A Plague Tale: Innocence

.. in others not so much. The game looks really great (xmg 15 with gtx 1660 mobile) with well crafted setpieces. I've hardly seen such well written main characters with such believable behavior. The voice acting, sound and music also adds to this. Still I was thinking about giving just 3 stars because of the gameplay. While still fun it is also quite limited. You hardly make your own path but rather have to find the one solution the game has to offer. The controls are good enough but could be more precise sometimes. You can't save on your own what would be fine. There are plenty of checkpoints. However when using such a system, you should be able to reload more than only your last checkpoint. This is extra annoying since you could easily miss some stuff while the game allows hardly any backtracking but instead blocks backtracking way to often. So with more freedom and better controls this could have been a masterpiece, which means quite a lot when not coming from a rather unknown developer.

This is a type of game that take the baton from the original Click & Play game. This is a short story very well polished. The length of a session may be between 11 and 15 hours. The studio behind the game put a lot of details on the medieval France that you will explore in the game. Probably only the stained glasses break it, but they were done in the history to tell on the game. Even the clothes carried by the protagonists will show degradation as the months passes. Well... everyone has a perfect set of teeth, but we can let pass that one. The soundtrack used on the game is also very good. It helps to display the tension or fears from the main protagonists. The main protagonist, Amicia, is a teenager who at the beginning cannot fight back the menaces. Although, this is only temporary and by sacrificing her innocence. Most of the time, Amicia will not be alone, she will be accompanied by at least one more character that will help you by different ways (passing by small holes, knocking enemies, etc.) without provoking your death. Each scenario will be an interactive puzzle using your companions, the tools carried by Armicia, her stealth and the environment itself. And frankly, this is a strong point of the game. Most of the puzzles feel good and with logic. Finally, by exploring exhaustively the scenario is how Amicia will generate most of her interactions with her companions.

A pleasant surprise. I don't even remember how I stumbled upon it, but I'm glad I did. Great story, solid gameplay, and all-around polish make it a goodie for your digital shelf. A bit on the easy side, but not without it's challenging bits. Any deaths/frustrations I had were clearly my fault, so it's very well balanced and thought out. I actually miss these types of games I could finish in a weekend. Short, but enjoyable. I say check it out.

The game is amazing. It's true. It doesn't shine with innovative and mind-blowing gameplay, but it shines with an immersive story, beautifully crafted world and characters you're grow to love or hate.

• moody atmosphere • great acting • great characters • fantastic graphic (thankfully not too realistic - no nightmares at nights) • atmospheric music • great story