Some people call this game an art installation. I don't like to think about it like that, because that takes away the meaning of the world. Maybe there isn't any meaning, and maybe it actually only is a piece of art. But I'd like to think that the world has a story behind it - a reason to exist. I haven't finished the game when writing this, and I haven't found any meaning so far, and barely any story. I guess the ending will reveal what it's all about. The atmosphere is fantastic. But that's all. The rest is okay, I guess. The gameplay is mostly about solving puzzles. But then come the enemies that just ruin everything. They will kill you in a single hit, and you have nothing to defend yourself with. After dying three times I gave up. It just wasn't fun. If I feel really bored I can give it another go and see if things turn for the better. But until then, it's a solid 3/5.
There isn't much of gameplay. Just driving cars, walking around and shooting some enemies. And the story is decent, even though there isn't much to keep me hooked.
The game is simple, which is good (I don't like complex games), and slightly addictive. You go fishing, get money, and upgrade your boat. Meanwhile you get to know the weird people that live in the archipelago. Sweet and simple. :)
I've played about one third of the game, ocassionally over a period of 10 months. That says quite much about my level of investment, and I don't see myself ever finishing it. When I feel that way about a game, it's either because I don't understand it, or because I don't get to do anything interesting. Lacuna checks both these boxes. The gameplay is all about walking around, finding the next person to talk to or the next object to interact with. You don't get to do anything particularily interesting. And the story doesn't really hook me either. Then comes the part that I don't understand... The game itself. During the game you gather clues, and I've found them all so far (I think). One thing I don't understand is whether you can fail to find them all, of if there is some system in place that doesn't allow you to proceed before you have done so. Either way, it feels quite much out of my control. The second thing I don't understand is what you are supposed to do with those clues. At one point you are asked to submit forms where you describe the murderer, and all you have to go on are those clues. So I did, and I filled in everything, and submitted them... I used all the data I had available and was pretty confident that I had a correct description of the murderer. Then a cutscene played out, and it turned out I got it all wrong. Fantastic. Do you get to retry? No, of course not. You cannot choose where to save. The game does so for you. Did it matter? Not at all. The murderer was found despite my failure. The whole game just feels like nonsense. I don't know what matters and what doesn't. The story continues anyway, and your action doen't seem to affect the outcome. But I will never know...
