The setting is really beautiful, and the gameplay is decent when everything clicks and you are gliding from one vantage spot to the other while shooting enemies. But man, this is game is SO repetitive. All you do is glide around (or more likely after a while, teleport around) the map, retrieve whatever you are asked to retrieve, and go back. Luckily the game tries to mitigate this by breaking down missions in several sub-quests through a mission menu that is incredibly convoluted at the beginning, but that makes sense after a while. These sub-quests can be completed in any order, so it's possible to at least switch from one laundry list to the next. Other than the pretty world, the other saving grace of the game is the writing. Games does not take itself seriously, and it sprinkles a lot of the dialogue and interactions with Talans with endearing goofiness and silliness.
Game looks okay, animations and sound effects (along with VO) are top notch and very "Sunday morning cartoon" style. It starts strong in the first 2 chapters, but puzzles get progressively more and more obtuse. It definitely lost me at "flip a concrete slab to find a footprint that will then be somehow used as a biometric scan". Moon logic is okay, and I have played my fair share of Lucasarts games - but those games made up for annoying puzzles by being funny. Owlsgard unfortunately doesnt have that going on for it, although the writing is pleasant. Loved the death animations tho, those are really good lol
It's a good effort, but don't go in expecting a sprawling point & click adventure with great puzzles. There's just enough of those to make this game more than a visual novel. but not enough to satisfy an avid P&C fan. Lots and lots of dialogue. Production value is high: great voice acting and OST, beautiful art, simple and elegant UI.
Really - what have l just played? Story is convoluted beyond belief, combat system is trash, crashes, clunky UI, lots of padding. Still, it's getting 4 stars. There's just something about it that kept me going for more - possibly the unhinged NPC dialogues that could turn even the most mundane fetch quest in genuine concern for the dev's mental sanity. A big, big part of the charm comes from the translation. Can't explain it until you see it - but if you've ever had to do with Germans trying to be funny in English, trust me - you are in for a treat. And yeah, yeah, the police-torture quest that a lot of reviewers complain about here and on Steam is stupid and pointless but... so what? Just like a GTA player won't start murdering prostitues, a NOLIH player won't start torturing cops. It goes both ways, people.
The art style of the game is amazing, making it the worth the price (especially if you get it on sale for dirt cheap...). Environment and character design are top notch, along with the soundtrack and the voice over (wasn't sure about the Bear's voice initially, but after getting used to it I actually really enjoyed it). Gameplay wise, it's meh - not very imaginative, basic point & click fare. Characters move very slowly and it all feels a bit stiff and clunky. The writing is hit or miss, and not always good at riding the line between spoof and poorly written homage of the Noir genre. There are also way, way too many pop culture references and 4th wall breaks - things that we have all seen a million times, but that writers still seem to think are clever.
Far from being the best Point & Click out there, it's still a solid entry in Daedalic's catalogue. It lacks the quirkiness and memorable characters of other of their classic games, but it lets itself play without ever becoming boring - thanks at least partially to its very low difficulty level. Knowing what to do is usually pretty obvious, and if yuo get stuck you can usually proceed by talking with some characters who will subtly point you in the right direction.
Indie games with deep/sad stories are a dime a dozen nowadays, but this one handles its theme really well. Art is really beautiful, especially the details of the single objects you'll have to closely examine, but more importantly, the gameplay loop is very fun and satisfying. Game plays like a mix of hidden object search and puzzle, where you have to find a number of items spread around each screen to activate locks, doors, and such through a logic puzzle. None of it is particularly hard, which keeps the momentum going ( even though I did have to look up a guide to find a couple of particularly well hidden items). Each level also has a machine that you'll have to build by putting together several different items in a given configuration - it was extremely satisfying to see those things come to life, as you see each individual piece move and make noises. Easy recommend.
Ooof... might be because I played it a straight up third person shooter, or because I got lost in all the twists and turns of the plot, or because I found the dialogue with other characters (especially the "flirting" with the females) to be quite cringey, or even because I am not looking at this through nostalgia goggles. but... very rough. Choices count, sure,but I never felt fully in control of it: dialogue choices, even important ones, are timed, and you are never quite sure what you are actually going to say, as instead of sentences to use you get "attitudes" that will be used by the main character when replying. Really bad game design choice, imho, even though it does lead to some unpredictable funny moments. Tough to recommend nowadays to be honest, but there is some fun to be had.
I would give it 4 stars, as the controls in the "platforming parts" are a bit janky, but the art direction and vision are so strong and unique that they need to be rewarded with a perfect score. Definitely a slow-burn, even for its short duration, but a highly recommended experience nonetheless. I played with VO in Russian (which I do not speak) and it only added to the atmopshere.
The game's gimmick works quite well - the platforming and the puzzling are well integrated together. The platforming can get a bit frustrating at times (inverted gravity... ugh), but platform assist can be turned on if really needed. Writing is very clever. I normally don't love it when videogame characters are aware of being in a videogame, but in this game the writers really stick to it and it works. I also liked the commentary on some pretentious indie platformers out there...
