lets start with what is actually good about the game.... - gameplay mechanics are pretty good between exploring and combat - movement and tactical turnbased combat are pretty seemless and pretty solid now what really sucks ass about this game... - global warming narrative story, along with all the SJW/NPC and globalist bs thrown in for good measure - port from console (ment for console play and suffers all the problems of a port) = double exit menu's from port = lag spikes at really odd moments during gameplay and combat = even when blur is turned off it is still on - no facial animations beyond the jaw moving up and down sort of and no sync for the up/down movement - cutscene animations are complete SHIT! - the 'Ark' design complete inapropriate to the rest of the game = point and click to select where you want to go = no actual movement through the 'Ark' to get to the shops etc. = no variety of characters (copy/paste no individualisation at all) = flat pictures with little to no animation = VO is flat and uninsteresting - Playable Characters are single dimention, flat with only a little indivualism given with some decent (for this game) VO work - feels like a alpha/beta version of a game instead of a full game - invisible walls everywhere isntead of barriers that make sense the gameplay cannot salvage this pile of digital poop... the storyline alone should condemn this garbage. (would not be surprised if this was deleted since it does not go with the narrative and the good feels)
massive potential... the game feels unfinished, i do not know if anyone else felt that at the end... frankly i was massively disapointed with the ending. graphics are extremely well done and convey the desolation and lonelyness very well, the vehicle/machine thing is friggin awesome with limited upgrades/replacement parts... i feel that the game could have been longer, there where way too many people working on this game for its length, with more exploration and maybe some hidden areas/secrets to be found... the game could have benefitted from some text or VO narration on the past and present of the world/universe that this game created, maybe given some thoughts of the player character as to why this journey was being taken (besides her/his/its? father dieing) and what the eventual goal or destination might be.... some added structure to the game would have helped even more. - could have had a point to upgrade the framework/wood/sails/etc. of the vehicle. - would have been nice to have the brakes labeled properly like some of the other stuff. - should have had more of the inbetween 'inventions' of the 'H' industries/corporation show up. = scrapping some to upgrade the player vehicle = pushing a couple out of the way.... or maybe helping to repair other vehicles along the way = see them driving or laying deralict in the background or foreground - collecting and trying to preserve items possibly - upgrades to egnine efficiency - tanks for water/air (pressure) as well as chemical/gas tank for the welder attachment - addons for 'gathering tube' such as a conveyer - getting more hooks to hang stuff, or a collection/picture area on the wall beside the bed - upgrades for more space added to the vehicle - better handling and automation of certain parts of the vehicle such as speed/pressure release - convert the spinning cog on the outside of the vehicle to help convert busted stuff into fuel - addon/upgrade fuel tanks needs some free dlc. other than that great.
so where to start... the game sucks, to many games already exist with the gibberish VO work this take in gaming has been done to death and is not endearing in the least. i do not know about others but there does not seem to be any point to having sound in the game at all at this point... not to mention things like being able to understand the plot/story if there was one... the only thing we know for certain is the boys mother died, their father is sick and they have to go on a 'quest' to find medicine sort of, oh and everyone is either indifferent or actively preventing the boys from getting anything... the game mechanics are well, wonky, at the best of times and frustratingly insane at others, also the interaction buttons and keyboard/mouse setup SUCKS!! if you have a controller you might be able to play the game and possibly enjoy, if you do not have a controller prepare for a massive slog of frustration with the controls. the sounds, the music is crap plain and simple... the background sound and 'VO' work will blast your head off because at default it is at 100% and if you have a headset/headphones on it feels like your head is being caved in from the blast of noise... the graphics are ok, massively fuzzy and get worse when the 'camera' gets stuck and you are in close up on one or both of the boys, you cannot see a damn thing beside nasty blur... thanks to this being a port with very little focus given to how graphics would look when on a monitor instead of a tv screen. if you decide to change the keybindings with keyboard/mouse setup, expect those bindings to be completely backwords to what they are supposed to do... almost making it impossible to play the game at all... never ever pay full price for this game/port, you will regret it... even when it is on sale do not pay more than 2-3 dollars at the most, if you want to find out for yourself if you like the game or not (frankly i still suggest trying before you buy), these are my experiences and opions.
the story is interesting even if it feels like you have received only a small part of the game... the 'anti-hero' character applies completely here, the main character is a complete and utter self-centered, egotistical, annoying shithead... (an atypical SJW that thinks the world owes them everything because they simply exist/live) whereas most new games that are made in this style are complete garbage and are not funny in the least, this game makes the main character interesting and makes fun of him for his 'only i, and what i want, matter' SJW sense of entitlement etc. and at the same times makes the puzzles interesting and has a decent storyline/arch to go along with it... while all of the rest of the game has that going for it, there are a couple of drawbacks/downsides to the game as a whole... - lack of information in regards to environment and anything that you look at - characters are mostly fleshed out but most feel flat and uninteresting (what the F is up with the receptionist dude?) - too many throwaway items/objects that stay in your inventory for some reason, why not have the main character toss them or destroy them in a fun/weird way (after all he is a bit of a clutz and butterfingers) - fuzzy/stretched images whether its background or characters (usually too close to the 'camera' in this case) - main character does not have any growth/development really even at the end of the game when he does seem to realize one thing
there are better point and click object combining puzzle games from the same time period of the original release of this game, or even before this game even came out... the puzzles are so insanely simple that anyone with high intelligence can easily get stuck, sounds weird i know but those with higher intelligence get stuck on looking for something more complicated or less 'devious' (probably the best word for it) than most people... there are game guides/hints aplenty from the original games release for anyone to use, takes a bit of the fun out of playing (not the devs fault obviously) the game but anyone can use them to complete any of the puzzles/challenges if they do get stuck. there are some nasty bugs/glitches that will instantly and permanently corrupt your save file so you will have to start the game over again (unless you keep 4-6 saves at any given time) most of what is happening is extremely boring and un-inventive (at least for me) and even more uninspired... the jokes are usually not funny, the game is more based around mexican/spanish lore than it is about the Grim Reaper, and if death was run by a gov. bureau instead of a simple natural form of expiration... the whole planting thing to kill the dead is stupid... you may or may not find the game fun, i would suggest getting it on sale only, not sure if i will be able to slog through the rest of the game or not at this point... (that is my opinion and 2 cents on this game)
seriously, do not buy this at full price ever... if you do decide to get this game wait till it is on sale for 5 bucks or less... (remember this and keep it in mind) some things about the game are kind of cool: - storyline changes depending on if the girl sees you (as shadwen) kill or not - can build some stuff - grappling dart/line - sneaking (sort of) - physics (sort of) - can bring the lootbox/chest to you on a platform etc. the game can be fun, but gets extremely repetitive within a few seconds.... all of the issues (as they currently stand) with the game - animation is stiff and wonky to say the least with no variations - enemy site can cause issues with being able to see where enemies are and the map/scenery that you have to traverse - AI is complete garbage - instant death when seen or partially seen - movement is annoying as hell, your character will continue to move for 2+ more steps when stopping - little girl and enemy AI are completely broken, girl can be out in the open between hiding spots when enemies are around and nothing happens (which is odd considering the story line/arch) - camera movement is jerky and gets stuck on objects often - cannot zoom in/out - cannot upgrade items - can only build a few items - not an open world or movement as claimed, extremely linear gameplay at all times - no upgrades or alternate costume/armor/etc. - child complains of food but no 'side quests' to find anything to keep her fed/warm/etc. - logic of the game and the story are all over the place - pathing has major issues and you will get stuck or get dragged along the map forcing rewrind or restart of the game - is possible to fall through or dragged into floor/walls - beginning/end of each level/map is exactly the same and resets crouch and in some cases appears to reset/remove 1-2 items - enemies will see/hear you from 30-60 feet away, while they will not hear or see crates being moved or noise within 10 feet there are other issues as well, but limit on letters.
