I don’t know how Cardboard Computer managed to stretch themselves and provide a new experience in each act, all without losing the plot. But they did, and Act V brings the story to a conclusion. True to Kentucky Route Zero, it brings it to a conclusion, but not a definitive one. And also, true to form, the player has a say in where it seems most characters will end up. They do this through a negotiation with the game through text, nudging responses here and there. More so even than previous chapters, this one felt like a great evolution of old hypercard games. Click this bit of text here to see how that story might change in the telling, but weigh how many times you’ll be able to do that – the game usually won’t let you explore every option.

Following how Act IV took away some player agency with a river and tugboat that moved in just one direction, in Act V, the player can roam in the most open 3D environment that Carboard Computer has yet created. That free movement is brilliantly balanced out by limited conversational perspective – the player is put in the position to overhear conversations and participate in them through limited means. That eases the feeling of control over these characters – after all, at the end, the player has to let them and the story go. Thiis amounts to a very free, open approach to the ending. Cardboard Computer has often provided players with different perspectives throughout their journey. Act V continues to open things up, providing one more day at the end of the road.

I’ve heard of a land of joy and peace and wonderful light
A beautiful place of mansions fair and skies so bright
Where all who believe the savior dear forever shall stay
And having been saved by grace divine I’m going that way

I’m going that way, I’m going that way
Yes dear, the savior I adore is with me each day
I’m clinging to him and never to stray
Just singing praises all day long, I’m going that way