Posted on: June 22, 2024
mdqp
Verified ownerGames: 1939 Reviews: 69
Tough Puzzles, Rushed Ending(s) (7/10)
Rauniot is a dark, atmopsheric point-and-click, set in a fictional, post-apocalyptic 1975 Finland. The presentation is intriguing, if a bit flawed. The look and soundscape give a sombre tone to the game from the get-go, which is appropriate, given the themes (although I am not sure if the "horror" tag is appropriate). The music gets a bit repetitive (feels like there are 2 tracks) and it's set very low in the audio options (I recommend taking a look at the presets and changing them). Voice acting is mixed, but overall nice (only Finnish available). I was kind of surprised by the number of unique animations the game has for an indie adventure, and they are mostly well-done, as are the backgrounds and the characters. Less great are the animations for dialogues, and the inner monologues are a bit of a nuisance, since you can't skip during those and the pauses are too long. The gameplay is a very standard point-and-click adventure. You do have a limited resource in the ammo bullets, but you can finish the game without firing a shot, and they are mostly a "moral conundrum" (do I kill the bastard who's making my life hard with side-quests and is likely a murderer, or do I take the high ground?). For the rest, expect a mix of straightforward and complicated puzzles. None of the puzzles require leaps in logic (they remain fairly grounded) but some require focus, and the odd "pixel-hunting moments" don't help matters (some of the items are TINY). The ending feels like they had to wrap things up. Partly it's because of the story's structure (they wanted a reveal at the end) but even excluding that, it doesn't feel well thought-out. It's a bit of a downer, but I hadn't exactly built a connection with anyone but the protagonist, given the limited interactions. The plot itself is kind of weak (feels like too much happened off-screen, in the end), but it's propped up by the atmosphere. I think the game is a 7, but I'll round it down because it's full of missed opportunities.
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