great game with wonderful environments. pushes source 1 to a cutting edge in terms of mapping. unfortunately the puzzles are not very good
This is the "Indiana Jones" of Civil Engineering. I just imagine the main character saying "It belongs in an OSHA review board!"
I couldn't get this game out of my head for some reason, and I'm finally done with exams, so I wanted to come back and finish it.
I've already done my review for this, but I've never finished it out of frustration with the Turnip Hill section, plus other stuff like some bugs and college. I think my opinion of the last chapters (8, 9 and 10) not being as good as the rest of the game still stands, even if chapter 10 gets better as it goes, but nevertheless, I LOVE this game. It's really rare to find a game so unique as this, and in a way it's something similar to Shadow of the Colossus, where the uniqueness of it is kind of a negative, at least to me. And I say that because I really loved the game, and I wish to go right ahead and play similar ones, but there just isn't. There's nothing like this, at least that I know of, and I think just by that alone it is worth to give it a higher rating. Like I said on my first review, there are obviously some rough edges like the voice acting or the jumbling progression, but the positives highly outweigh the negatives, so I'm changing the score from a 6 to a 7. In short, fantastic puzzles and "gameplay" loop, with the best compilation of infrastructures I've seen in gaming.
I can't stress enough how great INFRA is if you enjoy atmospheric puzzles games or walking sims, and I immensely recommend that you give it a try. Also, I just found out that their next game is already out on Early Access, hell yes.
★★★½ – Great ✅
I've already done my review for this, but I've never finished it out of frustration with the Turnip Hill section, plus other stuff like some bugs and college. I think my opinion of the last chapters (8, 9 and 10) not being as good as the rest of the game still stands, even if chapter 10 gets better as it goes, but nevertheless, I LOVE this game. It's really rare to find a game so unique as this, and in a way it's something similar to Shadow of the Colossus, where the uniqueness of it is kind of a negative, at least to me. And I say that because I really loved the game, and I wish to go right ahead and play similar ones, but there just isn't. There's nothing like this, at least that I know of, and I think just by that alone it is worth to give it a higher rating. Like I said on my first review, there are obviously some rough edges like the voice acting or the jumbling progression, but the positives highly outweigh the negatives, so I'm changing the score from a 6 to a 7. In short, fantastic puzzles and "gameplay" loop, with the best compilation of infrastructures I've seen in gaming.
I can't stress enough how great INFRA is if you enjoy atmospheric puzzles games or walking sims, and I immensely recommend that you give it a try. Also, I just found out that their next game is already out on Early Access, hell yes.
★★★½ – Great ✅
Hidden Gems
You know that weird feeling you get when exploring empty GMod maps? Infra is basically that but for 15 hours and you're hooked the entire time.
It's a nice game, I actually started playing it with great interest. But turns out this game is created to spite me: a linear puzzle game with a lot of the puzzles and content being skippable. I guess it would be alright if I had a counter or something that told me if I am missing stuff but no, most of this stuff is either designed to make you play the game multiple times or straight up force you to use a guide.
I don't like that you cannot revise your discoveries, your items, etc. Specially so that I can keep up with the lore more effectively.
The battery mechanic was also totally unnecessary imo.
Other than that it's a cool and well made setting so far, and I like the idea of fixing everything you find
I don't like that you cannot revise your discoveries, your items, etc. Specially so that I can keep up with the lore more effectively.
The battery mechanic was also totally unnecessary imo.
Other than that it's a cool and well made setting so far, and I like the idea of fixing everything you find
the most finnish eurojank source adventure game i think i've ever played (positive). even if the puzzles feel like kind of a slog at times, and the battery drain mechanic is kind of just an annoyance (luckily, you can edit the configs to decrease the rate that it drains, or just turn it off completely), every environment has an endless amount of care put into it and the photography helps to incentivize you to explore every little crevice you can, find every document and easter egg.
i do wish it was made a bit more obvious at times which path leads you to the next area and which is optional, because there are multiple times where i'll walk into a hallway thinking it's more map only to be met with a level transition. still, i'll definitely replay this at some point, maybe check out the surprising wealth of fan-mods too. i like this game quite a bit, even through the tedium.
i do wish it was made a bit more obvious at times which path leads you to the next area and which is optional, because there are multiple times where i'll walk into a hallway thinking it's more map only to be met with a level transition. still, i'll definitely replay this at some point, maybe check out the surprising wealth of fan-mods too. i like this game quite a bit, even through the tedium.
I want to preface what I'm about to say with the fact that if you like puzzle games where you must entirely find the solution yourself without any hints then this is the game for you. There's more than enough of that to spend hours on.
With that being said, those of you who are like me and want some semblance of (video game) logic toward a conclusion in puzzles, Infra is a test of frustration. For the handful of hours I got through this, every puzzle I found was met with a sense of dread and calling it quits for the day.
The way puzzles are structured are fairly straightforward. You walk into a location, are met with infrastructure that's in serious disrepair, and need to fix it to progress. That's all the guidance you get outside of the odd note here and there. As such, puzzles are less about finding the correct solution and more about finding whatever it is the game wants. To me, that process is grating and makes me feel like I'm walking in circles finding that one thing I didn't interact with.
I completely understand why the developer did this. They wanted Infra's puzzles to feel as realistic as possible, at least within the ability to actually complete them. On the front of uniqueness, there's few games with puzzles quite like it. It's just not for me and, judging by the fact 35% of people have gotten just under halfway through the game, it's not for a lot of people.
Though outside of things that could arguably come down to personal tastes, the voice acting for this game is laughably bad. It's mostly due to Finnish voice actors not speaking their native language which isn't the fault of the actors themselves, but it does make any line delivered feel unnaturally wooden. I almost considered swapping the language at times and just reading the subtitles, which is tough since I tend to have a tough time putting subtitles to emotion.
For what it's worth, there are things Infra gets right. Its world is gorgeous and arguably some of the best Source 1 content we've ever gotten. It also has decent music whenever it interjects. For my tastes though, it isn't enough to carry the experience. I really wish I could love this game as much as other people do, but the only way I see myself playing without losing my sanity is to look up all the puzzle solutions. Not super interested in that idea.
With that being said, those of you who are like me and want some semblance of (video game) logic toward a conclusion in puzzles, Infra is a test of frustration. For the handful of hours I got through this, every puzzle I found was met with a sense of dread and calling it quits for the day.
The way puzzles are structured are fairly straightforward. You walk into a location, are met with infrastructure that's in serious disrepair, and need to fix it to progress. That's all the guidance you get outside of the odd note here and there. As such, puzzles are less about finding the correct solution and more about finding whatever it is the game wants. To me, that process is grating and makes me feel like I'm walking in circles finding that one thing I didn't interact with.
I completely understand why the developer did this. They wanted Infra's puzzles to feel as realistic as possible, at least within the ability to actually complete them. On the front of uniqueness, there's few games with puzzles quite like it. It's just not for me and, judging by the fact 35% of people have gotten just under halfway through the game, it's not for a lot of people.
Though outside of things that could arguably come down to personal tastes, the voice acting for this game is laughably bad. It's mostly due to Finnish voice actors not speaking their native language which isn't the fault of the actors themselves, but it does make any line delivered feel unnaturally wooden. I almost considered swapping the language at times and just reading the subtitles, which is tough since I tend to have a tough time putting subtitles to emotion.
For what it's worth, there are things Infra gets right. Its world is gorgeous and arguably some of the best Source 1 content we've ever gotten. It also has decent music whenever it interjects. For my tastes though, it isn't enough to carry the experience. I really wish I could love this game as much as other people do, but the only way I see myself playing without losing my sanity is to look up all the puzzle solutions. Not super interested in that idea.
One of my favorite games. peak. Incredible vibes if you like urban exploration, walking sims, or documenting and fixing neglected infrastructure. The game doesn't track completion of its puzzles so if you find missing things frustrating you're probably gonna want to have a guide open.
This is probably my favorite recent imperfect game.
I think it's really cool that there's like, a very granular infrastructure focused game like this. It does a lot of good adventure gamey stuff while also avoiding doing weird inventory puzzles. It's also definitely a eurojank game, full of eastern europe cultural artifacts and odd design decisions which might seem weird and counterintuitive. It's like the machine fixing puzzles of Myst mixed with the "carry this object" puzzles of Amnesia and the environmental design of a walking sim. There's no enemies, this is an adventure game through and through!
The only thing weird about it is how it gets better designed as it goes. There's this awful horrible raft ride in act one which is the WORST part of the game, it's so awful i couldn't blame anybody for dropping the game there. I had to noclip to get myself out of some spots in act 2. But then in the last act of the game there's a REALLY good boat scene, and the contrast is kinda jarring! But also, kind of inspiring! You get to see developers hone their craft while you're playing the same game!
It's honestly really cool that a game can be this big and epic and expansive and never really veer into science fiction or fantasy too hard. The most unreal aspect of the game setting is these radioactive mushrooms growing in places, but beyond that everything is very real and grounded. And i think that's pretty impressive to me since video games are usually a medium so based in fantasy!
This game is as big as Half-Life 2, and in the same engine and has:
- No combat
- No enemies
- No scince fiction
- No aliens
And still works really well! And that's really impressive.
The only recommendation I would make is going into the settings and modifying the flashlight and camera batteries to just make them never run out. That mechanic feels wholly unnecessary to the flavour of the game, often more frustrating than interesting, and removing the tension of trying to find batteries really lets the walking sim parts shine. The developers seem to have realized this over its long development history, as in the final act you're given an upgraded flashlight which doesn't have the same battery drain issues.
If it weren't for the weird quirks, the awful Act 1 design problems, and the battery mechanics, this would easily be five stars. But it's already basically an instant recommend. Mark Infra goes down in my brain as one of my favorite scrimblos. Good job folks, this game is a winner.
I think it's really cool that there's like, a very granular infrastructure focused game like this. It does a lot of good adventure gamey stuff while also avoiding doing weird inventory puzzles. It's also definitely a eurojank game, full of eastern europe cultural artifacts and odd design decisions which might seem weird and counterintuitive. It's like the machine fixing puzzles of Myst mixed with the "carry this object" puzzles of Amnesia and the environmental design of a walking sim. There's no enemies, this is an adventure game through and through!
The only thing weird about it is how it gets better designed as it goes. There's this awful horrible raft ride in act one which is the WORST part of the game, it's so awful i couldn't blame anybody for dropping the game there. I had to noclip to get myself out of some spots in act 2. But then in the last act of the game there's a REALLY good boat scene, and the contrast is kinda jarring! But also, kind of inspiring! You get to see developers hone their craft while you're playing the same game!
It's honestly really cool that a game can be this big and epic and expansive and never really veer into science fiction or fantasy too hard. The most unreal aspect of the game setting is these radioactive mushrooms growing in places, but beyond that everything is very real and grounded. And i think that's pretty impressive to me since video games are usually a medium so based in fantasy!
This game is as big as Half-Life 2, and in the same engine and has:
- No combat
- No enemies
- No scince fiction
- No aliens
And still works really well! And that's really impressive.
The only recommendation I would make is going into the settings and modifying the flashlight and camera batteries to just make them never run out. That mechanic feels wholly unnecessary to the flavour of the game, often more frustrating than interesting, and removing the tension of trying to find batteries really lets the walking sim parts shine. The developers seem to have realized this over its long development history, as in the final act you're given an upgraded flashlight which doesn't have the same battery drain issues.
If it weren't for the weird quirks, the awful Act 1 design problems, and the battery mechanics, this would easily be five stars. But it's already basically an instant recommend. Mark Infra goes down in my brain as one of my favorite scrimblos. Good job folks, this game is a winner.
A game for Half-Life 2 fans that loved the decaying Eastern European backlots more than the combat. Probably some of the best-looking Source can get, Infra takes you through a concrete-clad adventure, snapping photos of exposed rebar as you descend into the Totally-Not-Finnish city of Stalburg and the conspiracies underpinning it.
I've written about Infra before, and I still stand by everything I said there, but I wanted to go more into depth about why in particular this really impacted me out of everything I played this year.
I played a lot of extremely video-gamey games this year. I ground through Vampire Survivors, I relearned how much I fucking love pinball, I attempted to catch up on Destiny 2 and eventually gave up when PlayStation fucked them, and I played a bunch of AAA and point and click games with my girlfriends.
But Infra is the game which really captured my brain in a way that fundamentally changed my opinion of what I want out of games. Infra made me feel comfortable cheating through Alan Wake's sloggish combat. It reminded me how much I fucking love adventure games. It reminded me how my least favorite part of Amnesia games was the fucking monsters. And it showed me a type of game I never thought could be played straight: The infrastructure thriller.
Anybody familiar with the late-00s era of gaming is probably familiar with Viscera Cleanup Detail, and infrastructure thrillers have been sort of caught in a twee physics-comedy era ever since. Infrastructure, something that is vitally important to real spaces and generally only scenery in video games, is usually treated as an avenue for comedy in games. Space is never given a sense of vibrancy, reality, and depth, for the sake of life. It's all for fun gags about physics objects bouncing around, or to add tension to guys shooting at you, or to make two sweaty men look even grosser as they climb out of a dumpster.
But Infra is so confident, so made with love, and dedicated to putting you squarely in the shoes of a site inspector for a city architecture firm. You certainly go above and beyond the call of duty, eventually scrambling through a dam, a bunker, and a nuclear plant, but none of this is with the tension of guns or aliens or "enemies" beyond incompetent politicians and corrupt business mogals. And it's a deeply funny game at times. There's reasons I've been caught shitchosting about Infra multiple times here.
And most of all, this is perhaps the only true liminal game I've played. Backrooms content has exploded in popularity lately as an extension of analog horror, and all of it is basically mediocre at best. The best Backrooms game of 2023 was My House (.wad), and literally not a single "Backrooms" game I played featuring the titular title was any good at all. (I also played Anemoiapolis this year, and it was quite good, but not as good as Infra.) But the best liminal game I've played is Infra.
"Liminal" does not mean "scary empty place". Liminal refers to spaces whose purpose is transient - people are meant to travel through them, but not stay in them. You're not meant to pay attention to them. And Infra makes you not only look at these spaces, and pay attention to them - it requires you to care about them. It wants you to look at the wounds on the walls, see where the bones are cracking, listen to where the ventilation wheezes. It understands that liminal is not inherently scary - it's definitely alien, but it's also a part of life. It's quiet, and a little lonely, and a little beautiful in its own way.
And yeah, the first two acts of the game have some bad gameplay. Please, please, endure the raft ride if you generally like video games. I promise it gets better. The computers we've built can make spaces like this feel real. They can make you think about the cities we live in as breathing, real places, with all the guts and back rooms as actual places. I need more games like this. I crave it.
I played a lot of extremely video-gamey games this year. I ground through Vampire Survivors, I relearned how much I fucking love pinball, I attempted to catch up on Destiny 2 and eventually gave up when PlayStation fucked them, and I played a bunch of AAA and point and click games with my girlfriends.
But Infra is the game which really captured my brain in a way that fundamentally changed my opinion of what I want out of games. Infra made me feel comfortable cheating through Alan Wake's sloggish combat. It reminded me how much I fucking love adventure games. It reminded me how my least favorite part of Amnesia games was the fucking monsters. And it showed me a type of game I never thought could be played straight: The infrastructure thriller.
Anybody familiar with the late-00s era of gaming is probably familiar with Viscera Cleanup Detail, and infrastructure thrillers have been sort of caught in a twee physics-comedy era ever since. Infrastructure, something that is vitally important to real spaces and generally only scenery in video games, is usually treated as an avenue for comedy in games. Space is never given a sense of vibrancy, reality, and depth, for the sake of life. It's all for fun gags about physics objects bouncing around, or to add tension to guys shooting at you, or to make two sweaty men look even grosser as they climb out of a dumpster.
But Infra is so confident, so made with love, and dedicated to putting you squarely in the shoes of a site inspector for a city architecture firm. You certainly go above and beyond the call of duty, eventually scrambling through a dam, a bunker, and a nuclear plant, but none of this is with the tension of guns or aliens or "enemies" beyond incompetent politicians and corrupt business mogals. And it's a deeply funny game at times. There's reasons I've been caught shitchosting about Infra multiple times here.
And most of all, this is perhaps the only true liminal game I've played. Backrooms content has exploded in popularity lately as an extension of analog horror, and all of it is basically mediocre at best. The best Backrooms game of 2023 was My House (.wad), and literally not a single "Backrooms" game I played featuring the titular title was any good at all. (I also played Anemoiapolis this year, and it was quite good, but not as good as Infra.) But the best liminal game I've played is Infra.
"Liminal" does not mean "scary empty place". Liminal refers to spaces whose purpose is transient - people are meant to travel through them, but not stay in them. You're not meant to pay attention to them. And Infra makes you not only look at these spaces, and pay attention to them - it requires you to care about them. It wants you to look at the wounds on the walls, see where the bones are cracking, listen to where the ventilation wheezes. It understands that liminal is not inherently scary - it's definitely alien, but it's also a part of life. It's quiet, and a little lonely, and a little beautiful in its own way.
And yeah, the first two acts of the game have some bad gameplay. Please, please, endure the raft ride if you generally like video games. I promise it gets better. The computers we've built can make spaces like this feel real. They can make you think about the cities we live in as breathing, real places, with all the guts and back rooms as actual places. I need more games like this. I crave it.
Tremenda locura, tremenda cumbia. Tremenda ingeniería civil. Salvemos Stalburg...
This game tells you that finnish people don´t do maintenance
Wow, where do I even start? This game is so unique and definitely not for everyone. But if you can get absorbed into this game like I did, you won't stop thinking about it.
The exploration is amazing due to the simply beautiful world design and stunning, picturesque moments. I've played some games that look really good with their fancy schmancy graphics, but this one's different. I took 65 screenshots while playing because the game looked amazing and I wanted to capture the moment. I think the Source engine helps it here, creating a sort of creepy yet alluring atmosphere throughout the whole game.
The game is long, it could be seen as a 20-30 hour walking simulator. But it's really more of an exploration-puzzle game. The only downside is that some of the puzzles are obscure or easily missable and I had to use a walkthrough for many sections in the game. Without the walkthrough I would've spent a dozen more hours wandering aimlessly. It can also be hard to remember what keys you have. The game would've really benefited from an inventory, or even a simple list of keys.
The game is pretty funny too, some of the things Mark says, but also the actual story. Like, this guy had the craziest fucking day at the office. Once you think you've seen it all, Infra keeps throwing new locations at you that get bigger and better as you get further into the game.
If you can deal with a slow-burning game, try out Infra. The gameplay is slow, yet the pacing is anything but.
The exploration is amazing due to the simply beautiful world design and stunning, picturesque moments. I've played some games that look really good with their fancy schmancy graphics, but this one's different. I took 65 screenshots while playing because the game looked amazing and I wanted to capture the moment. I think the Source engine helps it here, creating a sort of creepy yet alluring atmosphere throughout the whole game.
The game is long, it could be seen as a 20-30 hour walking simulator. But it's really more of an exploration-puzzle game. The only downside is that some of the puzzles are obscure or easily missable and I had to use a walkthrough for many sections in the game. Without the walkthrough I would've spent a dozen more hours wandering aimlessly. It can also be hard to remember what keys you have. The game would've really benefited from an inventory, or even a simple list of keys.
The game is pretty funny too, some of the things Mark says, but also the actual story. Like, this guy had the craziest fucking day at the office. Once you think you've seen it all, Infra keeps throwing new locations at you that get bigger and better as you get further into the game.
If you can deal with a slow-burning game, try out Infra. The gameplay is slow, yet the pacing is anything but.
I think this deserves a port to modern consoles more than any other game. I don't know why but walking around in this game, looking at the scenery, it just puts me in a mood. Fucking love this fucking thing yeahhhhhh.
Okay, where do I even start... This game is really weird.
Why is it so long?
No, really. The question is not even out of annoyance. I actually don't think I've played a linear, almost seamless game that long. Especially when you consider how all events happen during one single day, the game feels like it purposefully drags time. Howlongtobeat says it takes 22 hours to complete it, it took me 18 hours, but I was just skipping a lot at some points, so the truth must be somewhere in between. There are some walkthroughs on YouTube that are 5-6 hours long, but that's just bullshit.
Why is it so long?
Lots of things that made you enjoy the game in the beginning become more and more annoying as time goes on. Source is great for such environments, yet the more time you spend underground, the more painful it is to look at. The game regains some of its momentum in the latter chapters, but again, you spend a lot of time in the dark. This is actually part of a bigger issue I have with the game...
I kinda hate the protagonist. His obsession with undeground sewers, tunnels and wasting time becomes more and more obvious the further you play, because why the fuck is he even doing half the stuff he's doing? Why is he so reluctant to just go back to the office? I generally don't like when games put you in situations where there's obviously an easy way out, but it's not achievable due to gameplay or story limitations. That's just bad design. You could've avoided doing that as a developer, but you still did. There were at least 3 or 4 times where the protagonist was LITERALLY outside and could just get the taxi or walk to the office instead of wasting everyone's time, but noooo. He has to climb back to the sewers while the city is falling apart (partly because of him, btw). It's actually crazy. Why are you doing all this??? Just go to the fucking office! You can literally climb over the fence or break the glass door. Instead, you just have to go back underground and waste time doing god knows what. "I don't get paid enough for this shit!!" my brother in Christ, YOU can't get your ass back in the office and prefer to crawl through the sewers. You're in a prison of your own making. And probably smell like shit. The epitome of that is the moment in Chapter 9 when Mark's colleagues just took a helicopter while he was crawling through some trashed and abandoned buildings (once again) and reached the power plant faster (and cleaner). Though the point can be made that he's just THAT bad at his job, always doing anything but what's really necessary. Or that his colleagues really do hate him that much.
And what's with the voice? Sorry, I know it's really subjective, but the guy's voice is fucking obnoxious. Almost uncanny. Even at the start of the game, it feels like everyone talks normally, but he sounds like he just learned to talk yesterday. Or like he's a robot. He is overacting, his emotions sound so fake, and for god's sake, why do you have to make all these comments and "witty" remarks about everything with your annoying voice shuuut the fuuuck uuuup!!!
Why is it so long?
There are obviously thematic reasons for such a slow pace. I guess. It touches on lots of stuff like corruption, the government's and executives' lack of accountability, the divide between white and blue collars, ecology and the importance of proper maintenance. There are moments when you enter a really long hallway, and it becomes obvious that the slowness and tedium are there on purpose. In fact, I kinda like that, it works. But the game is inconsistent in the ways it presents its themes through the gameplay and sometimes the movements and puzzles are just boring, repetitive, or easier solved by trial and error. And there are so many moments that are just dumb. Are you really telling me that the guy who spends hours easily jumping across abandoned facilities cannot climb over the fence or roadblock, swim, survive a 2-meter jump, or just break something? You don't have to be Gordon Freeman to be able to do that. This feels weird considering the number of times he straight-up breaks in and trespasses on someone's property, but I digress.
Why is it so long?
At some point I started thinking, "Is this some kind of office clerk's idea of an adventure?" And kinda yeah, that's exactly what it is. Dungeon crawling, solving puzzles, exploring creepy places, but in real life and as a part of a job. Yet there's still something really strange and frustrating about this game that I can't really put my finger on. It's definitely unique, it doesn't feel like other walking simulators or puzzle games. I wish there was no score to this review because I don't actually hate it. There definitely was a vision and I respect that. It just left me really frustrated. Make of that what you will.
Why is it so long?
No, really. The question is not even out of annoyance. I actually don't think I've played a linear, almost seamless game that long. Especially when you consider how all events happen during one single day, the game feels like it purposefully drags time. Howlongtobeat says it takes 22 hours to complete it, it took me 18 hours, but I was just skipping a lot at some points, so the truth must be somewhere in between. There are some walkthroughs on YouTube that are 5-6 hours long, but that's just bullshit.
Why is it so long?
Lots of things that made you enjoy the game in the beginning become more and more annoying as time goes on. Source is great for such environments, yet the more time you spend underground, the more painful it is to look at. The game regains some of its momentum in the latter chapters, but again, you spend a lot of time in the dark. This is actually part of a bigger issue I have with the game...
I kinda hate the protagonist. His obsession with undeground sewers, tunnels and wasting time becomes more and more obvious the further you play, because why the fuck is he even doing half the stuff he's doing? Why is he so reluctant to just go back to the office? I generally don't like when games put you in situations where there's obviously an easy way out, but it's not achievable due to gameplay or story limitations. That's just bad design. You could've avoided doing that as a developer, but you still did. There were at least 3 or 4 times where the protagonist was LITERALLY outside and could just get the taxi or walk to the office instead of wasting everyone's time, but noooo. He has to climb back to the sewers while the city is falling apart (partly because of him, btw). It's actually crazy. Why are you doing all this??? Just go to the fucking office! You can literally climb over the fence or break the glass door. Instead, you just have to go back underground and waste time doing god knows what. "I don't get paid enough for this shit!!" my brother in Christ, YOU can't get your ass back in the office and prefer to crawl through the sewers. You're in a prison of your own making. And probably smell like shit. The epitome of that is the moment in Chapter 9 when Mark's colleagues just took a helicopter while he was crawling through some trashed and abandoned buildings (once again) and reached the power plant faster (and cleaner). Though the point can be made that he's just THAT bad at his job, always doing anything but what's really necessary. Or that his colleagues really do hate him that much.
And what's with the voice? Sorry, I know it's really subjective, but the guy's voice is fucking obnoxious. Almost uncanny. Even at the start of the game, it feels like everyone talks normally, but he sounds like he just learned to talk yesterday. Or like he's a robot. He is overacting, his emotions sound so fake, and for god's sake, why do you have to make all these comments and "witty" remarks about everything with your annoying voice shuuut the fuuuck uuuup!!!
Why is it so long?
There are obviously thematic reasons for such a slow pace. I guess. It touches on lots of stuff like corruption, the government's and executives' lack of accountability, the divide between white and blue collars, ecology and the importance of proper maintenance. There are moments when you enter a really long hallway, and it becomes obvious that the slowness and tedium are there on purpose. In fact, I kinda like that, it works. But the game is inconsistent in the ways it presents its themes through the gameplay and sometimes the movements and puzzles are just boring, repetitive, or easier solved by trial and error. And there are so many moments that are just dumb. Are you really telling me that the guy who spends hours easily jumping across abandoned facilities cannot climb over the fence or roadblock, swim, survive a 2-meter jump, or just break something? You don't have to be Gordon Freeman to be able to do that. This feels weird considering the number of times he straight-up breaks in and trespasses on someone's property, but I digress.
Why is it so long?
At some point I started thinking, "Is this some kind of office clerk's idea of an adventure?" And kinda yeah, that's exactly what it is. Dungeon crawling, solving puzzles, exploring creepy places, but in real life and as a part of a job. Yet there's still something really strange and frustrating about this game that I can't really put my finger on. It's definitely unique, it doesn't feel like other walking simulators or puzzle games. I wish there was no score to this review because I don't actually hate it. There definitely was a vision and I respect that. It just left me really frustrated. Make of that what you will.