playing this after trying out the demo for the sequel really highlights this game's shortcomings. everything from the design to the writing is shaping up to be a lot more polished and deliberate in the new one, like the old one was just playing in the kiddie pool the whole time. still pretty good!
Meredith Gran is simply amazing at capturing those small moments of humanity and twisting them in a way that just touches your soul. Perfect Tides is about a teenage girl growing up on Fire Island but I saw so much of myself in the story, like I felt that this was me.
The writing and art are like six stars but unfortunately some of the puzzles involved are kinda obtuse.
The writing and art are like six stars but unfortunately some of the puzzles involved are kinda obtuse.
The writing in this was so fantastic and evocative it somehow made me miss being a moody, awkward teenager. So many memories and feelings from that stage of my life that I thought were long-forgotten came back to me playing this game. The issues with this were purely with the gameplay. The story worked well in a click-and-point game format, but a lot of actions the game required you to take to move the story forward felt completely obtuse. I had to look at a guide a few times and would have never worked out I needed to do certain things without it. Interacting with the world was also difficult - objects seemed to have very small boundaries and I had to do a lot of pixel-hunting to find the exact spot to click that would let me actually interact with an object.
Overall a fantastic, immersive story with messy but relatable characters. Some janky gameplay but the story is worth it.
Overall a fantastic, immersive story with messy but relatable characters. Some janky gameplay but the story is worth it.
(violently sobbing) ouuuu she just like meeeeee
the banality of being trapped and limited by age, experience, knowledge, wisdom, location, and love. alongside it, the joy that shines through and within the flawed limited scope of an adolescent regardless. again and again, you try to please others and become your best self. things will surely work out differently next time. they have to! a quiet life burning through seasons until there's nothing left but the sound of the ocean lapping on the shore.
has the quintessential classic point and click adventure experience (for better or for worse! i had to look up a guide to progress at one point) but its short length and homage to the genre lends well to itself. seeing the dev stream made me realize how much there was to discover in this game.
has the quintessential classic point and click adventure experience (for better or for worse! i had to look up a guide to progress at one point) but its short length and homage to the genre lends well to itself. seeing the dev stream made me realize how much there was to discover in this game.
PERFEFT TIDES is easily one of the greatest narratives I've ever experienced in my gaming history. A painfully relatable, touching, and sincere slice-of-life story about the highs and lows of adolescence. As a period piece it's also delightful in how much it gets RIGHT about American life in 2000. Even if you weren't alive for AIM, KaZaa, and boy bands, Mara Whitefish's personal journey is a testament to how anxiety, creativity, lust, loneliness, happiness and confusion is all part of the enteral battle that is growing up.
That said...I don't know if a point-and-click adventure game was the BEST way to deliver such a story. Maybe it's because I'm hopelessly out of my depth, never growing up on this genre. There were a lot of moments where cues SO SUBTLE are meant to drive the story forward, that I had to go online and find them, taking away the joy of exploring the world on my own. And THEN, when I was in said online guides, I would realize I had missed steps or opportunities that I never would've realized in my wildest DREAMS were options. I understand that getting experimental and exploring EVERYTHING is a facet of this genre, but PERFECT TIDES too often instills that certain things are off-limits to you, only to then make the area or item you've psychologically accepted as forbidden a major story point. Too often I would say "Well, why would I say "yes" to this after the game told me "no" 20 times?!"
There are also major "gate closing" moments in this that annoyed me in their randomness. For example, late in the narrative I found a key item in a trading sequence. But because I had to then move through a major story sequence, by the time it was over, I discovered that the character I needed to trade with had packed up and left that game entirely. And as a result, I got what I assume is one of the sadder, emptier endings of the game. I understand and accept the logic from the developers, but it hurt my gameplay experience, because of how emotionally invested I got in helping Mara. That trade sequence builds up to something that emotionally devastates her, and as a result of the trade quest failing, I also felt heartbroken.
Three Bees and Meredith Gran have produced one of the most human and interesting stories in this medium. This is stuff you would only see tackled in novels or film/TV. It's compelling and feels super authentic. If you ever had a fight with your own internal monologue as a teenager because you were pretty sure your life was about to end because someone you liked was looking at you weird, Mara Whitefish is going to become your new favorite gaming character. If you can overcome the trappings of point-and-click games, you'll find something truly special, if not entirely perfect.
That said...I don't know if a point-and-click adventure game was the BEST way to deliver such a story. Maybe it's because I'm hopelessly out of my depth, never growing up on this genre. There were a lot of moments where cues SO SUBTLE are meant to drive the story forward, that I had to go online and find them, taking away the joy of exploring the world on my own. And THEN, when I was in said online guides, I would realize I had missed steps or opportunities that I never would've realized in my wildest DREAMS were options. I understand that getting experimental and exploring EVERYTHING is a facet of this genre, but PERFECT TIDES too often instills that certain things are off-limits to you, only to then make the area or item you've psychologically accepted as forbidden a major story point. Too often I would say "Well, why would I say "yes" to this after the game told me "no" 20 times?!"
There are also major "gate closing" moments in this that annoyed me in their randomness. For example, late in the narrative I found a key item in a trading sequence. But because I had to then move through a major story sequence, by the time it was over, I discovered that the character I needed to trade with had packed up and left that game entirely. And as a result, I got what I assume is one of the sadder, emptier endings of the game. I understand and accept the logic from the developers, but it hurt my gameplay experience, because of how emotionally invested I got in helping Mara. That trade sequence builds up to something that emotionally devastates her, and as a result of the trade quest failing, I also felt heartbroken.
Three Bees and Meredith Gran have produced one of the most human and interesting stories in this medium. This is stuff you would only see tackled in novels or film/TV. It's compelling and feels super authentic. If you ever had a fight with your own internal monologue as a teenager because you were pretty sure your life was about to end because someone you liked was looking at you weird, Mara Whitefish is going to become your new favorite gaming character. If you can overcome the trappings of point-and-click games, you'll find something truly special, if not entirely perfect.
This game made me very emotional. It's probably one of the most touching stories I've ever played in a video game, and I urge you to give it a try, especially if you grew up primarily on the internet as a child. Meredith Gran's artstyle is as adorable and charming as ever, and the way she writes her characters is nothing short of amazing.
However, I've never been too fond of old point-and-click adventure games, and Perfect Tides attempts to emulate too much of what I don't like about them. Repetitive MIDI music, no sound effects, confusing controls, and a general feeling of "what am I supposed to do next?" did hamper the experience somewhat.
I can imagine that if you grew up playing these kinds of games, this kind of thing won't bother you, and might even be charming in some way. However, I did not, and I admit it kind of wore on me sometimes as I played.
All in all though, I'm glad I played it through. I still think about this game months after I've played it, and I think that's a clear sign that it's a Very Good Game™.
However, I've never been too fond of old point-and-click adventure games, and Perfect Tides attempts to emulate too much of what I don't like about them. Repetitive MIDI music, no sound effects, confusing controls, and a general feeling of "what am I supposed to do next?" did hamper the experience somewhat.
I can imagine that if you grew up playing these kinds of games, this kind of thing won't bother you, and might even be charming in some way. However, I did not, and I admit it kind of wore on me sometimes as I played.
All in all though, I'm glad I played it through. I still think about this game months after I've played it, and I think that's a clear sign that it's a Very Good Game™.
La mejor aventura gráfica point and click que he jugado. Algunas escenas pegan muy fuerte.
most accurate portrayal of straight edge punks in video game history
also, a great coming of age tale about e-dating, rebelling and teenage angst.
also, a great coming of age tale about e-dating, rebelling and teenage angst.
This review contains spoilers
I really liked the writing in this, and the pixel animation was cute and expressive. I was a little let down by it towards the end because what I suspect was a bug kept me from developing the photo properly for my mom. I was so invested I downloaded a hex editor to try to edit my save file to fix it! It didn't work, and then the game basically yelled at me for not completing that task. That didn't feel great. I liked it overall well enough, though I wish the game didn't feel so beholden to point and click adventure trappings, a lot of times i didn't know what to do because I had clicked on the obvious stuff but it turned out i was like a pixel off or whatever. Excited to see what the sequel is like!
messy coming-of-age point-and-click adventure with the family aesthetics/energy of roseanne set on a fictionalized fire island (mostly) in the off-season? why yes I did greatly enjoy this game
I love specificity in stories, and every little detail in this one—the characters and their complex personalities, the content and delivery of dialogue, the fatally accurate period elements (AIM I miss you), all the way down to the subtlest pixel changes on a character's face or in the seasonality of the cursor—just sang, and made for such a rich, enjoyable experience
my only real complaint is that the, uh, period-appropriate jank common in the point-and-click world was a bit of challenge sometimes, especially!! when you discover there can be multiple endings and especially when you realize how wildly unintuitive some of those pathways were to find lol
but, life is unintuitive and this is true to mara's story, so I can't be too annoyed thematically, at least, lol
all-in-all though, great time. and if you don't want to do another playthrough to see the best ending, def look it up on youtube, because it's lovely
I love specificity in stories, and every little detail in this one—the characters and their complex personalities, the content and delivery of dialogue, the fatally accurate period elements (AIM I miss you), all the way down to the subtlest pixel changes on a character's face or in the seasonality of the cursor—just sang, and made for such a rich, enjoyable experience
my only real complaint is that the, uh, period-appropriate jank common in the point-and-click world was a bit of challenge sometimes, especially!! when you discover there can be multiple endings and especially when you realize how wildly unintuitive some of those pathways were to find lol
but, life is unintuitive and this is true to mara's story, so I can't be too annoyed thematically, at least, lol
all-in-all though, great time. and if you don't want to do another playthrough to see the best ending, def look it up on youtube, because it's lovely
Loved loved loved being in this world-- everything was beautiful, the story was sweet, and the humor on point. However, I became frustrated with the controls, they felt unnatural and stunted gameplay, making it harder to feel immersed. Still, a unique modern game that I felt blessed to find!
This game is incredible. Easy 10/10. Please play this game if you want a good story.
Ottime le animazioni e le scelte estetiche dietro i fondali e gli sprite dei personaggi; ottimi anche i colori adottati e la storia in generale. Un peccato la povertà di puzzle: il gioco è principalmente un'avventura coming-of-age di stampo narrativo in cui per avanzare bisogna dialogare con uno specifico personaggio o consegnarli un certo oggetto. Le combinazioni degli oggetti in inventario sono assai rare (ne ho realizzata soltanto una). C'è di buono che, le soluzioni particolarmente frustranti, sono sempre opzionali. In effetti, aspetto interessante di questo gioco è che molto di ciò che è possibile fare non è indispensabile per il proseguimento della narrazione: molte interazioni sono nascoste o comunque poco evidenti (anche se, purtroppo, nessuna di queste interazioni opzionali offre una conoscenza più approfondita del mondo di gioco o dei personaggi che lo abitano).
Perfect Tides è ricco di testo: ogni singolo oggetto presente su schermo, se ispezionato, può offrire lunghi spiegoni à la Leisure Suit Larry: si parla della storia dei negozi sull'isola, di caratteristiche personologiche dei vari personaggi per come sono percepiti dalla protagonista. Anche un sasso sulla spiaggia potrebbe avere 4-5 righe di testo a propria disposizione.
I personaggi sono, bene o male, tutti ben caratterizzati, e la storia è riuscita a trasmettermi certe emozioni in alcuni punti chiave: ho potuto percepire le difficoltà della protagonista, rinchiusasi in una campana di vetro fatta di comfort zone (specialmente nel suo piccolo mondo di forum su internet) e difficoltà relazionali; ho potuto percepire il lutto vissuto da sua madre, che a distanza di un anno dalla morte del marito soffre ancora questa perdita e non è più in grado di conservare un legame con la figlia/protagonista (preda delle classiche turbe adolescenziali, in concomitanza con il lutto che lei stessa si trova a vivere); ho potuto percepire la rabbia del fratello della protagonista, che si è lasciato andare e non fa altro che passare giornate intere davanti la televisione. Allo stesso tempo, purtroppo, credo che questa profondità non venga restituita in maniera costante: oltre a certe leggerezze nella scrittura, infastidisce anche la monotonia della OST che, oltretutto, in certe situazioni risulta essere anche per nulla adatta.
Detto questo, sono anche compresi alcuni veri e propri errori di design di gioco: assente la possibilità di correre verso un punto/verso un'uscita col doppio click (atroce soprattutto considerato che varie volte si fa backtracking sull'isola nel tentativo di capire cosa fare per proseguire); certe volte, uscire dalla stanza in cui ci si trova non è proprio immediato e mi son ritrovato a dover cliccare ripetutamente verso il margine esterno senza che il personaggio uscisse di scena; in un paio di casi non si capisce subito che una stanza è raggiungibile in quanto l'entrata non è visibile; il puzzle/minigioco dello sviluppo delle foto; al tasto destro del mouse è assegnata la funzione di skippare i dialoghi per intero E di scrollare tra le azioni eseguibili per interagire con l'ambiente (per cui, con un click involontario si rischia di perdere interi pezzi di narrazione).
Una mancanza che a mio parere si avverte parecchio è quella delle opzioni di dialogo: in questo il gioco offre una estremizzazione della linearità, in quanto non c'è alcuna selezione di opzioni conversazionali: con ogni personaggio è possibile avere un unico, diretto scambio di battute alla volta.
Perfect Tides è ricco di testo: ogni singolo oggetto presente su schermo, se ispezionato, può offrire lunghi spiegoni à la Leisure Suit Larry: si parla della storia dei negozi sull'isola, di caratteristiche personologiche dei vari personaggi per come sono percepiti dalla protagonista. Anche un sasso sulla spiaggia potrebbe avere 4-5 righe di testo a propria disposizione.
I personaggi sono, bene o male, tutti ben caratterizzati, e la storia è riuscita a trasmettermi certe emozioni in alcuni punti chiave: ho potuto percepire le difficoltà della protagonista, rinchiusasi in una campana di vetro fatta di comfort zone (specialmente nel suo piccolo mondo di forum su internet) e difficoltà relazionali; ho potuto percepire il lutto vissuto da sua madre, che a distanza di un anno dalla morte del marito soffre ancora questa perdita e non è più in grado di conservare un legame con la figlia/protagonista (preda delle classiche turbe adolescenziali, in concomitanza con il lutto che lei stessa si trova a vivere); ho potuto percepire la rabbia del fratello della protagonista, che si è lasciato andare e non fa altro che passare giornate intere davanti la televisione. Allo stesso tempo, purtroppo, credo che questa profondità non venga restituita in maniera costante: oltre a certe leggerezze nella scrittura, infastidisce anche la monotonia della OST che, oltretutto, in certe situazioni risulta essere anche per nulla adatta.
Detto questo, sono anche compresi alcuni veri e propri errori di design di gioco: assente la possibilità di correre verso un punto/verso un'uscita col doppio click (atroce soprattutto considerato che varie volte si fa backtracking sull'isola nel tentativo di capire cosa fare per proseguire); certe volte, uscire dalla stanza in cui ci si trova non è proprio immediato e mi son ritrovato a dover cliccare ripetutamente verso il margine esterno senza che il personaggio uscisse di scena; in un paio di casi non si capisce subito che una stanza è raggiungibile in quanto l'entrata non è visibile; il puzzle/minigioco dello sviluppo delle foto; al tasto destro del mouse è assegnata la funzione di skippare i dialoghi per intero E di scrollare tra le azioni eseguibili per interagire con l'ambiente (per cui, con un click involontario si rischia di perdere interi pezzi di narrazione).
Una mancanza che a mio parere si avverte parecchio è quella delle opzioni di dialogo: in questo il gioco offre una estremizzazione della linearità, in quanto non c'è alcuna selezione di opzioni conversazionali: con ogni personaggio è possibile avere un unico, diretto scambio di battute alla volta.