I've played all of Dave Gilbert's previous adventure games (the Blackwell series and Unavowed being particular favorites of mine), and if you've also played his previous then you pretty much know what you're getting here. The story is excellent as always dealing more with the personal and emotional issues of the protagonist than with some grand overarching threat and doesn't bombard you with exposition despite its sci-fi time travel plot. The voice acting is good, the main character Fia's line delivery took some getting used to but it fits the character so it's fine. The puzzles are not too difficult, due to the time travel story the game actually does the save/reload thing FOR you at certain points so screwing up is actually woven into gameplay. Take notes though, the game does expect you to remember names, dates and numbers for certain puzzles. My experience wasn't entirely without complaint though, the story relies a little too much on irrational behavior to set up puzzles sometimes which can be annoying, also the aformentioned in-game save/reload system can get a bit tedious when you have to watch the exact scene over and over as you figure the puzzle out. There's also a slight nihilistic streak to some of the writing which I can understand given the time it was written and the times we're in now, but a little optimism can help brighten otherwise dark times and is sorely needed right now. The story is also completely linear and the lack of a branching narrative in a time travel game seems like a waste of potential. In all I'd recommend this game to existing fans and newcomers alike.
I really wanted to like this game. And the first time I played it I did. The problems started on the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th times when the process of reading all the same dialogue over and over again became tedious and outcomes I was trying to achieve seemed impossible to get without a step-by-step guide. Frequently a decision made in Turn 3 will completely screw you over but you won't find out until Turn 8, which would be fine if that didn't mean having to go back and replay ALL those turns in between again. I get that not knowing what precisely your decisions will do adds a degree of suspense to the game but it would be nice if there was perhaps a toggle that displayed future outcomes next to decisions after completing the game once. As it is I'm unlikely to bother playing this game again without a guide to guarantee the outcomes I want, and since most of the guides out there are for Reformist Capitalist playthroughs I probably just won't play it again period.
Would you condemn a man to death just to keep a baying mob from killing you instead? That kind of moral dilemma is at the heart of this game and frankly is deeply relevant to today's political climate. As a judge in Revolutionary France you have to balance maintaining your reputation (and personal safety) with passing the sentences you feel are actually warranted. Is the game simplistic? Yes. But engage with it and don't just think of it as a game about keeping the little bars in the positive, instead REALLY try to imagine what it is like to hold a man or woman's life in your hands while outside pressures try to influence your decision. I have knocked a star off for the price though, it should be at least half that so maybe wait for a sale.
