Gamedec - Definitive Edition

This is not a typical style of game that I enjoy. The story and graphics were pretty decent. I've seen it compared to Disco Elysium in places, and it definitely isn't similar or on the same level. I clocked in about 12 hours and there might be a little replay value after learning the plot. I'm ok with the asking price, but I could definitely recommend it at a lower/discounted price.

I don't recommend playing it unless you check out the demo and you’re *extremely* into it — because sadly the game gets worse the further you get. The positives are a very good art direction, and some stunning environmental work. The game serves as a great showcase of what the studio can build in Unreal, and it almost seems intentional that by building different games inside of Gamedec, Anshar is basically proving their versatility and attention to detail in creating unique levels. It's a great "hire us" pitch, I'll admit. The negatives are the narrative, the dialogue and some very basic quest design. The lore is so unnecessarily complicated for a game that has very little new to say. The main ideas of each level are explained in one line in a trailer they made 3 years ago. Everything else is filler, and it increases in quantity and stupidity the further you're in the game. By the end I couldn't care less about the main plot and the protagonist. There's also a lack of good secondary characters, so it's very hard to stay invested. Gamedec is disappointing because it had a good premise and the art and production chops to pull it off. A narrative game lives and dies by its writing, though, and here it went from basic but serviceable to, sadly, bad and boring.

it's not as good as what i hoped for. the main issue for me is how the dialogue tie you to the xp you win. if you try to build an specific archetype of characater via your dialogue you will end up with lots of xp in one "Aspect " but you won't be able to use them because the professions require a balance of `Aspect ` so sometime you end up looking in the menu to choose your dialogue to boost the Aspect that you need to be able to buy a profession. The concept of deduction is really great but i didn't find it was used really well. some options look very simillar and i didn't find it changed the game drastically. some looks to be different choices that leads to the same or very simillar outcome. same with how you have multiple choice in the game i find it's not handled very well. for exemple at some point i received a key to open a door, i went to the door and someone i helped before opened it for me and i was left confused about this key. another exmple of badly done "multiple choice differnt outcome": i got a car blocking my way at some point. i had the choice of removing it myself or askign someone just next to me to remove it. that seemed a bit of a useless multiple choice. I wish the consquences of the multiple choices were more visible and didn't feel so useless.

The game plays well, and the story detective feeling is pure. As a game that might go under the radar for having no triple A studio behind it, its half the price of if not more than most games and has twice as much soul as them.

Very quick: Good writing. Great art-style. Cool models. Lackluster actual choices for mission, with usually just one "right" way of approaching, whereas the rest will generally reward you with something clearly sub-par. Either you handicap yourself intentionally, or you end up going the way you're meant to. You can't actually approach in different ways and end up feeling as though you've achieved an actual win-state. That only happens doing the things in the one right way.