I was enjoying this game quite a bit, but I've just uninstalled it because of the game-breaking bugs. I won't talk about puzzle bugs because I don't want to spoil anything, but one non-puzzle bug that I encountered was an endless loading screen that prevented me from continuing into chapter 2. The reason I've walked away is because when I get stuck I am not sure if it's a bug; I can't trust that the game is working as it should. Lovely artwork and interesting story weren't enough for me to continue.
Ugly, clunky, poorly animated game with terrible action sequences and gunfights and plenty of instant death situations where the poor controls undermine any attempt to react quickly. After the wonderful Blackwell series (all 5 parts) and the equally wonderful Unavowed, this game actually made me angry! I played for a few hours and the amazing story others talk about hadn't kicked in enough for me to continue to wrestle with everything else. I found the dialogue flat and unengaging and I didn't care about the lifeless characters and their lifeless, albeit somewhat atmospheric, world (and I like dystopian stuff, loved Beneath The Steel Sky). Nice atmospheric audio though. The game is also buggy, many years after release. After death, I often reloaded to see half the screen completely black with only the rain effect being rendered, sometimes with a purple bar at the top. And why do you have to right click on an item in the environment to get to your inventory? You shouldn't have to right click on a phone box/ladder/poster to examine your gun/lockpick/whatever! Why make your starting location right by a gate you can't open? It's the first thing anyone would try. I found the graphical style too crude to be able to identify objects, and resorted to sweeping my mouse in areas I thought were important. I wish I could have played the game other reviewers did, but the one I played completely alienated me; it was unpleasant to play. I won't speculate on why we have plenty of 5 star ratings (ie. one of the best games you've ever played, of supreme quality, that'll take a lot to top), but I understand the passion behind this genre and its continued pulse. I too love it that these games still get made, but perhaps we are a little generous in our support. As a side note, this is the second time I have attempted to get into this game. The first being a few years ago. I disliked it even more this time!
I enjoyed Unavowed a great deal. I hadn't played a point-and-click adventure for many years, not since 'The Longest Journey', and before that it was Lucasarts adventures back in the Amiga days (wow, I'm old). Unavowed reminded me - in a good way - of the adventures I used to play and love, and the great art and writing that I enjoyed, while also bringing more modern mechanics to it such as branching dialogue, moral choices (with consequences) and being able to assemble a party like in an RPG, giving you different puzzle solutions and dialogue based on who you take with you on missions. It's got some Bioware-lite systems, in other words, which I hadn't experienced in point-and-clickers before. Voice acting is strong throughout. I don't share the opinion of many reviewers in that I don't mind that the main character is not voiced. It seems weird to click on a sentence and have it read back to you before you get a response. I much prefer Unavowed's way of hearing the response to your dialogue choice immediately, much more realistic and like you are having the conversation yourself. It's more immediate and natural. As the developer says, not having to voice a male and female lead, along with all their comments on items and scenery, meant they could focus on fleshing out other characters and having multiple origin stories. I think the effort was placed correctly. The puzzles aren't difficult. I got stuck briefly twice, but there's nothing here to have you scratching your head for days, and the story definitely takes priority in Unavowed. In summary, I loved it, I cared about the characters and their stories, and I have been thinking about the game a lot since finishing it, which is always a good marker of a quality game. Recommended.
