This, legitimately, is a good game and I’m glad I bought it. The game is so well scripted and was obviously created with care. Great story, nice puzzles, overall success. A modern point and click game this wholesome is a rarity.
I fell in love with the experience, the journey, the essence of what this game entailed, what it showed me and in the end, gave me. I was astounded by the games beautiful imagery, music and the great wonder brought by exploration. What was unexpected was the emotional aspect. Making this game a rarity in its own right. I got this game as part of a bundle and didn’t expect anything of it. But shortly after I started playing I became mesmerized. I loved the puzzles and adore this games essence. Superficially, RIME might seem like a game about simple exploration, but within its depths there is more. I found a story, a story without an uttered word. A silent movie if you will. It was a story fueled with wonder, discovery, love and loss. This game is a true experience. It’s creators should feel proud about giving it a soul, and in its silence, a voice.
What a waste! This game could have been so much better with improved writing and a more insightful social attitude. It's faults are painfully sad. Even though I found some humour, fun puzzles and an interesting alternative world to discover, the main character is a narcissistic leaching psychopath void of empathy. Not a fun nor sophisticated character to play. It takes away from any attempt at humour, because of the deliberate disregard he has for others. By design it’s impossible to take anything away from this game. Which in turn makes playing it utterly pointless. Many games offer sophisticated humour, invoke ethical thought, critical thinking, even ambiguous ethical dilemmas. Deponia, however, is game that promotes toxic masculinity, upheaves rape culture and is unforgivably socially backwards, totally dismantling any of it’s qualities. This game lacks insight, is cheap, unenlightening and a huge disappointment. The female characters were particularly poorly written or made nonexistent (e.g. sleeping), degrading the storyline. Considering the game is from 2012, this lack of insight quickly became an annoyance. I've seen more impressive and socially progressive work from the nineties. Despite the game having themes concerning subjects like dystopia, inequality, resource scarcity, callousness and lack of empathy, non of these subjects were actually addressed. Instead, commentary was left to a uninsightfull narcissist, who superficially started to feel a little bad as the game progressed. There was no depth to this story. The main female character was treated as a commodity the entire time and was constantly manipulated. All female characters were constantly being sedated/drugged if they were inconvenient, e.g. had independent wants, needs or interests of their own. It’s such a shame, because the world created could have had such potential if scripting had been better and if a higher level of social awareness would have been incorporated.
If you’re a fan of point-and-click adventure games, I’d go as far as to say that this game is a requirement. It’s an absolutely wonderful game. After a good introduction you are greeted with comedy and your stereotypical assumptions challenged in the most humorous way. Despite it’s simplistic and colorful design, this game is far from juvenile. I was amazed how every character I met had it’s unique quirks, wants and needs, creating an enriching experience. Every conversation had conveyed meaning, history and personality. I would even potentially recommend this game to players who aren’t that heavily into point-and-click games. This is one of those games that could entertain a wider spectrum of players. In a way, I can’t believe I hadn’t discovered this game sooner, as it’s clearly a gem from the golden age of point-and-click adventure games.
