Posted on: February 4, 2020
LLP
Possesseur vérifiéJeux: Avis: 15
The vanishing of good gameplay
Would it be fair to sit someone down to a game of Monopoly without telling them how the Jail space works, or what throwing doubles means? No, but The Vanishing of Ethan Carter thinks it is. The opening screen boasts that the game won't "hold your hand"--by which I take it the developers were too lazy and cheap to provide basic instructions. Getting anywhere with the puzzles depends on figuring out an obscure gameplay mechanic--lining up words that float in the air. If you don't stumble upon it, or consult an FAQ, you'll probably wind up traveling very far across this gigantic environment before realizing you have to go almost all the way back to the beginning. That's a general problem. This is one of the largest game worlds in a single "screen" I've seen, and there's way too much walking and backtracking. No fast travel system either. The terrible save system is the fatal blow. You can't manually save. Instead, the game will auto-save but only when it wishes to. If you have to stop playing, expect to lose some progress, including your inventory and even your location. This would be bad enough even if the plot wasn't so lame. It's another one of those thrillers that rely on both excess violence (this game should be M-rated) and cheesy, random twist endings to hide how shallow it actually is. Tricks instead of a smart or entertaining story. I don't know if I've ever cared less about such nice graphics. If only classic Sierra or LucasArts could've taken this empty scenery and actually put a game of substance in it, with strong characters and a compelling quest. Woulda been great!
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