Return of the Obra Dinn

I wish more games were made with this much heart. The level of detail and cleverness is astounding. There is nearly no animation and whenever there would be one, it cuts to "black"; and yet the sound effects, the characters and freeze-framed situations have more in them happening, make it more alive and leave more impact than many so-called AAA titles. The music is amazing and actually works in tandem with what's happening, which made me feel exhilarated. Each match of 3 correctly deduced fates brings so much satisfaction it feels like it shouldn't be possible. Sadly, not much of a replay value, and requires too much attention to detail to not randomly guess at some points but actually deduce the facts. Still, it's one of the very few games that are worth way, way more than you pay even at the full price.

Return of the Obra Dinn demonstrates how a truly great game design focuses on the player's experience. The game places you on an empty ship as an insurance adjuster trying to make sense of what happened to the 60 crew and passengers. You have a tool which allows you to relive the final moments of any remains you discover, and a log which automatically will record much of what you see. It took me a while to realize that the game wasn't trying to alienate me. Two hours into playing, I had explored every inch of the ship and was overwhelmed by a jumble of vivid story moments and lists of names. The game will periodically confirm your deductions of the crew's fates - and I had made precious few. I actually got to an end screen. Albeit, one which indicated my failure. But then the game gave me the opportunity to go back. And, in doing so, I realized it wasn't trying to alienate me but to help me understand that exploring the ship was just giving me the tools I needed to actually play the game. I went back into the memories for a second or third time, finding the clues weren't necessarily in the most dramatic moments, but in the interactions found elsewhere in the same scene. Even walking around the ship was different once I got out of game exploration mode and thought more like a detective. By hour five I was confirming fates all the time, narrowing the crew list and getting closer to the end. Crucially, though, I felt more competent about the 'job' I was doing. It's not a feeling I'm used to in gaming but it did remind me of designer Lucas Pope's previous game "Papers Please." The 'gamiest' thing about Obra Dinn might be that it conceals one piece of the narrative until the endgame, but those looking forward to a twist ending might be disappointed. The denouement of Obra Dinn isn't about a final dramatic twist but about completing the task and taking pride in a job well done. It's one of the most satisfying sensations I've ever had in a video game.

This is basically new genre. This game will be highly enjoyable for people who like to figure out things by logic (or deduction).

I am not really into detective/adventure type of games, but I was immediately spellbound by the Return of the Obra Dinn. The visuals, the music (absolutely amazing), how characters that you never see in motion can become real people where you care about their fates. An absolute piece of art. Also a lot of fun to play.

After Papers, Please, I had to buy this game as soon as it came available, and I was not disappointed one bit. It is a very different style of game -- it is basically a variety of point & click adventure, with no test of eye/hand coordination. It is also probably the best detective game I have ever played. The gameplay is relatively simple -- one by one you must identify every decedent on a derelict ship, and how they died, by carefully scouring for visual and auditory clues (you have a limited ability to replay the last moment's of each decedent's life). Simple, but very effective. Probably my only 2 complaints are (1) if you wanted to, you could force a solution by brute trial-and-error (so don't do that!), and (2) there is limited replay value once you know the solutions (so wait a couple years and then play it through again...I did!). This wouldn't be enough if the story were weak...but the story is very, very good. And it is helped along by the strong voice acting and the intriguing retro-style b&w graphics, enjoyed from a first-person view that immerses you. This game really is on par with Papers, Please, and I can't wait to see Pope's next game.