one of the only video games i loved, am giving a rating, and will never finish. i will admit, i should have quit earlier, as i continued to get a couple more endings after i had already figured the mystery out. oh well. at least i got to see the projector, that was cool.
who's lila has got to be the most interesting use of the ever-pervasive metahorror cliche. garage heathen created something i have been dying to see from more games since i played lainpsx: a mystery that you, the player, are solving, instead of some character in the story. i've always hated how mystery stories tend to have this structure:
1. setup
2. minor hints
3. dramatic detective shit
4. ending that divulges literally everything
i understand why this structure is so common. people love watching sleuths dissect crazy cases or being kept on the edge of their seats by a wild thriller. but particularly in the case of books or interactive media, this format always seemed pandering and lazy. if this is truly a mystery, set up some solid clues and let me figure it out myself! who's lila uses its meta elements to make good on the promise of a mystery-solving game. it's super tight shit and i never felt pandered to in the slightest.
however, none of this clever bullshit would mean JACK if the game wasn't interesting. luckily for us, who's lila fires on all cylinders. i lost myself in who's lila for hours. don't dismiss the visual style as some hackneyed throwback to ancient pc games; combined with the droney music and minimal sound design, it enhances your intense alienation from the characters. and damn, those are some believable characters! i replayed a couple endings just to try out the branching dialogue options, cause there isn't a single line wasted here. shoutout to the nighttime walk scene hurting my feelings.
(also, its fun and silly to drag your guy's face around while his muscles fight you. i am adding this line later cuz i realized i didn't mention the actual gameplay very much)
who's lila is short, and by design has absolutely ZERO replay value (and i say that as a firm non-believer in games needing to offer a new experience on replays to have replay value). it's still damn well worth your money. go play it already.
who's lila has got to be the most interesting use of the ever-pervasive metahorror cliche. garage heathen created something i have been dying to see from more games since i played lainpsx: a mystery that you, the player, are solving, instead of some character in the story. i've always hated how mystery stories tend to have this structure:
1. setup
2. minor hints
3. dramatic detective shit
4. ending that divulges literally everything
i understand why this structure is so common. people love watching sleuths dissect crazy cases or being kept on the edge of their seats by a wild thriller. but particularly in the case of books or interactive media, this format always seemed pandering and lazy. if this is truly a mystery, set up some solid clues and let me figure it out myself! who's lila uses its meta elements to make good on the promise of a mystery-solving game. it's super tight shit and i never felt pandered to in the slightest.
however, none of this clever bullshit would mean JACK if the game wasn't interesting. luckily for us, who's lila fires on all cylinders. i lost myself in who's lila for hours. don't dismiss the visual style as some hackneyed throwback to ancient pc games; combined with the droney music and minimal sound design, it enhances your intense alienation from the characters. and damn, those are some believable characters! i replayed a couple endings just to try out the branching dialogue options, cause there isn't a single line wasted here. shoutout to the nighttime walk scene hurting my feelings.
(also, its fun and silly to drag your guy's face around while his muscles fight you. i am adding this line later cuz i realized i didn't mention the actual gameplay very much)
who's lila is short, and by design has absolutely ZERO replay value (and i say that as a firm non-believer in games needing to offer a new experience on replays to have replay value). it's still damn well worth your money. go play it already.