Cosmo D is just so good at making enganging worlds and characters. This time I'm even more impressed by the gameplay though. I was a little skeptical initially of the gameplay taking a front seat in one of these kinds of games, but it's incredibly engaging. Most of it is simple dice rolls, relying mostly on luck, but there is definitely some strategizing that can be learned from multiple playthroughs. Also helps to have 11 endings, so there's more replayability to this one.
Another game from the amazing Cosmo D in his "Off-Peak City -verse", though this time the walking simulator gameplay is replaced by a point & click adventure with Tabletop RPG elements including the dice-rolls. For people who suffer with videogames RNGs I have good news, this game has options to tone down the difficulty (or make it harder if you are a masochist), and having beta-tested this game I can assure you it was harder.
This review contains spoilers
everybody in this game is devoted to some kind of trade, whether it be cooking stew, djing, hustling -- boil it down, give it your upmost faith, and suddenly you lose yourself in it, like youre slipping on somebody elses creepy skin suit. you yourself adopt these roles by spending currency on skills which create increasingly high dice rolls, the primary mechanic through which all interactions take place. its a touch overwhelming at first, but the micromanaging necessary at higher difficulty levels makes you feel as addicted to making Forward Progress as the chef who can't let go of her stew or the dj who refuses to give up the boards. its a little eerie. nothing ive encountered yet in 'betrayal at club low' is Scary per say, but theres an underlying bit of unease found between interactions and skill checks, narrow, starkly-lit neon passageways and diorama-like sets that dont feel entirely Natural... i suppose in the same way as dreams. like dreams, too, all the interactions you have, where everyone is holding onto their little skills and hidden interests, is reduced into symbols and patterns. this bouncer... hes Fit and Observant, and harbors a secret love of Dance, all of which i can ultimately profit off of via dice rolls and absorb into the mental picturebook this games made for me. its a tad like the first leisure suit larry game but with less snark and more melatonin, a haunting little stage play that loops back in on itself. i played this all the way thru a few times on edibles in one sitting, and i do think that took away from the novelty a bit, as eventually i was just rushing past dialog to get to specific encounters. regardless, theres some wonderful dreamy stuff in here, thick, palpable bits of worldbuilding in a good point n clicky package. check this out if youre into passing out on the night bus or huffing pc duster