William Pugh, of The Stanley Parable fame has released a game for free.
This is something that really made my day as I had endless hours of fun playing his previous foray and went in with high hopes. I left with one powerful impression.
Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger, And The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist is terribly British.
I say that in a good way of course.
That British style of humour permeates the game. Where you are not the vaunted hero, you are a fool amongst fools. We are all just trying our best to get by and make a go of things, and how unfortunate, the buildings on fire.
This is something that really made my day as I had endless hours of fun playing his previous foray and went in with high hopes. I left with one powerful impression.
Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger, And The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist is terribly British.
I say that in a good way of course.
That British style of humour permeates the game. Where you are not the vaunted hero, you are a fool amongst fools. We are all just trying our best to get by and make a go of things, and how unfortunate, the buildings on fire.
The entire concept of the game (More of an experience) is that you, the player, cannot play the game as someone is already playing it.
This is all explained to you in a very apologetic fashion by a disembodied voice who takes the role as the Stage Manager/Narrator.
The narrator leads you through the backstage of the game/set, using you to help run the other player through the game as quickly as possible, so you can begin.
The humour arrives from the stage being set as an ineptly run theatre, where almost all of the employees have quit due to dangerous work conditions.
The backstage area is delightful to look at. Visually appealing, with enough minutia around to keep you entertained visually while the narrator weaves the story. There are coins and pretzels scattered throughout the level, the finding of which is almost fifty percent of the achievements of the game, incidentally.
The notes of resignation left behind by staff and the notes you can find about the game laying about really add to the depth of the game as well.
This is all explained to you in a very apologetic fashion by a disembodied voice who takes the role as the Stage Manager/Narrator.
The narrator leads you through the backstage of the game/set, using you to help run the other player through the game as quickly as possible, so you can begin.
The humour arrives from the stage being set as an ineptly run theatre, where almost all of the employees have quit due to dangerous work conditions.
The backstage area is delightful to look at. Visually appealing, with enough minutia around to keep you entertained visually while the narrator weaves the story. There are coins and pretzels scattered throughout the level, the finding of which is almost fifty percent of the achievements of the game, incidentally.
The notes of resignation left behind by staff and the notes you can find about the game laying about really add to the depth of the game as well.
The ability to interact with the environment does have some consequences in game, though not to the degree of The Stanley Parable. I set some lasers off in the lighting room in my first run and that narratively changed what happened to the player in the game, but not much else.
The entire experience reminded me of Wheatley from Portal 2, to be honest. The dialogue was set up to say a few humorous quips to fire off when you don't do what the game is expecting, but then just says that they will wait until you are done, then they will continue.
It works, I'll give them that. The dialogue is very well written and got a laugh out of me more than once.
Try as I might, however, I couldn't damage myself. Despite the fact that the whole reason why you are wandering around is that it is such a dangerous environment that the staff have quit.
The one explosion that there is, you are made to walk to a safe distance before it occurs.
But again, this is just what you can expect from this style of humour. Big setup of expectations, then do something entirely different.
The entire experience reminded me of Wheatley from Portal 2, to be honest. The dialogue was set up to say a few humorous quips to fire off when you don't do what the game is expecting, but then just says that they will wait until you are done, then they will continue.
It works, I'll give them that. The dialogue is very well written and got a laugh out of me more than once.
Try as I might, however, I couldn't damage myself. Despite the fact that the whole reason why you are wandering around is that it is such a dangerous environment that the staff have quit.
The one explosion that there is, you are made to walk to a safe distance before it occurs.
But again, this is just what you can expect from this style of humour. Big setup of expectations, then do something entirely different.
The game is terribly short, it comes across as more of a proof of concept than anything else. A way to drum up a crowd and make people aware that this new game company Crows Crows Crows has broken into the field perhaps.
I feel that it benefits from it length though. I really took my time with it, reading everything and listening to as much of the humorous dialogue as I could and I finished the first run through in 30 minutes. I then proceeded to do my best attempt at a speed run and finished in 10.
As you are mostly pushing buttons and flipping switches, I feel that if the game went on much longer, it would have gotten boring.
As it is, it is like a nice meal. By the end you are no longer hungry, but at the same time you are not sick of the sight of the food. I don't care how stretched that metaphor is, I'm sticking to it.
This is definitely one of the more odd games I have played. The experience will certainly stick with me. I am eager to see what they come out with next. If it has the same sort of spirit as the rest of the projects that William Pugh is evolved in, I won't hesitate to reach for my wallet.
If you can spare half an hour, I thoroughly recommend checking it out.
After all, shit's free.
I feel that it benefits from it length though. I really took my time with it, reading everything and listening to as much of the humorous dialogue as I could and I finished the first run through in 30 minutes. I then proceeded to do my best attempt at a speed run and finished in 10.
As you are mostly pushing buttons and flipping switches, I feel that if the game went on much longer, it would have gotten boring.
As it is, it is like a nice meal. By the end you are no longer hungry, but at the same time you are not sick of the sight of the food. I don't care how stretched that metaphor is, I'm sticking to it.
This is definitely one of the more odd games I have played. The experience will certainly stick with me. I am eager to see what they come out with next. If it has the same sort of spirit as the rest of the projects that William Pugh is evolved in, I won't hesitate to reach for my wallet.
If you can spare half an hour, I thoroughly recommend checking it out.
After all, shit's free.