I often find myself in a rather awkward position when Zero Punctuation decides to review a game I personally enjoyed. Here I see Croshaw hitting pretty much all of the negative points and several of the positive ones I would bring up if I were writing the review, but presenting them in more or less the mirror opposite of the way my experience with the game went. To wit- I agree with the pacing- slow to begin yet developing greater momentum as the story unfolds. I agree with the interface- hard to get used to, but aiding in the immersion. The difference here is that I found the flaws to be minor sticking points far outweighed by the incredibly visceral moments, which I found occuring far more frequently than Yahtzee mentions here. Which forces me to ask- is Yahtzee harping on the flaws purely for comedic effect (the way he alludes to way back in his Bioshock review) or did his experience really just veer sharply left when mine went right?
I found the characters very sympathetic. The opening, for me, while not the most well paced (which is admittedly difficult to accomplish when the player is both getting used to the control scheme and allowed to accomplish the various tasks meant to move the plot in their own time- much like a point and click adventure game, the action early on essentially depends on hunting down the right items and actions to progress the storyline) also provided a snap shot of our protagonist's life. Its a hard thing to create empathy for a main character. Here Quantic Dreams is trying to do so through a series of familiar tasks- day to day routines that serve a mini-tutorial (you'll notice most of the frustratingly simple tasks like brushing your teeth or setting a kitchen table use the same control scheme as much more time critical and dangerous challeges later down the line) and attempt to create a sense of the familiar. As Yahtzee mentions, this serves as a way to juxatapose the introduction with the rest of the game (the color scheme is bright and cheerful, the actions are mundane and simple, and Ethan Mar's life is pretty much everything you can ask for if your a upper middle class American- successful job, nice home, beautiful wife, and two boys to love deerly). But even though I saw the tragedy coming a mile away, that didn't lessen the gut punch the game delivers one bit when the axe came down. I couldn't help but FEEL Ethan's loss.
I suspect that's the chief difference in my opinion of the game. I was there with the characters. I wanted to solve the mystery as much as they did, and consequently I ended up becoming invested in what happened to them. I'll admit, its been a long time since last I got that deeply invested in a game's plotline, and its a welcome reemergence.
In short, the flaws ZP focuses on here I considered minor compared to what the game brought to the table. Sure, it has a number of frustrations and annoyances to bring to the table, but for my part I found the overall game gripping, suspenseful, and engaging. I enjoyed unraveling the mystery, whether its chasing the clues as an investigator or being subjected to the games the killer wants to play as a desperate father trying to save his lost son. Meeting the challenges the game sets for you (whether its moving through some electrified booby traps or finding the right words to talk your way out of an intense hostage situation) is very tense and gives you a real sense that your decisions matter. That might be a bit of smoke and mirrors on the game's part- only a replay will let me see exactly which actions change the outcome of the storyline and which do not- but in any event the result remains a suspenseful and gripping experience.
