Premise and gameplay
What a way to spend an evening! In typical walking sim fashion, this one can be completed in one sitting. I took my time and spent about 5 hours from beginning to end, which is actually quite lengthy for a walking sim. A lot of this is thanks to the extremely slow movement speed, but I think it fits both the mood and the story. After all, this is not a high octane action game by any stretch of the imagination, but rather a narrative experience for a relaxing evening.
Without spoiling any of the story, you're playing an unknown person or entity, leisurely walking around a quaint, but deserted, English village and watching the ghostly figures of the residents relive their last day alive. The reason for everybody's disappearance is a mystery, and it's up to you, the player, to piece together the clues based on what you hear and see around you. You may well reach the end and find yourself utterly confused, but that's to be expected of a TCR game. The story needs to be considered and analyzed before you can make sense of it from start to finish, which I'm still in the process of doing.
By the end of the game, you know a bit about everyone in the village. You follow a handful of people more closely than others and get a close look at their relationships with the people around them, which made me feel like they were real people. As a result, I felt more intimately connected to them and cared about their stories.
In case you're scarred by The Vanishing of Ethan Carter and are apprehensive about possible scares in this game, I can assure you there are none. No horror.
There is actually quite a lot of content here, but you have to find a lot of it on your own. You're guided through the village and its surroundings by a floating orb of light, but you won't see all of the story by simply following it along. You have to go off the beaten path and explore on your own. Check out houses, sheds, cars and you'll occasionally find another plot point. These are just as important as those on the guided tour, so don't be afraid to stray. The way you experience the story isn't designed to be linear anyway.
Actually, the orb somehow got stuck in the hedge outside the pub in the last chapter of the game, so I had to explore without a guide. I thought that was just as well, because I would have to check everything to find all the plot pieces anyway. Still, it's handy in case you've missed something major, as it will lead you to it.
Presentation
This is definitely among the most beautiful games I've ever played. All aspects of the presentation are spot-on and I've never before seen the English countryside so accurately represented in interactive digital form. It's one of my favorite settings and EGTTR absolutely nailed it. The attention to detail in the environments is just staggering. From the gardens and exterior of the houses, to the road markings and signs, to the clutter of garages and lived-in interiors, it all feels extremely realistic. Everything is placed with a purpose and there's quite a bit of story to be gleaned from observing the environment with a keen eye.
Effect-wise the game also delivers. Made in CryEngine, it boasts a lot of eye candy that it uses to full effect. The atmospheric and lighting effects really sells the countryside vibe and the detailed and (quite) high resolution textures look great. Yaughton feels like a real place.
The voice acting is superb. The actors cover a range of british dialects and the interactions between characters in conversations are very believable. I'd say this is probably the strongest point of the game, fitting enough for a voice focused narratively driven game, as I was completely sold on these characters thanks to the great emotional range and general acting talent of the voice actors.
Sound design is great. The wind in the trees, the chirping birds, the player character's footsteps, the rumbling light orb. It's just great.
The soundtrack deserves special mention. It is absolutely fantastic. It's melancholy, beautiful and haunting. It mostly takes a back seat and sets the mood, but swells up during important moments. The pieces draws on a variety of styles, but the choral arrangements are probably the most powerful for me.
By the end, these elements all come together to create an uneasy mood that had me on edge for the entire last chapter of the game. The mood was very well crafted. Mission accomplished.
Controls
The controls are as simple as they come. Playing with a controller, you use the analog sticks to move and look around, A or X/Cross to interact, LT or L2 to activate manual story segments and RT or R2 to "make haste." You can't run or jump, but RT/R2 makes you gradually walk slightly faster, which is nice for the longer stretches of road.
You can invert the Y-axis, but be aware that this also inverts Y for mouse control as well.
Value for money
This is a recurring topic when discussing walking simulators. Due that lack of "game" in these titles, the price point is under a lot more scrutiny than other games. I got it at -50 % for $10, which I found to be a fair asking price for the amount of care that had gone into the creation of the world, its sound design and the story, but anything more than that is too much for the amount of content it offers.
Get it on sale.
Summary
All in all, this is an excellent walking simulator. If you like walking simulators and are looking for a relaxing and intriguing experience, look no further.
It might not be everone's cup of tea, but that's totally fine. Just be aware of what you're buying and don't complain afterwards if you feel understimulated. This is a purebred walking sim, after all.
What a way to spend an evening! In typical walking sim fashion, this one can be completed in one sitting. I took my time and spent about 5 hours from beginning to end, which is actually quite lengthy for a walking sim. A lot of this is thanks to the extremely slow movement speed, but I think it fits both the mood and the story. After all, this is not a high octane action game by any stretch of the imagination, but rather a narrative experience for a relaxing evening.
Without spoiling any of the story, you're playing an unknown person or entity, leisurely walking around a quaint, but deserted, English village and watching the ghostly figures of the residents relive their last day alive. The reason for everybody's disappearance is a mystery, and it's up to you, the player, to piece together the clues based on what you hear and see around you. You may well reach the end and find yourself utterly confused, but that's to be expected of a TCR game. The story needs to be considered and analyzed before you can make sense of it from start to finish, which I'm still in the process of doing.
By the end of the game, you know a bit about everyone in the village. You follow a handful of people more closely than others and get a close look at their relationships with the people around them, which made me feel like they were real people. As a result, I felt more intimately connected to them and cared about their stories.
In case you're scarred by The Vanishing of Ethan Carter and are apprehensive about possible scares in this game, I can assure you there are none. No horror.
There is actually quite a lot of content here, but you have to find a lot of it on your own. You're guided through the village and its surroundings by a floating orb of light, but you won't see all of the story by simply following it along. You have to go off the beaten path and explore on your own. Check out houses, sheds, cars and you'll occasionally find another plot point. These are just as important as those on the guided tour, so don't be afraid to stray. The way you experience the story isn't designed to be linear anyway.
Actually, the orb somehow got stuck in the hedge outside the pub in the last chapter of the game, so I had to explore without a guide. I thought that was just as well, because I would have to check everything to find all the plot pieces anyway. Still, it's handy in case you've missed something major, as it will lead you to it.
Presentation
This is definitely among the most beautiful games I've ever played. All aspects of the presentation are spot-on and I've never before seen the English countryside so accurately represented in interactive digital form. It's one of my favorite settings and EGTTR absolutely nailed it. The attention to detail in the environments is just staggering. From the gardens and exterior of the houses, to the road markings and signs, to the clutter of garages and lived-in interiors, it all feels extremely realistic. Everything is placed with a purpose and there's quite a bit of story to be gleaned from observing the environment with a keen eye.
Effect-wise the game also delivers. Made in CryEngine, it boasts a lot of eye candy that it uses to full effect. The atmospheric and lighting effects really sells the countryside vibe and the detailed and (quite) high resolution textures look great. Yaughton feels like a real place.
The voice acting is superb. The actors cover a range of british dialects and the interactions between characters in conversations are very believable. I'd say this is probably the strongest point of the game, fitting enough for a voice focused narratively driven game, as I was completely sold on these characters thanks to the great emotional range and general acting talent of the voice actors.
Sound design is great. The wind in the trees, the chirping birds, the player character's footsteps, the rumbling light orb. It's just great.
The soundtrack deserves special mention. It is absolutely fantastic. It's melancholy, beautiful and haunting. It mostly takes a back seat and sets the mood, but swells up during important moments. The pieces draws on a variety of styles, but the choral arrangements are probably the most powerful for me.
By the end, these elements all come together to create an uneasy mood that had me on edge for the entire last chapter of the game. The mood was very well crafted. Mission accomplished.
Controls
The controls are as simple as they come. Playing with a controller, you use the analog sticks to move and look around, A or X/Cross to interact, LT or L2 to activate manual story segments and RT or R2 to "make haste." You can't run or jump, but RT/R2 makes you gradually walk slightly faster, which is nice for the longer stretches of road.
You can invert the Y-axis, but be aware that this also inverts Y for mouse control as well.
Value for money
This is a recurring topic when discussing walking simulators. Due that lack of "game" in these titles, the price point is under a lot more scrutiny than other games. I got it at -50 % for $10, which I found to be a fair asking price for the amount of care that had gone into the creation of the world, its sound design and the story, but anything more than that is too much for the amount of content it offers.
Get it on sale.
Summary
All in all, this is an excellent walking simulator. If you like walking simulators and are looking for a relaxing and intriguing experience, look no further.
It might not be everone's cup of tea, but that's totally fine. Just be aware of what you're buying and don't complain afterwards if you feel understimulated. This is a purebred walking sim, after all.