or wasn't activated whatsoever. Even some important subtitles don't show up during conversations. The game's also not a looker. The m??odels aren't that detailed, and some of the characters' faces genuinely creeped me out.

But every once in a while, the art behind the rough graphics shows beauty. The inspiring attention to detail in each Star Trek computer system, the engrossing environments, and some facial animations strike you from tim??e to time. It does make up for its visual shortcomings at points, like when entering unique alien ships and seeing set pieces such as the huge tractor beam shown below.

[caption id="attachment_381503" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Most narrative games of this ilk allow you to jump into multiple points of the storyline, so you can see the alternate choices take shape quickly. However, Star Trek Resurgence's replayability is ha??rd to deal with as t??here's a maddening lack of a chapter-select feature.

The cutscenes last a long time, and it would have been nice to at least skip the text. There are multiple scenarios that ?occur from your decisions, but if you can't access them easily, it truly breaks the fun. Very ?few people will replay the game just to see each ending and character interaction because of how slow your progress is. You also have to keep in mind the sluggish opening hours as well. Unlike the Telltale games, there are no episodes, so you have to start the 10-hour game from the very beginning. This won't be logical for trophy and achievement hunters.

Engage!

Despite multiple graphical and audio issues, Star Trek Resurgence is worth checking out. The experience of the former Telltale employees shows in Dramatic Labs. Somehow, the engine is just as buggy, but the gripping storyline and characters shine bright. It's also cool how dedicated the studio is to recreating the gadgets from this Star Trek era. If ?you're a Trekkie or a casual fan, you should give this g??ame a go.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Star Trek Resurgence appeared first on Destructoid.

A dire future

The Last Worker gives a unique perspective within the dystopian genre: a warehouse delivery employee for a monolithic organization. As the title suggests, you're the last person that hasn't been fired from this ??vital organization. Robots have replaced nearly everyone else at the company. However, as you find secrets about the shadowy owner, you're thrust into an investig??ation that can change the world forever.

With a concept like this, The Last Worker thankfully nails the storytelling with a thought-provoking script and impactful performances all around.?? Somehow, the developers Oiffy and Wolf & Wood Interactive make the act of organizing boxes entertaining, but with a time limit, ??it can feel frustratingly sluggish to control the character's levitating seat.

[caption id="attachment_371381" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The Last Worker (PS5 [reviewed without PSVR2 headset], PC, Xbox Series X/S, Switch]
Developer: Oiffy, Wolf & Wood Interactive
Publisher: Wired Productions
Released: March 30
MSRP: $19.99

The core theme of The Last Worker is how capitalism can be a threat to society if given too much power. Through second-hand accounts from the ch?aracters you meet, you'll learn basic healthcare is only for the elite, and millions are dying as the Earth spirals out of control. The story is deep and provides an engaging narrative throughout as the protagonist, Kurt, struggles to stay with the status quo or stand up against his boss.

Delivering packages

[caption id="attachment_371414" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

To stay off unemployment, Kurt has to keep sh??ipping out those packages. Players will guide him around the warehouse to pick up packages he'll throw into tubes that transport each one to its destination. It doesn't sound that exciting at first glance, but with a time limit in place and the need to place packages in the right section, there's a lot to figure out. In one day of work, you'll want to send as many boxes to their designated area as possible. Otherwise, you'll lose.

While performing this task, you'll look for key details like the size and weight of the box. You'll also need to detect if it's damaged or if the product inside is expired, as those need to be sent to a rejection station. Similar to a game like Papers, Please, you're looki?ng for ke??y details. Making the decision of accepting the box or dismissing it is quite a kick. Your score will lessen if you incorrectly deal with the box. If you get an F, you'll be fired, making you restart the level.

Checking each element of the box under a time limit is actually thrilling. You have to spin it around, gaze at every side of the package, and make sure everything is correct. If damaged or incorrectly labeled, you tag it before returning it to the warehouse. The dev??elopers add new elements to the gameplay loop the further you get into the narrative, making this process entertaining throughout its six to eight-hour playtime. It's also entertaining to see what's inside the package; the items can be very bizarre, but they can also point out what's happening in the outside world.

It will get repetitive at times as you go to the same location over and over, but that is likely the intention in The Last Worker. Kurt has been performing this job for 25 years, and toward the latter half of the ?narrative, he is reaching his absolute limit. Twisting each box, messing with your equipment, and racing to get as many products shipped, despite being tired, reflects what an average warehouse employee goes through every day.

Gameplay issues

Unfortunately, the delivery process suffers from laggy controls. Movements feel sluggish, and having a cooldown to your sprinting motion is frustrating. Aiming is tedious as well as many of my packages fell to the aether below during the opening hours of the game. Despite these issues, I did get used to the awkward controls. As a result, I enjoyed my time as a delivery worker for Jüngle later on ??in the game. You also have to consider that you're playing as an overweight, older man with a walking stick while the robots are fast and efficient. Perhaps that is the reason why the movement is slow. It could be intentional.

One issue that does come up is the lack of direction the game gives you sometimes. Your guidance system doesn't tell you where to go at points, leading to some frustrating moments. After finishing the last delivery level in the game, you're left ??wandering the halls in silence. It doesn't give you any pointers on where to go, a?nd for a long time, I thought the game was bugged. I restarted the level, only to realize there was a broken wall you needed to be near to activate the next part of the game. More functional UI or some pointers during these odd moments would be beneficial.

Be Sam "Deliver" Fisher

Another key element of The Last Worker is its stealth sections. Similar to a game like Beyond Good & Evil, you're sneaking through restricted areas, finding out wha??????????????????????????t really goes on behind the scenes. As you're investigating key areas of the factory, you'll have to maneuver ar?ound robots that are scanning the area and protecting valuable resources like medication.

Finding hidden spots, waiting until the opportune moment, and then sneaking from place to place, such as through a tunnel, is exciting in The Last Worker. You have to use some patience to get through these levels. The developers do throw you? a bone as you get one EMP blast per checkpoint; you can use it to take out one enemy to make the process a little easier for you. Th?ere's also a Hacking Tool mini-game that unlocks doors and safes.

The stealth levels are well-made and will need your noggin to work through. They add a nice change of pace to the overall gameplay of The Last Worker. Still, there are sluggish contro?ls, but once again, you'll get used to them. At the end of each stealth section, there's usu?ally a valuable resource that the protagonist needs, like medicine for his long-lost wife.

An excellent cast

What helps bring The Last Worker's story together is the script and performances from the cast. The characters in the game have well-rounded personalities, and you want to root for them. Their interactions sound natural, and there is wonderful humor spread throughout ??that lightens up?? the dystopian setting. The script delivers the powerful message of standing up to capitalism at the right moments perfectly.

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (The Meg, True Detective) delivers a powerful performance as Kurt. His sarcasm and "dad humor" is naturally delivered. When he's suffering, you can truly hear it in his voice. His robotic companion Skew, played by Jason Isaacs (Castlevania, The Patriot),  is another memorable character as he curses and makes charming jokes towards the protagonist. Skew is an endearing robot you want to protect at all costs. You can tell the two friends are inseparable from their performances. Zelda Williams (The Legend of Korra, Were The World Mine) also plays a role that matches perfectly with the rest of the cast and helps give the emotional weight The Last Worker needs.

[caption id="attachment_371413" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Unfortunately, those fine performances can't quite save The Last Worker from ending on a sour note. There are three different options available to you from what I've played. Without going into detail, the true ending is undesirable. You don't get the payoff you're hoping for, as it's way too short. The other two endings juxtapose each other and make you scratch your head. In addition, there are some lines of dialogue that are?? repeated over and over and over again, pulling you out of the experience.

A unique art style

[caption id="attachment_371417" align="alignnone" width="1200"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Judge Dredd comics artist Mick McMahon is behind the striking art style in The Last Worker, and it shows. Within these cel-shaded graphics are some striking facial lines, impactful environmental imagery, and a darker take on beloved characters like Mickey Mouse and Sonic the Hedgehog within packages. It really pops on the screen and illustrates the dire, yet colorful tone The Last Worker is going for. It's a shame I couldn't experience this game in VR with PSVR2.

A well-crafted tale

Despite a few issues with the controls, The Last Worker is a riveting 6-to-8-hour narrative experience. Sorting each box as a pseudo-employee is surprisingly entertaining, and the characters are endearing. There are also twists and turns in the storyline that will keep you gripped throughout this journey, at least until the endings start to play out. With the gorgeous visuals by Mick McMahon, fun gameplay, and meaningful script, I'd happily recommend The Last Worker. You just ne?ed to struggle through the awkward?? controls and some confusing game design.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: The Last Worker appeared first on Destructoid.

Back in the U.S.S.R.

Yesterday, my Review in Progress for Atomic Heart went live, focusing on a few of my thoughts covering th?e first ten hours of the game. When I submitted my draft for edits, I honestly didn't know where I stood with the game.

There were elements I liked about it, mostly centered around its art direction, as well as some design choices that didn't necessarily sit well with me. With a lot of games, ten hours is more than enough time to draw a clear conclusion about how you feel about it. With Atomic Heart, I needed to see it through to the end.

And then I needed to see it through to its oth??er? end.

[caption id="attachment_364428" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Atomic Heart (PC, PS4, PS5 [reviewed], Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S)
Developer: Mundfish
Publisher: Focus Entertainment
Released: February 21, 2023
MSRP: $69.99 ($59.99 on Steam)

The opening moments of Atomic Heart can best be described as a Stalinist's wet dream with how it depicts its idealized vision of the Soviet Union. A city, floating in the clouds, with people lining its streets and waterways conversing about how great life is under communist rule as they prepare to learn about the future of their empire. Dmitry Sechenov, arguably the most famous scientist in all of the Soviet Union, is set to unveil Kollectiv 2.0, a neural network tha?t will connect all Soviets using a small invention known as the THOUGHT.

Its full launch is imminent, but before it can be brought online, some matters need handling. Back on the surface world, an area ??known as Facility 3826 is no longer operational. Robots, built with a substance known as Polymer that has been the backbone ??of the Soviet's successes, have lost control and killed most of the workers at the facility. To mitigate this disaster, Sechenov employs Major P-3, who, along with his Polymer-powered talking glove, CHAR-les, sets out to get to the bottom of this robot rampage.

The early hours of P-3's journey across Facility 3826 are easily the most troublesome he'll face. With just a melee axe and a gun at his disposal, players will have to adapt quickly to Atomic Heart's combat system lest they fall victim to the many robots that are out for blood. P-3 will have three different attacks at his disposal, inc??luding guns, melee weapons, and glove skills. As he kills robots and the other creatures that have ravaged this once-picturesque land, he'll collect Polymer and materials he can use to craft and upgrade his skills and weapons. The first glove skill he unlocks is Shok, which lets him cast out an electrical charge that can stun enemies for a very brief time.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQOeZPLHook

Other glove skills include a frost attack and shield, but Atomic Heart's choice of control scheme really limits a player's ability to use their full suite of skills. While Shok is always equipped via the triangle button, P-3 can only equip two of his other glove skills at once, and only one of those can be used at a time. You can switch between these two skills by hitting up on the D-Pad, but I didn't find it to be an intuitive system when trying to survive an onslaught of robots. Switching between weapons is just as cumbersome on a controller as you scroll through them pushing left or right on the D-Pad. Given that most of Atomic Heart??'s menus point to a game that was primarily optimized for a mouse and keyboard rather than a controller, the controls on the PlayStation 5 leave s??omething to be desired.

That's not to say I struggled with the game. In the early buildings of Facility 3826, I did encounter the Game Over screen more than I would have liked to, but it wasn't an issue with the controls. Part of that was me getting into the rhythm of the combat. But it was also due to just how quiet these robots can be. You really have to be aware of your surroundings in this game because these robots enjoyed trying to take me from behind. And it wasn't unusual to face off against several robots at once and have one or two try to sneak their way around me when I was distracted by other enemies. It's a sound tactic, one I was able to counter once I gathered enough Polymer to improve P-3's speed and dodge capabilities. Once I did that, I was able to peel back the curtain on Atomic Heart's combat and realized it was rather elementary.

Certain enemies do have elemental weaknesses that you can learn via scanning, but if you don't have any weapons boosts that can exploit said weaknesses, then all you can do is hit them with a combination of dodges, melee attacks, gunshots, and whatever glove skill??s you have equipped at the time. While that combination might sound ripe for experimentation, the anemic nature of the glove skills can be a real letdown. Shok was the only consistent glove skill in my arsenal, though I got a good amount of use out of a skill that hangs your enemies in the air, letting you swing at them like pinatas. That's pretty much how I spent all my Polymer beyond upgrading P-3 himself, and honestly, it was all I needed.

The game does attempt to amp up its difficulty by hitting you with clusters of enemy types, but as long as you stay?? on top of upgrading P-3's capabilities, once you get out into the open area of Facility 3826, you probably won't face too much trouble.

[caption id="attachment_364441" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

What you may have trouble with, however, is caring about Atomic Heart's story. It's a rather basic tale of people in power trying to tighten their control of the world with P-3 standing in the middle. Social commentary is kept to a minimum, though various audio logs, emails, and audio attachments within emails do add some flavor to the world and show that life in the Soviet Union isn't as glorious as they would like you to think it is. As for P-3, the secret to his backstory is largely predictable given that several early bits of dialogue tell you exactly who he is. Speaking of the dialogue, it's atrocious in English, so you're better off turning on subtitles and switching the language option over to Russian. Just know that, because Atomic Heart is heavy on the conversational dialogue between P-3 and CHAR-les, ??you might miss a great deal of exposition when trying to read the tiny subtitles during the heat of battle.

I was hoping the story would actually have something new to say, but there's nothing here that hasn't already been said countless times before. While the narrative threads do touch on some interesting topics, such as how Russian robots are changing life for workers in America, it ultimately plays it rather safe with two equally unsatis??fying endings. When loo?king at P-3, he doesn't venture far from his initial view of the Soviet Union. He comes into this journey as Communism Fanboy #1 and rarely ever bends.

I actually become frustrated by his lack of growth given the many conversations he has that should have been the catalyst for some introspection. Not that I'm arguing his adventure should have ended with him getting a massive erection for western capitalism, but this dude strai??ght-up waffles on basically every piece of information he gets. I thought perhaps ??the developers were molding him to be a dumb hero who just doesn't absorb anything he's told, but he's not dumb. He just chooses to ignore most of it because it clashes with the beliefs he already has.

If I were being generous, I would say that P-3 was Mundfish's way of?? critiquing those who refuse to change thei??r points of view despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, but that might be giving the developers too much credit.

[caption id="attachment_364426" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

What I can say is Atomic Heart's narrative does not do its setting justice. Facility 3826 is a monumental achievement of design, with an outstanding representation of Stalinist Architecture a??nd Socialist Realism. From the propaganda posters to the statues that tower over the land, Mundfish has crafted a Soviet Union that, outside of the floating cities and advanced robotics, feels like something Stalin and Lenin could have achieved if they weren't so busy murdering their own people. There are so many breathtaking sights that I would often stop playing just to soak it all in. Credit where credit is due, the environmental artists and programmers who brought this world to life did an outstanding job.

It's a sh??ame, then, that the gameplay does this world a disservice by filling it with so much bloat. In the early hours, the bloat can be seen by all the keys you need to fetch to open doors. P-3 even comments on how he's a magnet for shitty door-locking mechanisms. Once you get outside and into the fresh air, you can feel the developer padding the game time again with an open world that connects all the different stations that make up Facility 3826.

On paper, a sandbox open world sounds like a good idea. Why not connect all these intricate locations with the actual land and houses the workers of this facility call home? In practice, however, it's mostly just a lot of open space. You can take your time and hoof it from place to place on foot, fighting robots and avoiding sensors along the way, but the game will supply you with poorly-controlled jalopies that hasten travel time. Though, given that most roads? are littered with disabled vehicles and robots for you to crash into, you're going to have to walk through these sections more than you might plan to.

[caption id="attachment_364425" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

If there is anything that makes these long treks across the land worth it, it's the outstanding music you'll hear along the way. Admittedl?y, the game is a bit overeager to explain why so much music that would never exist in 1955 Soviet Russia can be heard here, but that really doesn't matter when the soundtrack is this good. Composers Mick Gordon, Geoffrey Day, and Andrey Bugrov did an outstanding job scoring this game, whether it's music that sounds like it was ripped from an old Russian propaganda film or the ear-shattering metal t??hat accompanies some of its fight sequences.

While you can wrap up Atomic Heart in about 15 hours, there are ways to extend your stay in Facility 3826, including puzzle-based training facilities that unlock upgrades for the weapons you can craft. After publishing my Review-in-Progress, the game was updated with a patch that added a way to return to the grounds of the facility after beating the game, allowing me to go back and finish up any tasks I may have missed. It's a nice addition, but I honestly don't have much reason to return to Atomic Heart other than to gawk at its architecture.

And really, unless an extensive photo mode is added in a future update, I don't see myself ever booting up Atomic Heart again. I admire the gusto with which Mundfish approached its debut game because it's created one hell of a world to explore. But beyond its pristine setting and ass-kicking soundtrack, it's largely forgettable. Maybe if the gameplay evolved beyond its basic beginnings or if the story was �?I don't know, good �?I might be willing to give it another go. However, given how unlikely such a monumental change like that would be, Atomic Heart is destined to?? be a?? one-and-done type of experience.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Atomic Heart appeared first on Destructoid.

When being "nice" gets a little dark

Sitting in a cab on the way to talk to the rough-and-tumble Woodsmen, Bigby and Snow White discuss their ongoing murder investigation. Snow White asks Bigby,The Big Bad Wolf in human disguise, who ??he thinks murdered their victim after everything they've learned. Several choices pop up on? the screen. Do I think it's The Woodsman? The Pimp? Bluebeard? Or do I remain silent?

The Wolf Among Us is one of the most popular narrative games from Telltale Games, with a sequel hopefully coming in 2023. Players play The Big Bad Wolf acting as Sheriff in Fabletown, a neighborhood in New York City populated by famous fable characters. The game looks?? like a comic book and feels like a gritty noir detective story. But with talking animals.

What really makes it amazing is the choice-based storytelling. How you decide to interact with the people around you affects how they will interact with you in the future. You aren’t starting with a blank slate though. The?se characters have all experienced a history together before the player takes over Bigby's choices. As part of t??he narrative, Bigby is attempting to make amends for his violent past, but with the choices provided to you, it's possible to lean into the aggressive behavior citizens expect from him. 

It occurred to me that I am playing Bigby a lot nicer than I could. With every choice, I soothe other characters, doling out compliments and empathizing whenever possible. I even managed to avoid the startling and hilarious “glass him�?moment mentioned in this article about narrative choices gone awry. 

How we make choices

While every narrative game is unique, they all prompt the player to play in a few ways. The most obvious way to make choices is for the sake of the story. Tons of players make choices that direct them to a desired outcome or just to follow the best storyline. Often, being nice is the best way to get what you w?ant in-game. NPCs tend to be less friendly if you punch them in the face the first chance you get. 

Also, making enemies is almost always worse than making friends. I’ll never forget getting locked out of the house by my friend as a bloodthirsty w?endigo pounced ??in Until Dawn. I had lost her trust with several of my pr??evious decisions, but the betrayal stung rega??rdless. The Wolf Among Us is a little less intense in this aspect, but on a first play-through, who knows? Maybe Mr. Toad will be waiting for me in a dark alley if I push him too har??d. 

Making choices that you feel will move the story in your favor makes sense, but another avenue is to play in character. ??In this case, you would choose replies or actions that fit the character you’re controlling as closely as possible. In the case of The Wolf Among Us, Bigby is fleshed-out just enough to guide our actions. We are told right away, Bigby is Th?e Big Bad Wolf, and he has a temper. Smashing a bar glass into a suspect's face right after they share their feelings seems about right for him. Honestly, playing Bigby as quiet, calm, and understanding as I do is very out of character.

[caption id="attachment_362543" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

On the other hand, a player could be happy to explore the mechanics of the game itself, testing out different choices to see what happens with each play-through. Trying out different ?combinations of choices to see different results sounds really interesting, but it also shows an emotional dist??ance from the story.

Which brings me to how I play narrative games. I feel a compulsion to only p??ick nice interactions, not because of character and story, but because I have difficulty separating myself from it. There are plenty of players like me who for the life of them cannot pick the mean choice despite knowing that it's all pretend. For us, being nice almost isn’t a choice at all. It has been conditioned into the way we navigate interpersonal communication in real life, and then it bleeds over into the game.

Why so nice?

I think the lack of curios?ity and exploration is part of why I'm bothered by my play style, but it isn't the main reason I bring it up as an issue. On the surface, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong with taking the nice path. It usually works out storywise, and we've alread??y established that none of it is real. Why get hung up on being nice? In short, I'm tired of the dark underlying cause of why I'm unable to be anything but nice.

There are plenty of good reasons why we may insert our own friendliness into the game. Empathy with the characters is an excellent reason. While talking to Snow White, it occurred to me that I was interacting with her like a best friend or ideal boyfriend. During every interaction, I attempted to boost her confidence and support her as a good partner should. I even felt a little guilty when I answered Snow's question about the murder suspects with silence. My silence m?ade her feel uncertain.

Also, and obviously, it feels good t??o be nice! Listening to people and reasoning with them is a wonderful default. Most of us like nice people and want to be kind oursel?ves.

[caption id="attachment_362547" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

The thing that bothers me is what I said earlier about Mr. Toad. On the first play-through, knowing that my choices will have consequences, my deep-down concern is? self-preservation. What if I'm rude and then I'm attacked? What if I fight and I lose? I'm sorry to say that in real life, I am always thinking about how to avoid trouble. Whether it's when I quit a job or when I try to say no, I have been conditioned to avoid conflict.

If you will all allow me a moment to be vulnerable with you, there isn't just a social expectation for women to be nice all the time. It's also a necessary survival mechanism. Saying no too forcefully can be physically dangerous. Hurting the wrong man's feelings or damaging his ego can even lead to deadly consequences on rare occasions. And lately, it isn't just women in danger when tempers? flare! The fact that people are getting shot in road rag??e incidents is alarming.

I'm deeply annoyed that this compulsion to protect myself by soothing tempers and guessing consequences follows me into the virtual world. Sure,? I'm grateful for the survival mechanism, I guess, but I want to be able to escape it sometimes. Especially when I have the opportunity to be a tough wolf sheriff, wouldn't it be gr??eat to let go for a while?

The post Nice guys finish first in The Wolf Among Us appeared first on Destructoid.

My top 12 games of the last 12 months

2022 was my best year for games ??for what feels like a good, lo??ng while. There was excellence across the board from all of my favorite genres, including narrative titles, farming/life simulators, and rhythm games, just to name a few. I know I'm not alone in saying that it was really difficult to narrow down my choices for my favorites games of the year. I wanted to have a clean top ten, but I've had so much fun this year I had to make way for a few extras.

In all honesty, I've spent the last few years repairing my relationship with games �?I don't think it's a secret that working in this industry is rough, especially when it comes to working QA. Looking back now over all the games I've played and truly loved this year, I can't help but feel a bit sentimental. In spite of my complicated feelings when it comes to this medium, I keep ge?tting pulled back in by the sheer passion that game developers continue to put on full display.

2022 has been a year of reminders of why I was drawn to this industry in the first place. I was worried that the emboldened, on-fire version of myself was dead, but little did I know it would only take a few extraordinary indie titles (and some therapy) to slowly wake he??r up. For me, this year was about finding the fun in games again, and even when it comes to the more serious titles on this list, I had nothing but fun all the way through. In no particular order (except the last one, I guess), here are my favorite games of 2022.

Vampire Survivors

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HXNxWbRgsg

I love playing games while listening to podcasts or video essays, which is how I ended with around 400 hours in both Hades and Slay the Spire. After burning out on both of those, I was in desperate need of a new podcast game. Thankfully, it was Vampire Survivors t?o the rescue, and when I finally added it into my rotation after hearing of its ??greatness for weeks, I knew it was going to be an instant favorite.

It's such a simple, easy-to-pick-up game, but I can tell there are still so many secrets to uncover. I also never play games on my phone because it's just not my thing, but I keep coming back to the mobile version of Vampire Survivors, which I think really speaks ??????????????????????????to the strength of its streamlined design.

Disney's Dreamlight Valley

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=UY5KdtnK4dU

I was a little late to the party on this one, only having started it a few weeks ago, but it turns out Disney's Dreamlight Valley is exactly the kind of cozy experience I have been looking for. It's got my favorite Disney characters, it's got the cozy cooking/farming/foraging quests, and it's all streamlined in a way that doesn't require me to use any brain power whatsoever. I was in desperate need of a "turn my brain off" kind of game, and the calming, warm embrace of Dreamlight Valley helps sooth my anxiety like climbing into a fluffy bed on a cold, rainy ?day.

Stray

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uP2MyUL49s

I'm a cat mom, so it would basically be illegal for me to hate this game. I feel like I've written about it to death at this point, but I can't deny that it was one of the prettiest, most heartwarming games I've played all year. Something else I've dealt with has been getting over a crippling existential dread after leaving my cult-like religious upbringing, and Stray's story had what I thought was a really hopeful story about the end of the world. It helped me reconcile with some of that existentialism more than I ??realized at the time.

Ooblets

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RcMRQo7Rl0

God, Ooblets was such a breath of ??fresh air. I was lucky enough to get to review the farming sim crossed with card-based Pokémon style battles for Destructoid, and I had an absolute blast playing through it. It was yet another game with a bright, happy art style and sugary sweet writing, so of course it was right up my alley. It was easy to fall into the relaxing gameplay loop, and the story surprised me in how delightful it was to go through, especially toward the end. My only regret is that I didn't play it on the Switch.

Pentiment

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxJ5sOpqw-o

I'm always a sucker for a murder mystery, but one that's set in the middle ages with an authentic art style to match? Yeah, I was hooked from the beginning. One of the other things I really love about Pentiment is that it has a ton of small design choices that all come together to a really streamlined point-and-click experience, and when all of those little improvements came toget?her it made a world of differen??ce.

In a landscape of storytelling that also seems so obsessed with having definitive answers (see any "END OF X MOVIE/SHOW/GAME, EXPLAINED" video essay on YouTube), Pentiment dares to leave you with ambiguity and a ??lack of ??closure in some scenarios. What happens, happens, and you kind of just have to roll with it. It's one of the most refreshing approaches not only to the whodunit genre that I've seen in a long time but also to stories in general.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeVapCrI1pY

On the flip side of my cutesy, cozy sensibilities, I am an absolute simp for the Call of Duty series. I'm a big fan of first-person shooter gameplay, and few other franchises have gotten it down to a science like Call of Duty has. I got into the series back with Cold War, and of the few titles I've played, Modern Warfare II is by far my favorite.

The movement is fluid, the guns are a ton of fun, and it has the best maps of any other CoD games I've played, hands down. I had a ton of fun going thr?ough the campaign this time around as well, and of course I'm happy as long as Shipment is around. This is the multiplayer game I've been reaching for the most this year, so of course it had to have a ??spot on this list.

Potion Permit

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=3uQPlRP5XC4

I was surprised that I felt so compelled to put Potion Permit on this list, but it truly was a delightful experience all the way through. It's another game I got to review this year, and while I'm clearly a sucker for farming/life simulators, Potion Permit is a particularly good one. For one t?hing, it's the first in the genre that doesn't require you to actually farm, and instead switches up the usual formula by having players go out into the wilderness to gather ingredients to create potions for various reasons.

The town was incredibly charming, and the developers did a great job of making each character feel incredibly unique and complex. It was fairly buggy when I played, but I'm sure those issues have mostly been patched by now. If you're looking for a cozy Switch game to curl up with, I absolutely recommend Potion Permit.

NORCO

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=lARSSx_dDOw

NORCO has to be one of the weirdest and most-thought provoking games I've ever played. Another entry into the ever-growing subgenre of Southern Gothic narrative games, NORCO's story centers on a family living in the cyberpunk future of New Orleans. The story takes some crazy twists and turns, and while a few of ??the gameplay sections felt a bit stale, the surreal story and breathtaking pixel art were more than enough to secure a spot as one of my favorite narrative games of the year.

Signalis

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfi7ivjXD3Y

I really thought I wasn't going to be able to play Signalis on account of my being a wimp, but I'm so glad I proved myself wrong. There's such clear inspiration from horror classics like the early Resident Evil and Silent Hill games, and yet Signalis carves out its own gut-wrenching, beautifully orchestrated niche. I love the unique art style, I love the creepy and engaging worldbuilding, I love the understated storytelling that says so much. Signalis got some great hype thi?s year, bu?t I still don't think it was enough.

Cult of the Lamb

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsPtUNB1z-Q

Cult of the Lamb is one of those games I was intrigued by since the first trailers I saw, and I am pleased to report that it did not let me down in the slightest. I'm always a sucker for cute art styles, but it was the combination of simulation and action roguelike mechanic??s that reall??y hooked me.

While I've recently struggled to play a game for more than about an hour at a time, I could not put Cult of the Lamb down, and played through it in a few marathon sessions. I loved the gameplay loop so much, I ended up writing a feature about how "perfect" it is, so it's safe to say that Cult of the Lamb was one of m?y favorite games of the year, especially when it came to that addicting gameplay.

Trombone Champ

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpQ8a3c7EAQ

I don't play rhythm games enough, but when I do, I'm reminded that it's one of my favorite genres. I'm mediocre at best, but I've always been a dancer and musically-minded person, so it's a good time. Then when Trombone Champ came out, it made failure part of the fun �?which means it was perfect for me. Part of my struggle in enjoying games again has been that for a while, I took them way too seriously. Trombone Champ is s??o? delightfully goofy and ridiculous, it helped a lot in me breaking out of my shell and having some unadulterated fun.

Immortality

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8tV-R7Rfhg

Okay bear with me, because this is the one where I get a little pretentious �?when I initially decided to get into video games, it's because I was so impressed at how the medium was telling stories in entirely novel, innovative ways. While I've come to a whole new level of appreciation for games being just games, every once in a while I'm reminded of how exciting I find games that bring something new to interactive storytelling. This year, that game was Immortality for me.

The performances, the themes, the interactivity itself, it was all so beautifully executed. The way my stomach dropped during the game's famous twist is a gaming moment that I will absolutely never forget. I think it's safe to conclude that Immortality goes down as my favorite game of the year, and when the releases were ??as stacked as they were in 2022, I think that's saying something.

The post Noelle Warner’s favorite games of 2022 appeared first on Destructoid.

This is the stuff I live for

The horizons of my video game tastes have broadened pretty significantly over the past few years, but my undying love for narrative games first and foremost has never wavered. While 2022 has been a great year for games in general, from heavy hitters like Elden Ring and God of War Ragnarok to indie darlings like Cult of the Lamb and Vampire Survivors, I think this past year has been one of the best we've seen for narrative games in a good while due to the bread?th of stories that were told both thematically and mechanically.

Whether those stories were rooted in lighthearted, optimistic sentimentality or a grounded, gritty introspection, I was reminded time and time again why I'm so excited for games to continue paving the way forward as our youngest and most dynamic storytelling medium. Here are some h?ighlights of wha??t I consider to be some of the most compelling narrative games to have come out in 2022 �?if you're interested in interactive storytelling and haven't played through these yet, I suggest adding them to your backlog ASAP. Keep in mind that I'm only touching on my absolute favorite narrative games of 2022 with this short list, so if I missed a truly groundbreaking game narrative this year, make sure to let me know down in the comments!

Stray

I was so pleasantly surprised by Stray. It's a game I excitedly jumped into as a cat lover, but I'll admit that I didn't expect much more from it than some cute yet vapid interactions and some run-of-the-mill gameplay. While I actually foun?d myself enjoying the platforming mechanics that helped me see the world from a cat?'s perspective (especially in the game's most open hub section, The Slums), it was its story that I found to be unexpectedly poignant and uplifting.

I certainly didn't expect to come to care for a tiny AI robot whose introduction at the time seemed to only be for tutorial purposes, or that a game with a cat as a protagonist would provide one of the most delicate and thought-provoking stories about the end of the world that I've seen as a fan of apocalypse fiction.

For me, what really worked for Stray was more in its minute, subtle interactions with NPCs and the environment than in its overarching narrative itself, but the game managed to keep its hold on me the entire way through to my tearful c?onclusion of its story. This is a game I've thought about a lot over the months since I played it, and I look forward to returning to it sometime in the future.

NORCO

I've followed NORCO since it was previewed at Tribeca's Games Festival back in 2021, and while it was absolutely snubbed at this year's Game Awards, I'm still so pleased that it's gotten the love that it has. Being from the South myself, I'm partial to southern gothic storytelling, and NORCO did the subgenre proud as the best to delve into the American South since Kentucky Route Zero.

Also similar to Cardboard Computer's modern classic, NORCO leaned hard into surrealism and used it to deliver some truly unforgettable commentary about capitalism and our connection to the land on which we live. NORCO's writing is poetic and sometimes downright hilarious, and it has some of the most beautiful pixel art I've ever seen in my life. Some of the gameplay elements weren't exactly my ??favorite, but it's overall a good time if you like point-and-clicks, and its storytelling should certainly not be over?looked.

Signalis

Signalis is a game I wasn't sure I was going to be able to play at all on account of my aversion to horror, but I'm thrilled that I was able to push through. Signalis' story is told in a less traditional manner, and in more of a way that I can only describe as "vibes" outside of its journal entries scattered around the map, and I think it was brilliantly done. I love a story that poses a lot of questions, and while Signalis provided?? many more questions than answers, it succeeded tremendously at exploring the lengths we're willing to go for the people that we love, especially when we have nothing to lose.

As you make your way through a ruined space station, the story of Signalis almost feels like it's already happened, with the player left to wander around in the aftermath wondering how it all could have g??one down differently. It leaves you with this sense of futility, and yet somehow still hope. It's a story you feel more than think your way through, and in that sense, it has more heart than any game I've played in a long time.

Pentiment

I feel like there are two types of gamers in the world: those who like Pentiment, and those who don't. Point-and-click is already a polarizing genre, but I feel like when people saw the game's authentic medieval art style, they decided right then and there that the game was or wasn't for them. To those who were quick to write it off, I'm begging you to reconsider, because this is one of the most compelling murder mysteries I've ever played in a game, which is also helped by the streamlining of some o??f the more cumbersome point-and-click conventions.

Pentiment is a game that surprised me again and again in the absolute best ways, but what really stands out the most is how it refuses to give the player definitive answers, which not only re-contextualizes the whodunit genre, but also how a lot of us think about video game storytelling in general. This is a game that has incredible replay value, so I'll likely be starting another playthrough before the year's out just to see how mu?ch everyth?ing changes on a different path.

Immortality

To me, Immortality is not only the best narrative game of the year, but also a milestone of the medium's continued innovations in storytelling, following in rank with Disco Elysium and The Last of Us as one of my favorite interactive narrative experiences of all time. It explores its themes so intimately and in such compelling ways, and I ca??n't get over how well the three "movies" of Marissa Marcel play off of each other. This game has some of the most incredible acting performances o??f recent years as well, and the gut-wrenching twist is one of the gaming moments that will truly stick with me for the rest of my life.

When people talk about video games as art, especially a storytelling art, Immortality needs to be at the top of that list. It's a narrative that co??uld truly only be told through an interactive experience. I feel like I could write volumes on the depth and complexity of this game, and I likely will in the future after subsequent playthroughs. For now, though, I'm still kind of basking in it �?and of course, going back, again and again, to try to find every last clip that I'm missing.

The post 2022 was an amazing year for narrative games appeared first on Destructoid.

Let's round up all the narrative games that caught my eye

It's no secret narrative games are my all-time favorites. I went into this year's Game Awards not expecting much, but l?ittle did I know I'd be punched in the face over and over again with some incredible game trailers. There are a ton of great games to look forward to over the next couple of years (many of which are not on this list), but I had to take the time to highlight some of the games that have me amped.

It's actually a pretty good mix of DLC and sequels to some of my f??avorite titles, and also some new IPs that w??ill be breaking out onto the scene with their debut title. Regardless, I walked away from the show more impressed than I have been in a long time -- it seems the Awards hit at just the right part of the these games' development cycles to get a ton of great trailers all at once.

Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=VF5HA--CPXc

The Horizon games are loved for ?many reasons, chief among them being their gorgeous environments and stunning vistas. We've seen some really cool post-apocalyptic versions of some of our favorite locations from the series, but now Aloy is headed somewhere new: Los Angeles. Admittedly I'm a bit biased here seeing as that's where I live, but there is something inherently awesome about seeing a giant mechanical dinosaur laying waste to the Hollywood sign.

There are tons more stories to tell in the Horizon universe, so I'm really pumped to continue along on Aloy's adventure and see where that story leads next. Well, ??I guess it's to the Santa Monica Pier...

Judas

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=4A8RAMqXwbg

The Bioshock series is one of my favorite franchises of all time. It paved the way for story-heavy single player experiences, particularly the original Bioshock back in 2008. It was a real shame to see Irrational Games break up, because suddenly one of the most creative storytellers, Ken Levine, wasn't goi?ng to put out any other titles soon. That's why it was so exciting to see that Levine was opening his very own studio, Ghost Story Games.

Enter Judas, Levine's first return to game dev since the Bioshock Infinite: Burial at Sea DLC from 2014. The new game will be set in space, and seems to an FPS gameplay style that's similar to Levine's other work. Judas also looks so stylish in a really cohesive, unique way, so I have a feeling it's going to be a game that was worth waiting for. We've only just seen the first trailer, but I could see Judas easily becoming one of my favorite game?s of its release year, if not of all time?.

Valiant Hearts: Coming Home

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKa0Ve1LW7I

Valiant Hearts is a brilliant narrative game from 2014, and I honestly don't think people give it enough credit. There's something really special about making a war game that's not a shooter or strategy game, but instead focuses the lives of the people who put their own survival on the line. Complete with a beautiful, hand-?drawn art style, it's a really moving game.

After eight years, we're finally getting a sequel: Valiant Hearts: Coming Home. It's releasing on Netflix, so hopefully this will be an opportunity for players, and maybe even people who don't us?ually play games, to check out the series.

Replaced

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-EO2UkMB9g

Okay this one is technically cheating because it was previously announced, but I'm counting it because I didn't know about it before, and it intrigued me enough that I want to talk about it. Right off the bat, I was sold on the visuals alone. I'm a sucker for a cool art style -- the more unique the better. Replaced has a really awesome-looking combination of 3D and 2D pixe??l styles (aka 2.5D), and I've never seen anything like it.

On top of that, playing as "an artificial intelligence trapped in a human body against its own will" is maybe the most raw synopsis for a game I've ever heard. The description does say it's a platformer, a genre I am notoriously terrible at to the point that I can't even finish them, but Replaced ??is so up my ??alley I'm gonna have to give it a good ol' college try.

Death Stranding 2

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp6fSjMb0MQ

Death Stranding??'s story is goofy and weird to the point that it's kind of camp, which I don't think we have enough of in games. Kojima's stories tend to make me throw my hands up and go, "okay, I guess," but there is something surprisingly compelling about that feeling, I think. If there's one thing I can't deny, it's that Kojima's games are always unique, which, in an industry that rides trends pretty hard, it's cool to see a creator really paving their own path.

Not only did we get our first trailer for the game at the Awards, but ??we also got to see the first trailer. Naturally, no one has? any idea what's going on in it, and I think that's more due to its being intentionally abstract over it being a teaser trailer. Either way, I'm ready for another wild ride. And also blond (or is it grey-haired?) Norman Reedus.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc9LfV4Dgsc

I'm a big fan of Don't Nod. I was lucky enough to review their newest entry in the Life is Strange series, True Colors, and I was blown away by the quality of the characters and writing. While their most recent work has been more slice-of-life (albeit, some of the titles are darker than others), Banishers looks like a really cool venture into the fantasy genre for them, while still maintaining a focus on characters and storytelling. Don't Nod's website describes the game as a "beautiful, i??ntimate and powerful story between two fated lovers."

Oh my god there is nothing they could have said that would make me more excited for this game. I've been wanting to see more games focused on romance outside of the dating sim genre for a long time, so Banishers is absolutel?y a title I?? will be playing upon release, and greatly looking forward to it until then.

Hades II

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDxVTS8ITNk

Saving the best for last, I was screaming my head off when I saw Supergiant's logo on the screen. Hades is one of my favorite games of all time, and after all was said and done I put about 350 hours into it. Supergiant not only created one of the best roguelike gameplay systems eve?r, but also ?told a really beautiful story at the same time, which is not an easy feat.

We're going to have a whole new protagonist this time around, Melinoë, who is actually Zagreus' sister. Supergiant's website says that the game will be set in a "deeper mythic world, vanquishing the Titan's forces with the full might of Olympus behind you." That includes some new gods and divine beings, too, including Apollo and Nemesis, for example. Hades II looks like it's going to have plenty of what made the first game great while still giving us tons of new stuff, and from first glance, it's everything I wanted from a Hades sequel. There are a ton of awesome games coming up, but Hades II immediately jumped to the very top of "most anticipated game??s" list.

The post My most anticipated nar??rative games announced at The Game Award??s appeared first on Destructoid.

This year's Best Narrative nominees have fans buzzing

It's that time of year again -- the Game Awards nominations are finally out. As expected, the year's biggest AAA titles like God of War Ragnarok, Elden Ring, and Horizon Forbidden West dominate in a lot of the major categories, and while it's not controversial to assume that one of those i??s going to take home the grand prize of Game of the Year, it's the Best Narrative nominations that are stirring up the Discourse this time?? around.

The full list of Best Narrative nominees includes Ragnarok, Elden Ring, Forbidden West, A Plague Tale: Requiem, and Immortality. It's a reasonable-yet-predictable list, but regardless, fans are up in arms about Elden Ring and God of War in particular. There are a lot of different? takes going ??on here, so I'll do my best to try and break it down.

Bring on the discourse

A lot of FromSoft fans are really excited to see Elden Ring getting praise for its nonlinear, worldbuilding-focused storytelling. Many are citing that they're used to only seeing games that are very on-rails and cutscene heavy in the Best Narrative category, so they're glad to see some variety in the category for once. I also get the impression that a lot of the long-time Soulsborne fans see ?this as vindication for FromSoft's narrative design as a whole, because while their games have become increasingly known for the quality of their lore, this would be the first time it's being acknowledged on a large scale.

//twitter.com/??TheAndyCortez/status/1592340614594859008

Naturally, we have the reverse side, where many gamers are upset that Elden Ring was nominated for Best Narrative because its storyline -- at least in a traditional sense -- is so sparse within t?he experience of the game itself. There's an argument floating around that if you need YouTube lore dump videos to understand the story, then maybe that's not the best representation of the storytelling potential of the medium.

Then there's God of War Ragnarok, the least surprising nominee for the Best Narrative category I might have ever seen. The two sides of this debate harken back to the same two sides of the narrative game debate we have every year, like some kind of age-old blood feud: either linear, cinematic games have merit as game stories, or they don't. Some see Ragnarok as a clear example of how far video game storytelling has come, while others see it as another mindless series of cutscenes without any sort? of narrat??ive innovation.

//twitter.com/MarioPrime/statu??s/?1592201533483286528

Snubs, snubs everywhere

Most of the conversation is consists of gamers giving their hot takes on the two biggest nominees in the category, but I'm honestly more concerned with the Bes??t Narrative nominees, or more specifically, the titles that were overlooked despite being some of the b?est story-driven experiences of the year.

The fact that The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe Edition isn't mentioned at all is honestly criminal. The original version of the game came out in 2013, and it's still cited as one of the best narrative games ever created. It was way ahead of its time as a biting, thoughtful commentary on games, games as art, and art in general. The Ultra Deluxe Edition was just as good -- I ended up giving it a 10 in my review, and it really did feel like the next evolution of The Stanley Parable's pitch perfect satire of the games industry, brought?? forwa??rd into 2022.

NORCO, a southern gothic point-and-click adventure set in the lowlands of Louisiana, was easily one of my favorite games of the year. It's a surreal, gorgeous romp based in tons of real-life research, and I genuinely can't think of another game I've played that captures the same vibe. NORCO did get ??a shout-out from the Game Awards as a Best Indie Debut nominee, but I thought for sure it was going to be a conte??nder for Best Narrative as well.

Stray is another title that's gotten lots of love both from fans and at the Awards this year, but I think it deserved a spot in Best Narrative, too. Sure, it's a cute little game where you play as a cat and make friends with robots, but I think it's also one of the most hopeful and swee??t stories about the end of the world that I've se??en in a long time ??-- and I love apocalypse fiction.

Signalis' absence from the Best Narrative category -- or any category at the Game Awards, really -- is the most heinous to me this year. It has some truly creepy, compelling worldbuilding, and uses everything from its visuals/environments, sound design, and gameplay systems to make that story all the more effective. Horror games are usually a tough pill for me to swallow, but when it came to Signalis, I absolutely did not want to put it down.

There are plenty of others that were equally as deserving of a nomination as well, I hear, that I just haven't gotten around to playing yet, like Pentiment, Xenoblade Chronicles 3, and Citizen Sleeper.

What does "Best Narrative" really mean, anyway?

As some have pointed out, it's hard to discern what "Best Narrative" is really supposed to entail in the first place. With categories like Best Art Design or Best Performance, it's pretty clear what they're awarding, even though those disciplines take just as much hard work and expertise to perfect. The thin?g about storytelling in games is that it can be implemented in a million different, equally valid ways, so its harder to have a baseline of compariso?n sometimes.

It's not really clear whether the award is supposed to be commending the game's story itself in terms of the quality of the narrative that is being told in the first place, or commending how that story is part of the game through its narrative design and innova?tions in storytelling-focused game mechanics. Stories are already so subjective to begin with, having what makes a good interactive narrative be a moving target only muddles the consensus even more.

//twi??tter.com/TylerGlaiel/status/1592252249203695617

We don't take the Game Awards seriously, but we also do

Regardless of the criteria, I'm of the mind that most of the categories at the Game Awards specifically are going to be dominated by the shiniest-looking AAA release of the year anyway. I feel like the Game Awar?ds sit in this weird paradoxical space every year. No one really takes it seriously because one, it's a meme, but two, the nominations and winners often don't feel like a true reflection of which titles were deserving of recognition. At the same time, it's one of the biggest gaming events of the year somehow, because I guess Geoff Keighley had enough cash and star-powered friends to throw at it that it seems to have the most legitimacy of any other game awards show? It's bizarre if you ask me.

The current system is a mix of fan and industry votes, and the nominations are made by a "voting jury ?of over 100 video game m??edia and influencer outlets." I guess it would make sense that the most-played games of the year would make the list over some that might be more deserving just by sheer numbers alone, but if you ask me, the whole thing could be revised to better reflect players' true ??feelings. I have no idea how that might be done, but I'm sure someone out there who's smarter than me could easily figure it out.

You like what you like

It feels like a messy situation on pretty much every front, because if there's one thing I know for certain about gamers, it's that we can never seem to agree on anything. I frankly never took? the Game Awards all that seriously to begin with, but it's hard to deny their hold on the industry. I think for now I'll just stick to my usual plan -- watch the Game Awards out of morbid curiosity, and look to other institutions to hear about the best games of the year, like the BAFTAs, DICE Awards, or GDC Awards, for example, or even just some of the onl??ine gaming publications that I know and trust.

It's easy to fall into the trap of taking awards too seriously, either as validation or insult, but it's important to remind myself every so often that my enjoyment of a game is not defined by what anyone else has to say about it except for ?me.

The post What’s up with the Game Awards’ Best Narrative category? appeared first on Destructoid.

Take a trip down to the bayou

NORCO was one of my favorite games of 2022, with an eerie tone, surreal visuals, and a setting that has some of the most profound political commentary I've seen from a game of late. It's a must-play if you like story-driven games or point and click adventures, and it's honestly a crime that it wasn't nominated for Best Narrative at the Game Awards, because the writing is absolutely gorgeous. NORCO has been out since March, but the game's developer Geography of Robots just an??nounced today via Twitter that the southern gothic adventure is now available to? play on PlayStation and Xbox consoles.

Naturally, the?? game's controls were entirely reworked for controller instead of mouse and keyboard, and the devs also confirmed in the Twitter thread that the PC version of the game also has controller support now. They even included a helpful graphic that breaks down how the control scheme will work on a PlayStation Dualshock. Basically, you can either use the left stick as a virtual mouse, or simply use the D-pad to select "hotspots or other UI elements." Big win for controller simps like me.

//twitter.c?om/roboticgeo/status/15932655079390986??25

For those who may not know what to expect from NORCO's gameplay, Geo??graphy of ??Robots describes it pretty well in yet another tweet:

"Gameplay-wise, it re?sembles classic first-person text-based pixel adventures like Snatcher, Deja Vu?, Policenauts, VA-11 HA-11 A, Read Only Memories, Circuit's Edge, Rise of the Dragon, etc. There are also combat minigames. You can automate them if you want."

NORCO ?is one of those games that I enjoyed so much that I want to buy it on another platform, and I have to admit I'm enticed by the idea of playing it on a bigger screen. Regardless of any awards, it's one of the ?most stylish, thoughtful indie games of recent memory, and I think in the long run, it'll stick around.

The post Best Narrative snub NORCO is now ?avai?lable for consoles appeared first on Destructoid.

Craft your own narrative in early 2023

As a fan of both literature and puzzle games, Storyteller has been one of my most anticipated games of the year. The game takes place in the pages of a storybook, and requires players to combine different elements like characters, settings, and objects to create coherent stories. There are multiple ways to solve each puzzle, making for some fun, creative, and challenging gameplay. Storyteller was first announced during last year's Annapurna Interactive Showcase, which showed off the basic mechanics of the game in a short trailer. After almost a year and a half of waiting, Annapurna finally announced Storyteller's official release date for Steam and Nintendo Switch: March 23, 2023.

While indie darling factory Annapurna Interactive is publishing Storyteller, the entire game was a made by a single developer, Daniel Benmergui. It's a simple premise for a game, but after playing the demo, I can say that it's impressively crafted and polished. Storyteller is ??by far the most quaint little puzzle game I've seen in a long time, and based on its engaging gameplay, I expect it will make a real name for itself as one of the most delightful releases of next year.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwfI0L40480

Many of Storyteller's puzzles are based on classic stories like Romeo & Juliet, Dracula, the Biblical book of Genesis, and more, much to my delight as a former literary classics-focused English major. Aside from the time-looping take on Hamlet that is the 2019 adventure game Elsinore, and I can't think of many other games that draw on classic lit, but they really should. I would give anything for a Telltale-style narrative game based on John Steinbeck's East of Eden, or a Jane Austen-inspired dating simulator. We're always talking about the intersection between games and film, but I'm much more intrigued with games that take heavily from literature, like the beloved and elegantly-written Disco Elysium.

The post Annapurna’s Storyteller finally has a release date appeared first on Destructoid.

If you could only pick one game, what would it be?

Sometimes I'm so immersed in my little narrative bubble in the games industry, I forget that there are some people who have never play??ed a story-centric game in their lives! Considering the industry is more flooded with titles to choose from than ever before, it can be difficult to branch outside of the comfort zones of our favorite genres because there's so much to ?play. No judgment �?it honestly just gets me more enthused that I could have the opportunity to introduce someone to some of my favorite games of all time. That's exactly what happened this weekend when I got to chatting to a friend who works in esports (something I know equally little about as she does narrative games). She asked me for a recommendation, and in my excitement, I started rattling off a huge list of games before I could stop myself.

I make it no secret that The Last of Us is my favorite ?game of all time. It has some of the mos??t tight, character-focused writing you're going to find in games, the mechanics play really well off of the story, and it also just holds a special place in my heart.

However, when I started telling this friend about narrative games, I was surprised to find myself recommending Disco Elysium first and foremost. I think maybe it's been on my mind recently because I just had an in-depth conversation with a friend about it, but the more I thought about Disco Elysium, the more I tho?ught that maybe it's a better representation of what narrative games have to offer.

Sometimes your favorite isn't the best way to go

The Last of Us is a really great game, but I understand some of the criticisms that it's too linear -- although the "playable movie" kind of thing is Naughty Dog's bread a??nd butter.

Anyway, Disco Elysium is a game that not only has choices and branching narrative,?? but you can significantly alter the narrative or characters based on how you choose to play. It also has such an organic feel based on what you find or don't f??ind, and while you can miss out on some cool moments, finding them can make for a magical experience.

While The Last of Us has its merits as one of the greatest narrative games ever made, Disco Elysium's story is one that I think is greatly enhanced by the fact that it's a game, even in its weaker moments. Overall, I think there's a case for it being the bett??er narrative game recommendation. Of cour??se, it also depends on who your audience is.

I love reading, so a text-heavy game like Disco Elysium is something I naturally gravitate towards. The endless walls of text might make someone bounce off, therefore r?endering my recommendation unsuccessful. There's also the fact that in some instances, th?e game relies on prior knowledge of tabletop tropes and mechanics.

If the prospective player has never touched a d20 in their life, it might be another reason for Disco Elysium to feel alienating. All of this to say, I think it's still one of the best e?xamples of game narrative and I'll gush about it to anyone who will listen.

My honorable mentions

Other reco??mmend?ations I sent to this friend as some of my favorite narrative games are as follows:

• Firewatch
• What Remains of Edith Finch
• Kentucky Route Zero
• Florence
• BioShock
• Portal and Portal 2
• Stray

For all my ramblings, I want to know, which game do you think best represents video game storytelling? Which game comes out on top of a story game battle royale a??s the best ambassador to our non-story-gaming friends? What games make up your honorable mentions list? Let me know down in the comments!

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post What’s the first narrative game you recommend to someone? appeared first on Destructoid.

A musical miniseries with a surprising amount of heart

I wasn’t sure what to expect with We Are OFK. Based on the trailer, I thought it was going to be the usual fare we get with episodic, choice-based narratives (which I love). When I ??started playing, I was surprised to find that We Are OFK is less of a game and more of an animated miniseries with interactive elements, including music videos. It made a lot more sense that it was recommended to me to play on “whatever [my] preferred TV watching setup is.”�?em>We Are OFK is also considered a biopic by its creators, and while I'd more categorize it as a memoir, the point is that the project is a fictional telling of the forming of a real virtual band, which sounds more confusing than it is.

When I sat down to write this review, I thought a lot about whether to review it as a game or as more of that interactive series thing �?it’s just in a sort of indistinguishable middle ground. I love that though, because it’s not something we see often in the games space at all, and I find it refreshing. That be??????????????????????????ing said, I’m just going to be as honest as I possibly can, and critique the few interactive elements as I would any other narrative game. I have a lot to say. Let’s go.

We Are OFK (PC [reviewed], Nintendo Switch, PlayStation)
Developer: Team OFK
Publisher: Team OFK
Released: Aug 18, 2022 - Eps. 1 & 2, Aug 25 - Ep. 3, Sep 1 - Ep. 4, Sep 8 - Ep. 5
MSRP: $19.99

We Are OFK follows a group of four friends in Los Angeles as they navigate work, family, relationships, and the difficult process of creating art. I love a good slice-of-life story, and this series delivered on that front. The main cast includes Itsumi, a spunky concert pianist/social media manager for a large gaming company; Carter, an eccentric, workaholic artist who likes to keep their story somewhat of a mystery; Luca, a bubbly singer/songwriter who struggles with self-doubt; and Jey, ??a fiery music producer with a no-nonsense outlook.

It’s worth noting that the main cast are all part of the LGBTQ+ community, but that never takes center stage as the defining characteristic of who they a??re. They are full, complete people first, and we see their queerness as a true expression of them, not preachy postulation for the sake of it. Even for a story based on real people, that can be a difficult balance to strike, so I’m excited to see such thoughtfully written examples of this community.

I can relate

Here’s the thing �?I am the exact demographic for this game. I live in LA, I’m a writer, I love pop music, and I’m bi. If anyone was going to really relate to thi?s ga??me, it’s me. However, I think that the strength of the writing makes it so anyone can really enjoy playing/watching We Are OFK. If you’ve ever wondered what ??it’s like to work in the games or music industries, this is one of the most realistic looks at that life you’re gonna get, for better or for worse. 

Moreover, th??is might be a bit of a controversial take, but when it comes to narrative-centric games I care more abo??ut good writing than mechanics. Despite my bias, even I am willing to admit that We Are OFK is a bit shallow when it comes to its mechanic?s. If you’re looking for an interactive story that has incredibly chill, relaxing gameplay, as I often am, it’s close to perfect on that front. At that point, it just comes down to pre??ferences.

The first hint that We Are OFK was more of a miniseries than game was the length of the episodes included under their titles, exactly like how you see it on a streaming platform. I get weird anxiety about not knowing how long it’s going to take me to play a game, so that’s actually a detail I’d love to see some more traditional games take on a?s well. When you pause, there’s a?lso a progress bar that shows you exactly how much time there is left in the episode, again, like any typical VOD UI. 

Can't hype the writing enough

What shocked me the most was the quality of the writing. First off, I thought We Are OFK was going to be a run-of-the-mill, yet lovable, story of a band's rise to fame. Instead, it's way more focused on the characters, which was a bold choice, but one that I thought was perfect for the grounded story of interpersonal relationships that they're trying to tell. Right away, we ??know who all of these characters are. They have distinct personalities, flaws, believable motivations, rich relationships with each other �?I could go on. This makes sense considering they were all based on real people, but I have no way of knowing how much of the story and characters were actually pulled from their real-life counterparts. Either way, they’re the most realistically written characters I’ve seen in games in a long, long time.

The conversations always feel natural, like you can feel how well these characters know each other and how comfortable they are. You constantly se?e each member of the group’s values clashing with the others as well, perfectly emulating the real-life ebb and flow of modern relationships. They’re just doing their best in tough circumstances, and actively trying to be there for each other while also going for what they want in life. I walked away from the game not only rooting for these characters, but deeply understanding what makes these people tick.

I also have to break out to give extra kudos to the writing of Episode Four, titled Splits. I can’t give much away, but it was one of the most delicate, complex examinations of grief, trauma, and being there for your friends that I’ve seen in anything�?ever. Most of the rest of the episodes were abo??ut on par, but there was something especially poignant and beautiful about the fourth episode �?and the character it wa??s focused on suddenly became my favorite.

Some of the dialogue did? irk me a bit, only because it veered into no-one-actually-talks-like-that territory,?? similar to the issue Life is Strange had. But the chara??cter arcs and structure were so strong, and it didn’t happen all that often, so it absolutely was not a deal breaker for? me. The other critique I have of the story is that I felt like things wrapped up a little too quickly, but again, it’s a small gripe in the face of some of the best character-focused writing I’ve seen in years.

Let's talk interactivity

Like I said, the interactive elements weren’t super prevalent. The most common of them were dialogue choices either via text message or in regular conversation. This is standard fare �?if you’ve played jus?t about any narrative adventure, you know what you’re i??n for. The choices are pretty much always flavor text, but I don’t really mind it. We Are OFK never presents itself as a game where your choices matter, or much of a game at all for that matter. I for one happen to like flavor text, but while some people may not agree with me on that, it can still be fun to choose how your cha?racter reacts in any given situation for the sake of it.

You can also acce??ss a few text conversations on the main menu, which are fun little surprises to look at in between episodes. It’s a nice touch to get a glimpse into what the characters are doing wh??en we’re not there.

Then there are the interactive m??usic videos. There’s one per episode, usually placed to accent a strong narrative beat that occurred in the story. Now I don’t know a lo??t about music, but the EP is considered indie pop. I listen to a lot of CHVRCHES, and the music in We Are OFK reminded me a bit of their early stuff. From what I can guess, virtual bands like Gorillaz and K??/DA were a big influence. Sorry i??f that doesn’t help you music people out there �?it’s the best I got. OFK has a single out that’s featured in the game, though, so you can listen to it before you play if you want.

Anyway, back to the interactivity: similar to the dialogue choices, the interactive music vi?deos are more about style than anything else. There aren’t any fail states, and for the most part they include clicking on pretty visuals to a beat. I thought these were a lot of fun because of how they went along with the songs, and how they played into the story at the same time. 

We’re not reinventing the wheel here, but if you like little interactive musical vignettes w??ith no stakes that are nice to look at, you’ll have a good time with it. I enjoyed every single song, too, which was a pleasant surprise. I guess if you’re?? going to make a whole game about making an EP, it’s a good thing there aren’t any weak links on the tracklist.

There are a couple more stylized interactive set pieces, and they were my favorite “gaming�?moments of the whole thing. These were usually short and again, didn’t have any bearing on how the s??tory played out, but it was fun to have some different styles mixed into the low-poly characters and painted backgrounds.

Critiques and final thoughts

As much as I enjoyed We Are OFK, I do have to?? disclose some jankiness that I encountered. Some of the music video bits were lacking in polish, and I would have liked to see those ?moments really be locked down considering they were the only parts that had more involved mechanics. Also, while the art style is purposefully minimal, the animations can be pretty stiff. You also get a lot of objects clipping through the characters, which only becomes more noticeable when you don’t have much else to pay attention to but them.

I had subtitles on the whole?? time as well, and I was pretty bummed that they didn't show up during the music videos, which is when I needed them most. Strangely, there were moments in the narrative part o?f the game where subs would randomly fail to show up, too.

The wa?y the interaction is incorporated kind of reminds me of Netflix's Bandersnatch, in a way. Not because it’s similar to We Are OFK in any way, but it does make me think of how my f??riends and ??I made a night of sitting down, watching Bandersnatch, and arguing over each others�?choices. Obvious??ly We Are OFK has basically the opposite tone, but the idea is the same in principle. It feels like it would be a blast to watch with friends, casually pass around the controller, and have a chill night in. I know if my roommate weren’t out of town this week, it would ha??ve been something they would have loved to sit down and watch/play with me.

We Are OFK is absolutely not for everyone. I feel like a lot of people are going to write it off before even giving it a try, which I think is such a shame because for every bit of self-indulgent and downright silly it can be at times, it is also every bit co??mpelling, inspiring, and just goddamn well-written.

So much of We Are OFK’s identity is its style, but I have to say that it has the substance to back up its hyper-stylized vision. When you look at it less as a game and more as an interactive expression of the creative process behind an EP, it really is a lot of fun �?you just have to be willin??g to meet it there, and look at it for what it is rather than what you think it should be.

Does it benefit from being interactive when it comes to its storyte??lling? That’s kind of up to you. If you allow yourself to become immersed in it, using the interactive bits ??to express how you feel as an observer of this story, that’s when you’re going to get th??e most out of ??this experience. 

It’s my job to be honest here, and the conclusion I’ve?? come to is that I’m really glad We Are OFK exists, and I think you should absolutely play it if you’re looking for a good narrative game. It’s not a great representation of in-depth gameplay, but it’s ju?st a well-told story, plain and simple. I’ve heard some people say that the series looks like nothing more than an ad for OFK’s EP, and if that’s the case, it’s the best ad I’ve ever seen in my life. Even if it feels out of your comfort zone, it can say with absolute certainty that We Are OFK is a fun time�?if you lean into everything that it ??is.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: We Are OFK appeared first on Destructoid.

Clicking on static text has never been so exciting

Narrative games may be a small niche within the gaming industry as a whole, but there’s an even smaller subsection of the genre that a lot of gamers don’t know about: interactive fiction also known as IF. With the exception of some UI upgrades or a musical score, the vast majority of IF is just simple text on a screen that the player clicks through. It exists in the space between my two favorite things: literature and video games. Technically interactive fiction got its start in the late 1970s with text adventures like Zork, but now the world of te??xt-based games has taken on a whole new life.

I’ve always dabbled in the world of IF, but when I came across this thread on Twitter, it reminded me that the community surrounding?? this genre is more active among the writers and narrative designers in games than one m??ight think.

I love interactive ficti?on for a few reasons, chief among them being that I love reading, but also because IF does something that a vast majority of games do not �?it puts story above gameplay. I ?know this is kind of sacrilegious in the games space, but in the world of IF, interactivity is used more for artistic narrative expression than anything else.

This one is really growing on me

Take the piece titled �?a href="?//lizengland.itch.io/growth" target="_blank" rel="noopener">growth�?by Liz England, for example. ??I recommend playing it (it’s short, like two minutes tops) before you proceed, because I’m about to spoil it.

It star?ts with the player finding a growth on their hand, and gives them a few options like “Call a doctor�?and “Call a friend.�?As they start making these choices, however, they realize that nothing they can do will really help to make the growth go away. The choices soon become more and more unhinged, and eventually end with the player cutting off the growth themselves, w??hich they then realize is their thumb.

I love “growth�?because it’s essentially an interactive poem that meditates on losing control of your thoughts. It’s short and simple, but it does a great job of illustrating how quickly we can devolve into our own intrusive thoughts. The twist at the end of the growth being your thumb all along is a jarring return t??o reality, and has a twinge of silliness to it.

“growth�?is also a great example of how IF uses a lack of autonomy in its favor.?? You can click on the options in any order you w??ant, but ultimately, you will always arrive at the same conclusion. Not to go all textual analysis on you, but it ties into the narrative so well because the player character can’t even stop sawing off their own thumb even when they want to.

Choices don't matter, and that's great

A lot of gamers seem to have come to the conclusion that if your choices don’t matter in a narrative game, then the game is poorly designed. What these player?s mean, of course, i?s that they want their choices to alter the game’s narrative in a way that feels noticeable.

The irony here is that choices never really “mattered�?anyway, because until we have AI and procedural generation that’s strong enough to create a story on the fly, developers and writers had to create every possible scenario that the players could encounter. I??t’s much less about players having real ?control than it is making them think that they do.

Anot??her must-play in the IF genre that also illustrates this point beautifully is �?a href="//matthewseiji.itch.io/twwds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Writer Will Do Som??ething�?by Matthew S Burns and Tom Bissell. The premise is that you’re playing as a games writer who’s sitting in on a meeting for the AAA game that they’re working on. Not only is this game hilarious, but the whole bit is that no matter wha??t the writer says or does, the outlook of the meeting keeps getting bleaker and bleake??r, and the executives are convinced that “the writer will do something,�?hence the title.

It’s an eerily accurate depiction of what it’s like to make games at a big studio (unsurprising considering Bissell worked on franchises like Gears of War and Rocksteady’s Batman), but it’s also effective in using cho?ices that don’t change anything to make you feel increasingly hopeless and dejected.

Making your own IF

The other awesome thing about IF, especially for those who are just getting started as writers, is that the tools to make them are really accessible and easy to use. The two most popular are Twine and Ink, both of which can ??be ported to Unity and have also been used to create commercial games. They’re both open source as well, ??so they’re free, have active communities, and the companies behind them are always working hard to improve the software.

My personal favorite is Ink because it’s a custom scrip??ting language, so there’s a lot of functionality there. However, if you’re more of a visual learner, I recommend Twine because you can chart your whole story with boxes and arrows that connect all the pieces.

I’m only scratching the surface here of what IF can do, so if any of this sounds interesting to you, I’d encourage you to check it ??out. There’s a whole world of interactive storytelling out there that runs the gambit of experimental, emotional, weird, exciting, and beautiful, and while I love a classic gaming experience, intera??ctive fiction will always hold a special place in my heart.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post Interactive fiction: the fascin?ating space between literature and games appeared first on Destructoid.

Memories are all we have

The Annapurna Interactive Showcase from last week might hav??e only been 25 minutes, but it was packed with all kinds of new trailers and info on upcoming releases. One game I hadn't seen before was Hindsight, and as a lover of narrative games (especially those published by Annapurna??), I knew it was one I wanted to ?try out.

In Hindsight, you play as a woman named Mary, traveling through her memories as she recounts her relationship with her parents, her mother in particular. The two have a somewhat strained relationship, wherein Mary's mother is controlling,?? which is often at odds with Mary acting like a normal kid.

Hindsight (PC, Nintendo Switch [Reviewed])
Developer: Team Hindsight
Publisher: Annapurna Interactive
Released: August 4, 2022
MSRP: $14.99

Here's my problem �?when looking at the big picture, the story of Hindsight is perfectly functional. It gives us hints here and there about the true nature of Mary's relationship with her mother, of the underlying resentment for her mother's cold, distant behavior even when she needed her most. But I'm afraid in this case subtlety may have been mistaken for ?un?derdeveloped characters. 

If our dramatic question is "how do we reconcile with the difficult relationships we had with the people we love, especially after they're gone?" th?e game leaves us still hanging on that idea rather than addressing it �?even going so far as to outright ask the player that question nearly verbatim in its final moments. 

I needed more

I'm all for ambiguity, but it needs to be earned. I felt like the whole game, I was being told, not shown who these characters were. I wanted it to really dig in and sh??ow me how one character's actions affecte?d another, and vice versa. Instead, it was scene after scene reiterating the relationship dynamics that had been in place from the start with very few variations. There were brief, much-needed glimpses into the characters' hidden internal lives, but they felt drowned out in a game whose run time far exceeded its narrative development.

My biggest takeaway from the narrative is that it never felt unique in any way. The dial??ogue was generic most of the way through (there were a few lines that connected with me, but I can count them on one hand), and the events of the story itself were just all moments I had seen before in the "slice of life" genre. 

This line from the game's prologue is a pretty good example of what you're getting a lot of the time with the dialogue: "Things begin, and sometimes, when you least expect it, things end." I understand the sentiment here, but it's not specific enough. I felt like the first few minutes of the game was ??reciting clichés at me, when all I wanted it to do was dive deep into what made Mary and her family most unique. Even the best details, like her mother's insistence on teaching Mary about her Japanese heritage, left me wondering how this story was different from other stories centered on immigrant families I've seen before.

That's not to say that this version of the story couldn't w??ork. I just wanted more from the moments that were there: more introspection, more conflict, scenes with a clear clashing of values between mother and daughter, etc. I wanted scenes that would show me whole new facets of these characters that I hadn't seen before, rather than repeating the idea that Mary ?never truly knew or understood her mom �?there are only so many ways to say the same thing over and over.

Structure? What structure?

Another thing that didn't quite work for me when it came to the story was the game's structure. The story was divided into seven chapters, and despite my best eff?orts, I could not for the life of me parse out how these chapters were supposed to be divided up. Part of the problem was that ??the story had us going in and out of memories, jumping timelines and settings sometimes as often as every few seconds �?after a while, everything blurred together into one colorful, tedious drudge, and I found it impossible to differentiate one chapter from the next. I'm all for non-traditional story structures, but in this case it never felt like we were building toward anything because I spent too much of the game feeling disoriented.

In terms of gameplay, Hindsight's main mechanics are most akin to the point-and-click genre �?players simply click on the highlighted object or next vignette to progress. The spin here is that often the way forward is through memories, and players need to rotate an object or manipulate the setting in order to see the memory from the right angle before diving into it. This made for some really beautiful visuals, and those mom?ents were some of the strongest in the game for me. There's also the thematic connection in that seeing memories from a new perspective �?from hindsight, one might say �?can help us understand them better. 

That was all good in theory, ??but in practice, it often meant that I was fumbling to find just the right angle that didn't feel very intuitive when I finally found it, or that I was searching for the item to click on to progress that was so small I walked past it four or five times. There were also times when I found myself moving forward in one direction only to have the character turn and walk back to where I came from for seemingly no reason. It's a small gripe, but moments like that left me feeling like they were trying to pad out the runtime.

Let's talk gameplay

Mechanically, there just wasn't all that mu??ch there. That's fine for the narrative genre �?it's not always about havi?ng super in-depth game mechanics. Even so, the novelty wore off fast, and aside from moving some books on a shelf, or creating a time-lapse with a melting candle (activities I wouldn't wager are the most fun things to do in practice), you're left with a pretty rigid, repetitive experience. The game was only two or three hours at most, but unfortunately, I got bored with it pretty fast.

Aside from getting frustrated when I was unable to find that perfect angle or whatever tiny object I needed to click on, I ran into what I assume was a soft lock bug at on?e point in my playthrough, which means it halted my progress but wasn't game-br??eaking. In a scenario where I could click on a few different vignettes, I chose one at random and sat for a good few minutes trying to figure out how to progress. 

After giving up and going back to the main menu, I realized that I had to go to another vignette first to get an item I needed to progress. L?ike I said, not game-breaking, but I definitely got a little frustrated there. I also had some framerate hitches, but there'??????????????????????????s a good chance I got those because I was playing on my Nintendo Switch.

Overall, I was pretty disappointed with this one. The idea of reconnecting with the past and reflecting on how family relationships have affected us into adulthood is a staple of the walking sim/narrative genre �?games like Gone Home and What Remains of Edith Finch have paved the way in that regard. While it would be ridiculous to say no one can ever explore those themes in a narrative game ever agai??n, the reality is that it's been done before. In 2022, I think we need some more iteration on games with?? story at the center, because at this point, linear games with minimal mechanics don't feel like they're up to snuff anymore.

In order to make a game with this subject matter really stand out, you have to put a new spin on it like we've never seen before. Unfortunately, Hindsight didn't really manage to do that, either in its gameplay or its story. At the end ?of the day, story is what's supposed to matter the most ?here, and if the writing were stronger, I'd be able to forgive Hindsight many more of its transgressions.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: Hindsight appeared first on Destructoid.

Sequel announced for a 2023 release across PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch

Kona developer Parabole and publisher Ravenscourt are back for another cold, strange, survival-tinged mystery. The pair announced Kona II: Brume for PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch in 2023. It's just a short teaser trailer today, but more details aren't far off �?the sequel will be playable at gamescom in August at the Indie Booth Arena.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJ6IE1_sJpo

Visual-heavy trailer, right? You'll play a detective, Carl Faubert, and yes, there's a dog sled. You'll also ?travel by boat in search of clues �?and survivors �?in a remote mining village plagued by an unnatural mist. Parabole is going for the "omnisci??ent narrator" angle again.

According to Parabole co-founder Alexandre Fiset, "Kona II's mysteries revolve around the Brume, a bizarre, mind-bending mist? engulfing the fictive region of Manastan, in Northern Québec, Canada. The game starts where its predecessor left off, in October of the year 1970, but explores new grounds, and a storyline that lives on its own."

More to the point, "Kona II: Brume is carefully made to please fans of Kona as well ?as newcomers." Expect to tangle with blizzards, bears, and "t?roubling nightmares."

Kona is a part of PS Plus Extra, if you're curious

The timing of this sequel is interesting to me. The original game is several years old, and I never? got around to checking it out �?u??ntil last week. Funny how that works.

I downloaded a bunch of "sure, why not?" games in the PlayStation Plus Extra catalog, and Kona was one of them. That said, I only made it about 20 minutes before I made the call that while I want to play more, I'll need to settle in to get the most out of this experience. I just wasn't in the right headspace. Knowing Kona II is on the way, I'll have to circle back.

Otherworldly mist is an intriguing angle, and that's the kind of hook I need to get wrapped up in this sort of lonely, mystery-cracking adventure game. From what I've heard, Kona's ending left a lot to be desired; an ?all-around improved sequel could?? easily resonate better.

Kona II: Brume is aiming for a 2023 launch on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo ?Switch. The team is "looking forward to revealing more next mont??h."

The post Kona II: Brume is a frigid adventure game with a ‘bizarre mist’ appeared first on Destructoid.

How games depict America, for better and for worse

It was fun to sit on my rooftop and watch the fireworks over the Los Angeles cityscape for the Fourth of July this year, but I gotta be honest �?it didn’t feel like there was much to celebrate this year. Regardless of the depressing state of our country, the holiday got me thinking about Americana in video games and how t??hey depict our country, for better and for worse.

Aside from Japan, the United States is the world’s leader in video game production, so it makes perfect sense that developers would borrow themes, imagery, ?and iconography from their country of origin. Sometimes it’s to pay homage to where they came from, other times it’s with the express pu?rpose of critiquing the systems and ideals that run our nation, and sometimes it’s a mixture of both.

Small Town Life

[caption id="attachment_291280" align="alignnone" width="1400"] _{Life is Strange: True Colors}[/caption]

Having grown up in one myself, games that take on the American small-town setting will always hold a special place in my heart. One of the series that portrays the classic “small down with a dark secret�?trope well is Life is Strange �?and it does an excellent job of capturing on a smaller scale that America has a lot of dark secrets hiding under the surface, many of which have come to light over the past few years. For so long our country pushed this narrative of being an idea?l, almost utopian place (at least for some), but the whole thing was built on a broken system to begin with.

Night in the Woods nails this theme as well. Most of the game has the player making friends, hanging out around town, and dealing with the fallout of poor decisions that are really ma??nifestations of trauma. However, there’s a cult running around murdering people because they think they’re doing their part to keep the town running. Sounds a little familiar, right?

The American Dream is Dead

[caption id="attachment_265358" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{Kentucky Route Zero}[/caption]

Another classic tale of Americana in video games is big corporations decimating middle America �?a phenomenon so common, it’s the subject matter of multiple games, including Kentucky Route Zero, NORCO, Night in the Woods, and Life is Strange: True Colors. Coercion, cove??r-ups, and buyouts are the name of the game, and in a country that’s run by some corporatio?ns in a trench coat, it’s a fitting narrative, to say the least.

What I love about games like Kentucky Route Zero and NORCO as well is that they’re so specific to the regions in which they are set �?Kentucky and New Orleans, respectively. The games' settings use iconic American imagery like gas stations, highways, and factories to great effect. The creators are fr?om these areas and also did a great deal of research, so you can really feel both the love and the heartbreak that emanates from these titles as you play them. They may take place in very different parts of the country, but the story of a giant corporation coming in and killing off not only industry, but actu?al citizens, is disturbing in how true to real life it is.

[caption id="attachment_314922" align="alignnone" width="1876"] _NORCO[/caption]

I also can’t mention Kentucky Route Zero without bringing up one of its interludes: The Entertainment. This sequence portrays a fictional play in the game’s world, which depicts a mundane and somewhat depressing sequence of events in a bar that has seen better days. The whole thing feels so evocative of American playwrights of the twentieth century, like Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams. Kentucky Route Zero’s dialogue is formatted like a script throughout the ent??ire game as well, further evoking a theatrical framework throughout the rest o?f the episodes.

For God and Country

Of course, we can’t have a conversation about America and not mention religion, because our country has pretty much become synonymous with evangelicalism. No other game showcases our country’s obsession with religion, American exceptionalism, and racism better than BioShock Infinite. It doubles down on Americana in a video game like I've never seen before, and what it lacks in nuance, it makes up for in style. While it’s still a dated game, and its social commentary could have been greatly improved even in its time, Infinite doesn’t shy awa??y from the uglier ??parts of our history, which is more than many games do.

Then there’s a game like Far Cry 5, which I still haven’t played, but it’s certainly on my list considering my fascination with Americana. All I know is that it takes place in Montana and the main antagonistic force is some kind of militaristic doomsday cult. I remember when the game came out in 2018 that its story felt like an exaggeration of the way many in our country practice religion, but these days?, it’s feeling a little bit too on the nose.

[caption id="attachment_324071" align="alignnone" width="1920"] _{BioShock Infinite}[/caption]

Tangential to America’s obsession with religion is our obsession with the military. There have been dozens and dozens of games that feature the United States armed forces in some capacity, but the series that encapsulates this the best is definitely Call of Duty. They have been some of the most popular games out there since the series started back in 2003, depicting wars from World War II all the way up to the present, and some might argue, glorifying them to a certain extent. Don’t get me wrong, I myself have played and enjoyed Call of Duty games, but we can’t separate the games from real life when the military is straight-up using these games to try and recruit players into their ranks.

Man Versus Nature

One of the most American story types ever created is the western, which of course we see in the Red Dead Redemption series. These games are an extension of America’s deep-seated love of cowboys and outl?aws,? which rose to prominence thanks to the westerns that were made popular in the twentieth century by actors like John Wayne and Clint Eastwood.

Of course, plenty of the games we have now put a new spin on the western genre �?The Last of Us is one that immediately comes to mind. Having a deadly infection going around definitely makes for a hostile environment, and Joel is something of a lone wolf you might say (at least until Ellie breaks throug?h his shell a little). I find it pretty interesting that our updated version of a western has you walk away with the idea that opening yourself up to the idea of love in a harsh world maybe isn’t such a bad thing after all.

[caption id="attachment_105941" align="alignnone" width="620"] _{The Last of Us}[/caption]

In conclusion

The games I mentioned here are some of my favorites, or at least the ones that stood out to me, but there’s a myriad of other titles out there that reflect American culture in various ways. There are tons of other games out there that touch on topics I haven�?�t mentioned, especially when it comes to the stories of marginalized people, and I know I’d love to see more of those stories highlighted in the future, especially because most of those come from the indie space.

The history of American media reflecting the country’s culture is a long, difficult, but a??lso beautiful one, and it’s exciting to see Americana in video games becoming part of the canon in that regard as well. As games continue to tell innovative and co??mpelling narratives, I look forward to seeing how a new generation of developers uses the medium to express their relationship to Americana moving forward.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post A storied history: Americana in video games appeared first on Destructoid.

You could go without them... but why would you?

Audio diaries �?you'll find these little nuggets of storytelling scattered all over a game's world, taking the form of whatever diegetic theming fits best into the narrative. They can be called voxophones, audiographs, audio logs, or straight-up tape recorders, but it's always the same experience. You walk up to an object, interact with it, and you can hear characters talking to themselves, other characters, or even di??rectly to the player themselves. We're going to call them audio diaries for ?simplicity's sake.

It's one of those mechanics that's in almost every single third- or first-person action game that has any semblance of narrative, and based on who I've talked to about audio diaries, they're a pretty polarizing mechanic at that. Some people I talk to ??hate them because they don't want to have to go out of their way to get story content and then spend extra time listening to it, while for others, hunting down all of the audio diaries a??nd piecing together the stories they tell can be one of the most enjoyable parts of the game.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=usj21KlUVcQ

Where it all started

I'm somewhere in the middle, I think. It can depend on what the stories are that the diaries are actually telling me, and how difficult it is ??to find them in the game world.

It's kind of ironic that I think the series that does audio diaries the best is BioShock, because while it wasn't the first game to include them, it was certainly the game that popularized them and set the standard for how they're included in many games today. Yet another reason why BioShock is one of the most ?influential games ever made, especially when it comes to interactive storyt??elling.

Before BioShock premiered the classic audio diary setup to the world, other early examples included games like Carmine, Lunar, and Chrono, wherein the story content took the form of video logs. System Shock 2, Doom 3, the Fatal Frame series, and the original Metal Gear also included various types of rudime??n?tary audio diaries.

The importance and challenge of player autonomy

One of the most challenging things about creating interactive narratives is that while you want to ?let the player experience a game however they want, you still want to maintain the order of story conventions to a certain extent. For stories that lean more heavily on the side of linearity, it can be especially difficult to create a game that tells th?at narrative while not taking too much autonomy away from the player. Hence the genius of audio diaries �?it's non-linearity baked into a linear story.

When an audio diary is playing, the player doesn't have anything in particular they need to look at, or any one place they need to remain in for the diary to be heard. That means that placing diaries in locations where players already have some less intense, but still crucial, tasks to do �?like exploring, scavenging for supplies, or solving simple puzzles �?is kind of a perfect option. T?hen the player is getting some fun story content on top of the other stuff they were already doing. It's kind of like listening to a podcast or audiobook while you're cleaning your house.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxxTUhjqPts

Of course, there are potential problems with this setup. When players have complete control, they might? walk into an unskippable cutscene or scripted section while an audio diary is playing �?or similarly, the audio diary might be playing over some important dialogue from a nearby NPC. Thankfully more recent games will give you the option to replay diaries in the menus, but it's still annoying to have an immersive in-game story moment interrupted by something you weren't aware was going to happen.

What I think is especially interesting, though, i?s that writers and narrative designers have to create audio diaries with the assumption that a good portion of players won't listen to them at all. This isn't a big deal with one-off diaries meant to fill out the world, but when you have multiple diaries that tell the perspective of a prominent side character, they have to be designed so that they can make sense individually or with one or two missing, while also creating a cohes??ive story across multiple entries.

Filling out the world

Most games that implement audio diaries as a mechanic tell great stories even if the player doesn't find a single one, but games that use audio diaries the best are the ones that leave you walking away glad you tracked them all down, because the world feels so much more full after having listened to them. Combined with the fact that they're super easy to listen to, they're pretty much the best way to give players lore without just dumping everything into a codex (sorry codex lovers, but it ain't fo?r me).

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNm4lGQMiKA

Audio diaries are also a great way for side characters to shine when we may not be spending a whole of time with them. Some of the best monologues and character bits in games like Deathloop or the Borderlands series actually come from obscure audio diaries, and while i??t's a shame that some players will miss out on those moments, it makes it all the more special that y?ou have to go out of your way to find them.

Whether you tend to skip audio diaries, or if you go out of your way to find every single one of them, you?? can't deny the impact that this single mechanic has had on interactive storytelling. Personally, I'm always going to go out of my way, but I guess the beauty is that everyone gets to experience a game's ?story exactly how they want.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post The unseen story: audio diaries in video game narrati??ves appeared first on Destructoid.

Watching...er, playing the first two episodes

If there is one surefire way to get my attention during a video game reveal stream, it’s to show me something that looks far different from the norm. Gimmie something unusual, something that every other developer isn’t out there trying to make. I love the big franchises and AAA games as much as the next person. But, when I see something like Lake or Season: A letter to the future or that dinosaur high school game that’ll probably never release, I really start to focus and obsess about what that game might turn out to be. And I have been obsessing about As Dusk Falls for quite some time.

From developer INTERIOR/NIGHT, As Dusk Falls is an episodic narrative adventure game focusing on two families connected through tragedy. It features a graphic novel-style art direction, which is one of the reasons I latched onto it as quickly as I did. The game launches in a couple of weeks on Xbox and PC, but this past week, I was given access to the first two episodes of As Dusk Falls to preview w?hat the developers ??have managed to cook up.

Please note t?hat there are minor story spoile??rs ahead.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=5K4bFIDBzI8

You down with QTEs?

The game’s first two episodes primarily take place in 1998 at the Desert Dreams Motel, a shabby little lodge in Two Rock County, Arizona. The focus of these episodes is on the Walkers and the Holts. Vince Walker, who is most prominently featured in these opening hours, is traveling with his wife, daughter, and dad to start a new life in St. Louis when they get stranded at the motel. Jay Holt, who you’ll also control at certain points, also finds himself stuck at the motel when his older brothers ta??ke Vince, his family, and the hotel staff hostage following a robbery.

It’s a pretty dire situation, though one we have seen portrayed in film and television a multitude of times before. The hostage situation quickly escalates to a police stand-off and you’re left trying to keep everyone alive as conditions deteriorate. While this isn’t exactly breaking new grounds in terms of concept, the way INTERIOR/NIGHT keeps the tension ratcheted up to 11 makes the experience exhilarating. With limited time to make every choice in the game and some light quick-time events to keep you on your ??toes, I had to get rid of all distractions around me during this preview session lest I miss some important action that winds up getting a character killed. Just note that if you fail a QTE, it doesn’t automatically mean Game Over, which is good because the “Press Left on the Control Stick�?actions are very demanding in their precision.

Speed is key to making decisions to completing the QTEs, but patience can be a virtue in certain situations. Every time you’re able to make a choice, you’ll have a few options right off the bat. But, if you hold out, other options might become avail??able that’ll prove far more attractive to the situation at hand. With Vince, the late-arrival option would often be a quick and deeply unfunny joke to break the stress of the moment.

There's a history here

??The unfunny jok??es aside, the majority of the writing for these first two episodes is pretty top-notch. Some lines, much like the characters who spout them, are cliche, but overall, the dialogue only helps add to the tension brought by the situation these characters find themselves in. A large facet of that tension is trying to predict the outcome of your decided action. When options for lying are added to the mix, the stress of these choice moments is only heightened.

That’s not to say all two hours of this game is some edge-of-your-seat experience. There are slower moments in the time before the hostage situation and in the playable flashbacks that give you a look at the Walkers before they set out on their cross-country road trip. While nothing you do here will affect the core storyline for As Dusk Falls, your decisions in these flash??backs can give?? you unexpected insight into the characters and their relationships.

Outside of these flashbacks, the decisions you make will affect the story going forward,? sometimes in cheeky minor ways and sometimes with unfortunate consequences. Because of how episode two ends??, I’m left to wonder how some of my decisions will play out going forward. For some, I know I made the right choice. But when I look back at the story map for both chapters, I can’t help but question if I missed an option that would have amicably ended things before whatever tragedy is about to befall the Walkers and the Holts happens.

Experience the story alone or with friends

I’ll find out when the game launches next month, but in the meantime, there are plenty of little morsels for me to ruminate on. As with many prestige shows, characters in As Dusk Falls are absolutely drowning in secrets. Most everyone seems to have their own l?ittle mystery, and I’m very much looking forward to digging in further to find out what their deal is.

With these two chapters behind me, my I’m already sold on the concept. And while I think the art direction is absolutely solid �?after all, it's what brought As Dusk Falls to my attention in the first plac?e �?I know not everyone will feel the same way.

Still, if you’re looking for a great story to play through, it’s probably worth giving a shot. As Dusk Falls will be available from day one on Xbox Game Pass when it launches on July 19. Plus, you don’t have to go through it alone. The game will launch with a companion app that’ll turn this single-player story into a group activity, allowing up to eight players to vote on each option presented in the game. More on multiplayer and the app can be found on the As Dusk Falls FAQ page.

The post As Dusk Falls would be right at home on AMC appeared first on Destructoid.

Like something out of a really dark storybook

Obsidian is best known for RPGs like Pillars of Eternity or Outer Worlds, but this time they're taking on a new genre: narrative adventures. Today they announced their new project Pentiment, which takes place in mediev??al times and features a gorgeous 2D art style. We didn't get a huge insight into what the story is about just yet, but it looks to be the usual kinds of things one would encounter back in the day, including being burned at the stake.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXq20gant-4

Pentiment looks dark and compelling, and I have to admit it's refreshing to see a studio with such an impressive track record as Obsidian take on a project like this. As a huge fan of narrative games, this will definitely be one I'll be watching with a close eye. Pentiment wil??l be releasing on Xbox consoles, PC, Cloud, and Xbox Game Pass in November 2022.

The post Pentiment is a medieval narrative ?adventure coming from Obsidian appeared first on Destructoid.

It's good to see Clark again after Red Dead Redemption II

Two familiar voices in the video game industry are teaming up for Fort Solis, a new sci-fi PC game in the works at independent studio Fallen Leaf. We got our first mood-setting trailer at the Summer Game Fest 2022 stream and some follow-up info from Troy Baker and Roger Clark, w?ho play a medical officer and maintenance engineer, respectively.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mg6sgSorQk

Baker described the original pitch from developer Fallen Leaf as being a "tight thriller" that feels like "Dead Space meets Duncan Jones' Moon." That's not exactly what we've seen so far today �?admittedly, we've seen almost nothing! �?but if Fort Solis can come anywhere close to achieving ?that kind of fusion, in gameplay and story, I'm down.

Host Geoff Keighley probed the voice actors about how the game actually plays, to which Baker said players will? explore, discover, and move very fast through the world with different means of ?traversal. Baker added that the "narrative is a huge element" �?which makes sense given who's involved �?and, well, that was it. These events move fast. A bit of intrigue, but maybe not enough to set the game apart from other recent sci-fi romps.

According to Fallen Leaf, the game spans "one large base location encompassing over nine individual structures," and you can play a??bove ground or "simply progress by remaining below the surface," which is i??ntriguing. Certain big story moments are said to have "multiple outcomes." When everything is said and done, we'll learn what happened to the missing crew and why Fort Solis was created in the first place �?ominous!

Fort Solis is coming to Steam, but a release window wasn't announced today.

Why can't things ever g?o right on Mars? Cursed, I tell ya.

The post New sci-fi thriller Fort Solis stars Roger Clark and Troy?? Baker appeared first on Destructoid.

Early development underway with Unreal Engine 5

Not to be confused with a certain high-profile Super Smash Bros. Brawl mod, Project M from NCSOFT is an upcoming Unreal Engine 5-developed, console-bound "interactive movie experience" with an e??ye-catching trailer. I can't say I'm exactly picturing a full-fledged game yet from this limited proof-of-concept, but the premise of a "man seeking vengeance" �?combined with these high production values �?speaks to me.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SApk_2ktfg

The footage is heavy on the "is revenge ever really worth it" theme? and shows a few action sequences that would look at home in one of Supermassive's cinematic horror adventures like The Quarry. For some ?players, there's not enough interactivity, but I don't mind as long as the pacing is tight and my mind doesn't have room to wander too much.

Plus, these sorts of accessible choice-based cinematic games tend to be a riot with other players in the room lending their voices (and other antics). For Project M, NCSOFT says the game will "feature different stories and endings dependin?g on the player's choices."

[caption id="attachment_328639" align="alignnone" width="2000"] _{Take the shot?}[/caption]

Coming to consoles... eventually

Details are limited, to the point where NCSOFT has only said Project M is in development for "consoles," but the trailer features "actual gameplay content." Why show ??it now?

According to principal development managemen?t officer Moon Young Choi, the reveal trailer is a part of a new "NCing" R&D initiative. "NCing expresses the company's commitment to unveil the development process and to continue communicating with the players earlier with regards to new projects," ??he said in a press statement.

"Going forward, we will ??proactively showcase our development progress in various forms of content such as trailer videos, interviews, novels, and webtoons."

I'll avenge my wife any day of the week. Just point me in the right direction!

The post Project M is NCSOFT’s new cinematic revenge game appeared first on Destructoid.

The Game Grumps announce their highly anticipated sophomore title

Dream Daddy is a game that completely rocked the indie game community. Developed and published by the Game Grumps of YouTube fame, the dad-centric visual novel/dating simulator gained a cult following basically overnight, and rightfully so. It's an incredibly polished and adorable game with fun characters and some awesome representation. All eyes are on Game Grumps to see what they'll do after the success of their debut, and now they've finally announced their next project: a narrative-driven, psychological horror game called Homebody.

Homebody is developed by the team at Game Grumps, and will be published by Rogue Games. The game was inspired by classic slasher films from the 1980s, and will center on a woman named Emily as she tries to avoid a killer by finding her way out of the house, all the whil?e uncovering secrets from her past.

The gameplay will include puzzles, dialogue choices, and of course, evading the killer that could be around any? corner. While at first escape is impossible, players will soon start putt??ing the pieces of the mystery together with each attempt. Throw in some unpredictable enemy AI as well, and no two encounters will be the same.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YYl9UJi06U

What's most intriguing to me about Homebody so far is its art style �?coming off of Dream Daddy, this is not what I expected the Game Grumps' next project to look like at all, and I think that's awesome. They saw their opportunity to try something different and really went for it, and it's exciting to see them branching out and trying new things. The jump from 2D to 3D is what surprised me the most, because it's not easy to pivot like that, especially for a relatively new studio. Homebody's style definitely looks cool, creepy, and has a strong artistic vision, and I'll b?e looking forward to seeing how they use a more retro 3D style to tie into the rest of the game's tone and themes.

We don't have a release date quite yet, but we do know that Homebody is coming t??o Steam, the Epic G?ames Store, and consoles sometime later this year.

The post The team behind Dream Daddy is back with a new horror game??, Homebody appeared first on Destructoid.

Who says political games can't be adorable?

Fans of narrative point-and-clicks have had a pretty good run of things recently. We had the gem that was NORCO earlier this year, Monkey Island is coming back, and now another beautiful-looking adventure game has been announced and subsequently landed on my Steam wishlist. It's called Phonopolis, a political narrative title developed by Czech indie collective Amanita Design, best known for Machinarium, Botanicula, and Samorost.

In Phonopolis, players will take on the role of Felix, a young man living in a dystopian city that is threatened by the imminent rule of an?? authoritarian ruler. As Felix seems to be the only one who is aware of the looming danger of the situation, he tasks himself with stopping the leader and saving his fellow citizens.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANJSa4RFqxg

Phonopolis will take on themes of man??ipulation and individualism, and is "strongly influenced by avant-garde artistic trends of the interwar period such as constructivism, futurism, or suprematism, and their societal impact as a tool of propaganda."

It's sad that this game feels incredibly relevant to the current state of the world, but ??here we are. At the very least, Amanita has promised to keep "the o??verall experience playful and lighthearted."

Phonopolis will also be Amanita's first game with a 3D art style, and this style is certainly one of the selling points for me. Every environment, character, and asset is made to look as though it's made of paper, and set pieces look as though they were made in miniature. It's one of the most unique art styles I've ever seen in a game, and I can't see what else they do with it. As far as gameplay goes, Phonopolis will also?? have exploration and puzzle mechanics on top of its narrative focus.

The game is being developed on multiple platforms, although the developer has not disclosed just what those are yet beyond PC ?and Mac. We also don't have a release date, but Amanita doesn't expect the game to be ready in the next year. Either way, this looks like a game worth waiting for.

The post Phonopolis is a hand-crafted political narrative adventure from Czech develo??per Amanita appeared first on Destructoid.

Be the hero of your own story

Sappy. Sentimental. Downright cheesy. If there's a video game story (or really any other media, for that matter) that is going to make me cry from pure emotion, you can bet your bottom dollar that I'm going to love it. With the world becoming an increas??ingly horrific dumpster fire that somehow burns hotter every day, media can be a welcome respite fro??m the chaos.

Don't get me wrong here, I love dark, prov??ocative stories in certain contexts, but sometimes, what you really need is something that knows what it is, and leans as hard as it can into that fantasy. I'm not talking about dragons and wizards, but a different kind of fantasy �?the fantasy of pla??y (although there is quite a bit of overlap between those two). Allow me to explain.

Stating the obvious here, but when we play a video game, we're engaged in very active play: pressing buttons to manipulate what we see on the screen, and engaging with gameplay systems that designers have put in place to provide us with a fulfilling experience. We lo?ve exploring the constraints of those systems, and using their rules to create scenarios where we come?? out on top.

Another kind of play

But when we add in the storytelling elements of a game �?the setting, characters, plot, and so on �?we're engaging with another type of play: make-believe. Similar to how a child might play princess or knight, there's something in us that loves the fantasy of being someone else. It's the same thing in us tha?t loves immersive experiences, which can include anything from an engrossing movie to an all-enveloping real-life experi??ence like going to Disneyland or a Renaissance Faire. In those scenarios, we allow ourselves to shed our identities and put on new ones �?something that can be incredibly freeing �?and we do the exact same thing when we allow ourselves to give in to the fantasy of a video game.

A lot of games tend to be pieces of genre fiction like sci-fi, fantasy (now we're talking about the dragons-and-wizards variety), and even westerns, and that's because genre fiction is especially good at helping us get out of our own heads and into something that feels like more of an adventure. The best genre fiction knows what it is and leans into it hard, and by that, I mean that its creators understand the conventions and tropes of a piece's respective genre, and instead of shying away from them, they embrace those conventions whole-heartedly and without irony. What's even better is when a game's mechanics allow for emergent storytelling, because when we create our own story beats withou??t any scripted help from the game, we feel even more ownership of our own narrative that we're playing out.

Think of the rousing speeches spoken triumphantly over the intercom on the Normandy in Mass Effect, or the swell of the music when you first lay eyes on the beautiful pirate ships that you know contain treasure in Uncharted 4. These moments could definitely be considered cheesy or over-the-top to some, but giving in to those indulgent moments is what helps us really feel like we're living our dreams as a space commander, or a treasure hunter. People joke about games like God of War being nothi?ng but a power fantasy, but honestly, that's what it's supposed to be, and I don't think t??here's anything wrong with that.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYjCGSLX8VE

The Blank Slate

In other media, having a Blank Slate protagonist can be more of a problem, because they can come off as bland and uninteresting most of the time. But in games,? having your main character be a hollow shell can actually be a big advantage, because, given the nature of play, players already have a tendency to project their own chosen persona onto that character.

There are some instances where having a more specific character can be just as affecting, too �?my go-to example is always The Last of Us, because that game does a great job of using play, specifically how intense and harrowing it can feel at times, to make you feel for the characters and the journey they're going through. If you let yourself give in to the fear and desperation that some of the more intense mom?ents of that g?ame present you with, suddenly the emotional highs and lows hit a lot harder.

Giving in to the fantasy

When we talk about games being so emotionally impactful, I think this is why. Giving ourselv?es over to story, especially in such a strong and sometimes personal way that games ask of us, can mean really moving and enriching gaming and storytelling experiences.

Not all, but a vast majority of beloved, classic games give into one form of fantasy or another. Pokémon: going on an adventure with companions who fight loyally at your side. The Legend of Zelda: becoming the stoic, loyal, heroic warrior who saves the princess and the rest of Hyrule. Stardew Valley: moving to a quaint seaside town and living the peaceful life of a farmer while also making friends and finding love. The list goes on and on �?there are an endless number of little fantasies like this, ??and an endless number of games that help us fulfill them.

We don't have a lot of occasions in life as adults to get to engage in make-believe, but we do have video games. Having a consistent place where we can go and be a hero or fall in love with an imaginary friend for a w??hile may sound silly to some, but if we're willing to let go of the part of us that cringes a little bit and embrace the cheese, engaging in play can be an incredibly gratifying experie??nce.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post Video game stories ??give us more than one way to play appeared first on Destructoid.

A brick through your window

I can see why LEGO is a toy that has easily crossed generations. Sure, you can still get an Etch-a-Sketch or Potato Head, but I don’t think those are as easy to connect with these days??. However, I played with Lego, and now my nephews do.

LEGO Builder’s Journey wants to remind you of that??. Also, it wants you to remember how much you love LEGO. Also, maybe think abou?t your upbringing. What I’m saying is it’s a game focused on delivering nostalgia, and I’m almost insulted by how blatant it is.

LEGO Builder's Journey (Mobile, Nintendo Switch, PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 [Reviewed])
Developer: Light Brick Studio
Publisher: LEGO Games
Released: April 19, 2022 (PS4/PS5)
MSRP: $19.99

The gist of LEGO Builder's Journey is that you're presented with an ongoing series of LEGO dioram??as. Each one is a small puzzle, and it’s up to you to figure out what it wants from you, because it’s hardly consistent. Most of the time, you simply need to build a way from point A to point B. On other occasions it wants you to build something specific. The goals are frequently intuitive, but sometimes not. Later levels, for example, want you to traverse them, but it doesn’t necessarily give you the best indication of where the finish line is.

Sometimes, the game holds your hand and wants you to complete the diorama in a very specific way. Other times, you’re given some freedom to just plop bricks down wherever. Sometimes it’s kind of clever. While other times you just pile down bricks until it high-fives you. Consistency is not what LEGO Builder’s Journey does well.

If you asked me what it does do well, I’d probably say, “Pretty, isn’t it?�?For a game that was originally released on iOS, LEGO Builder’s Journey is certainly a looker on PS5. You can even turn Ray Tracing on; a technology whose most appreciable difference is tanking your framerate. Look closely, and you can see little scratches and finger smudges on the bricks. I wouldn’t say that LEGO Builder’s Journey is purely designed as a? technical showcase, but it is what it does best.

[embed]//youtu.be/piiBgt3BSZI[/embed]

There’s a story going on with all the dioramas, which seems to be some coming of age told without dialogue. A parent and child bond, the parent gets pulled away to their soulless job, and then the child teaches us about breaking boundaries. Honestly, I find it kind of insipid. We’ve heard this story before and told better, even using the medium of LEGO. It’s?? not that it’s bad here; it’s just as bland as a styrofoam spring roll.

The building is fine. It’s mostly done with a single button which constantly screwed me up. Press the X button to rotate, hold it down to place. Also, press X to pick up, but it’s the circle button to drop it. There are usually only a few nodes on the stage to place blocks, but for some reason I kept rotating blocks accidentally or placing them down moments after they were picked up. I feel like I would have had an easier time using a mouse. Luckily, LEGO Builder’s Journey rarely requires careful timing, so these ?screw-ups are just unhappy accide??nts.

The big new addition for all versions is the Creative Mode which is�?not for me, I guess. You don’t just build whatever you want. You’re given “curated blocks�?and have to use your imagination to put something together. No thanks. The education system and the weight of reality both crushed all the imagination out of me, and now I just want to make, like, a LEGO Famicom. B??ut I can’t, so�?no thanks.

Considering this is a $20 game that has almost no replay value, the rather restrictive Creative Mode is kind of salt in the wound. Once again, I’m reminded that the only thing that LEGO Builder’s Journey does well is its graphics. They’re nice, I guess.

A little consistency would have gone a long way to help LEGO Builder’s Journey. Its puzzles stretch across blatantly obvious to rather murky. It’s not that it ever gets di??fficult; it just sometimes forgets how to communicate. Otherwise, it’s pretty. Everything else makes little impact. Even its central message is mired in medio?crity. It feels like a game made with the philosophy of indie games around 2010: if you have a message, you deserve applause. Your money would probably be better spent on an actual box of LEGO.

_{[This review is based on a retail build of the game provided by the publisher.]}

The post Review: LEGO Builder’s Journey appeared first on Destructoid.

Hopes are sky high

I don't think I'm alone in saying that Tales from the Borderlands was far and away my favorite Telltale game. The quality of the writing and characters was amazing, and it set the standard for choice-based adventures for years to come. When the news dropped this week that Gearbox is working on another Tales game internally, everyone kind of freaked out, myself included. But even with the bare-bones information we have right now, I have a lot of thoughts?? about the game. I've had enough time to think about it, haven't I?

The original Tales from the Borderlands came out in five episodes over the course of 2014-2015, and without giving away too much, the game ended on ?an ambiguous note, leaving room for a potential sequel in the future. My automatic assumption was that they'd be picking up right where the first game left off, but after thinking it through a bit more, I'm apprehensive.

//twitter.com/JayShockblast/st????atus/1517228741721825282

The game's publisher, 2K, said itself that the game?? will feature "new characters and new stories??." That kind of makes me nervous.

So much of what made the first game so great were its characters??, their relationships to each other, and the performances the actors gave. Starting over from scratch when it comes to character is by no means impossible, but it would mean Gearbox putting themselves in a situation where they have even bigger shoes to fill.

Of course, that may not have been a conscious decision on their part �?it's possible that they couldn't get some of the cast back for another game all these years later (Laura Bailey and Troy Baker are in high demand, after all). Legal stuff also got pretty screwy given the way Telltale shut down, so it's possible they weren't allowed to use some of the same characters from the first game due to logistics (although Rhys was a fairly prominent character in Borderlands 3).

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="1280"] _{[Image Source: PlayStation LifeStyle]}[/caption]As our very own Jordan Devore pointed out, we also have no idea if anyone from the original Tales team ??will be working on the new title, ??so there's no saying whether it will have nearly the same quality when it comes to its tone and humor.

One potential upside that shines through this haze of uncertainty is that the game will likely be developed on a brand new engine, which would be a huge upgrade considering how rickety Telltale's old one was. Players have been complaining for years about the outdated systems, and former Telltale developers expressed their desire to update the engine so they could update how the games feel to play and add all-new features? to the tried and true Telltale formula.

The devs at the newly-revived Telltale Games discussed ditching the old engine to make way for Unity all the way back in 2018. Of course, the "new" Telltale is a very different case than however Gearbox is working on the game in-house, but either way, it's pretty safe to assume Tales is being de?veloped on a new engine. So rega??rdless of how the game turns out, hopefully we have that to look forward to, right? ...right?

My take is that if for any reason, Rhys and co. are nowhere to be found in the new game, I'm okay with that. As much of a bummer it would be to not see that story continued when I wa?s so invested, I'd rather see a whole new cast of characters than nothing at all.

I will say that above all e?lse, my biggest wish is to keep? the awesome musical intros for each episode, because those are honestly my favorite uses of licensed music in any piece of media ever.

In the end, I really have no idea what to expect. I'm doing my best to keep my hopes as low as possible so as not to be disappointed, but Tales from the Borderlands really meant a lot to me when I first played it back in like 2016, and regardless of what Gearbox does, t??here wi??ll be no escape from fan expectations. Now here's to hoping they can deliver.

//www.tiktok.com/@destructoid/video/7093205021864594693?is?_from_webapp=1&send??er_device=pc&web_id=7052788164067706373

The post What can we expect from?? the new Tales from the Borderlands game? appeared first on Destructoid.

Capitalism is coming for us all

We've all grown accustomed to the hellscape that corporations have created for us over the past few years, which is why I'm so intrigued by Martha is Dead publisher Wired Productions' new narrative adventure game, The Last Worker. The title, develop??ed by Wolf & Wood, will explore "end-stage capitalism" in a setting that's "centered around our struggle in an increasingly automated world."

The Last Worker will feature a star-studded cast of voice actors, including Zelda Williams (The Legend of Korra), Tommie Earl Jenkins (Death Stranding), Jason Isaacs (The Death of Stalin), Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (The Deep), Clare-Hope Ashitey (Children of Men), and David Hewlett (The Shape of Water).

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOQpVmdyLpQ

Writer and director of The Last Worker Jörg Tittel expressed his exc??itement to ??be working on a game that the team feels so passionately about:

"Working with such a stellar cast would be miraculous enough on a major feature film or series. But to have such world class actors lend their talent to an indie game mu?st make me the luckiest man alive. But ultimately this game has been an equaliser, with every team member pouring heart and soul into every minute detail. No matter how dystopian they want to make the real world, ours at least will be full of colour and crafted with love."

The game's trailer shows off a bleak yet comedic tone and a cel-shaded art style similar to that of the Borderlands series. So far the gameplay is a bit of a mystery, although we know that exploration will be a big draw, as The Last Worker's Steam page b??oasts an environment that players will explore that is "the size of the sunken city of Manhattan."

Players will get an exclusive hands-on preview of The Last Worker this week a??t PAX East, and the game is set to release sometime in 2022 on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and Meta Quest 2.

The post The Last Worker is a dystopian narrative adv?enture with a star-studded cast appeared first on Destructoid.

The truest form of Choose Your Own Adventure

I think by this point it's pretty clear that my favorite thing about games is how they can tell stories in whole new ways.?? Usually that means games that put narrative design at the forefront, with cinematic cutscenes or branching storylines that let you choose how the characters move forward through the plot. One type of narrative design I don't think about as often as I should, though, is the idea of emergent storytelling in games, which has been around for years.

What is emergent narrative?

It's a bit of a complex topic, mostly because emergent storytelling has a ton of crossover with the design of gameplay systems. The idea? is that emergent sto??ries aren't plotlines that were placed there by the devs for you to find, but instead, they're the stories that you create on your own based on how you play.

These narratives come about in just about every game genre, with the only real criteria being that they're stories that the devs didn't put there intentionally. They may have put the tools in place for you to be able to create a narrative of your own, but you're the one who ?has to put the pieces together.

//www.reddit.com/r/Breath_of_t??he_Wild/comments/u43s6h/totally_didnt_just_run_across_a_half_of_hyrule/

One of the best ways I've heard to know if something has an emergent narrative is if you tell your friends stories of your time playing the game. You know, the classic "you had to be there" story. It's like trying to tell someone about something awesome that happened in your Dungeons & Dragons game, or a really cool dream that you had. We love to share these stories regardless �?y??ou see them all over Reddit and Twitter.

The stories write themselves

I recently started playing Pokémon for the first time ever as an adult, and the way the gameplay is designed, it's so perfect for making you feel like you're on your very own adventure. I had one of those classic narrow escapes where I was about to be team-wiped, but then one of my benchwarmers swooped in to triumphantly save the day,? and it was awesome.

The list of video games with these types of stories is endless, from open-world games like Breath of the Wild to rhythm games like Beat Saber. While I find conversations about more structured, traditional kinds of stories in games can be equally as gratifying, there's something so special, so electric about ?creating your own stories from the pieces the developers gave you. When we give in to the fantasy of the game we're playing, whatever that might look like, it gives us the autonomy to make-believe in ways that we haven't done since we were kids. I also love that no one sets out in a game thinking "I'm going to make a really cool story happen." Instead, these meaningful moments come about as a direct result of us just playing and trying to have a good time.

//www.reddit.com/r/AnimalCros??sing/comm?ents/u3ih7k/gayle_thievery_is_wrong/

Trying to tell other people about our endeavors may feel a bit like an attempt to relay something that happened in a dream �?you kind of had to be there, but that's kind of what makes it feel significant. It was a singular moment that only you were there for, where you truly felt something based on how you chose to interact with a virtual wor??ld. Sometimes it's thrilling, other times it's somber and moving, and some of the most enjoyable moments of emergent gameplay are when you've accidentally launched yourself off a cliff, and suddenly you're busting a gut at what a ridiculous, futile end the hero of the game has j??ust suffered.

The freedom to explore

There's some really great literature out there that discusses how we can use games to explore new ways of seeing the world. It's a super low-stakes environment, because whatever happens, you can always restart the level, or create a whole new save file, or just shut the game off for good. Even with the heaviest of in-game ?consequences, there will never be any real-world consequences for what we do in a video game, withholding obvious exceptions. In a world that demands perpetual perfection from us, being able to enter a space where we can just throw ourselves at the wall to see what sticks without any fear of judgment, I think, is one of the most freeing things we can do. It's why I love picking the mean dialogue choices in games �?that's not something I do in the real world (or at least I try not to).

//www.reddit.??com/r/Eldenring/comments/u45yj1/i_invaded_someones_swamp??/

Then there's the world of multiplayer, which allows for a whole new slew of emergent narrative possibilities. The Soulsborne games are an amazing example of emergent multiplayer gameplay, and if you need convincing, go and watch any Bloodborne invasion compilation on YouTube. Epic sagas of betrayal, humiliating moments of crushing defeat, genuinely touching moments of unspoken friendship �?it's all there, and it's all because those situations arise organically from players interacting with each other online. It's amazing, and it's so unique to?? games.

I think th?at's what really gets me about this whole thing. Games can do their best to replicate film or TV, or even carve their own path by taking well-known story conventions and reimagining them for the interactive medium, but the kinds of stories that come from t??he act of play itself? Only games can do that, and at risk of sounding so cheesy, I think that's beautiful.

That sentimen??t is one of the hardest things to get non-gamers to understand, and yet it's one of the most important things to telegraph if you want them to see why we love not only the art of games themselves, but the art that comes from playing them. Try as I might, there will always be important people in my life who will never be able to understand the gratification and artistic autonomy that comes along with the act of play, and honestly, that makes me really sad for them.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post The art of make believe: emergent narrat?ive in games appeared first on Destructoid.

A chilling return from the legendary studio

11 bit studios, the renowned developer behind games like This War of Mine and Frostpunk, has just announced their newest publishing project, a cinematic narrative adventure called South of the Circle, drawing from the likes of Firewatch and What Remains of Edith Finch. Following an Apple Arcade debut, the studio has partnered up with the British BAFTA-award-winning developer State of Play for a PC and console release.

Set in the 1960's Cold War era, South of the Circle follows Peter, a man who finds himself torn between his love, his work, and the tension between military powers that hides under the surface. The art style is minimal, yet still stunning, and the game will be voiced by a stellar voice cast, including Gwilym Lee (Bohemian Rhapsody), Olivia Vinall (The Woman in White), Richard Goulding (The Crown), Anton Lesser (Game of Thrones), Adrian Rawlins (Chernobyl), and Michael Fox (Downton Abbey).

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk5VoKBZ5xw

E??xternal Development director of 11 bit studios Marek Ziemak shared his own thoughts on the game:

�?em>South of the Circle is one of those love-at-first-sight things. The game's narrative and artistic sensitivity immediately captivated us. South of the Circle is heavily-focused on storytelling insp?ired by world-class cinema, which makes it a bit different from our previous titles.

Once players experience its instantaneously engaging, emotion-packed narrative, we're convinced they'll understand why we wanted to have it in our publishing portfolio. And we’re thrilled to be able to start working with State of Play since it’s a studio that has been on our radar for a long time.�?/p>

Fans in the comments of the announcement trailer joke that 11 bit studios only makes games that take place in incredibly cold settings (which they kind of do), and talk about how excited they are to have a new title from the publisher. 11 bit is one of those indie studios that just never seems to miss, and given South of the Circle falls into my all-time favorite gam?e genre, this is one that I personally can't wait for,? as well.

No release window yet, but South of the Circle will be comi??ng soon to PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series S|X, Xbox One, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4.

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