A city built from the ashes of the old world, its nobles living in decadence while the poor starve and survive by joining gangs and killing those that oppose them. This is the setting for Children of the Zodiarcs.
Continue reading Review: Children of the Zodiarcs
Tag: Exceptional
Review: Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles
A boy, a compass and a mysterious island. It’s how a good adventure starts, with a mystery worth solving and a new land worth exploring, and at its core, that’s what Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles is about.
Continue reading Review: Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles
Review: Nongunz
A drab world, headstones as far as the eye can see, a massive monument to weapons and skulls and a tomb of endless depth filled with unspeakable horrors. Welcome to Nongunz.
Review: Styx: Shards of Darkness
He’s back, green and mean and sexier than ever. It’s Styx, the Master of Shadows and now he’s set his eyes on something more dangerous than amber. This is Styx: Shards of Darkness.
Continue reading Review: Styx: Shards of Darkness
Review: A Normal Lost Phone
What would you do if you found a phone? Would you erase the contents and use it as your own? Would you try to find its owner? But what if doing so meant getting to know them, to discover their stories? How far would you go? This is the question A Normal Lost Phone asks.
Continue reading Review: A Normal Lost Phone
Review: Sara is Missing
What would you do if you found a phone and the last image of its owner showed they were in danger. Would you drop the phone or would you jump down the rabbit hole in pursuit? That is the question posed by Sara is Missing.
|
Genre(s): Adventure | Horror Developer: Monsoon Lab Publisher: Monsoon Lab Release Date: Nov 2016 |
Played: Full game, 1 ending (so far). Platforms: Mobile Purchase At: Google Play, Apple App Store Source: Got it from the App Store |
|
Good:
|
Bad:
|
Review
Last year I had the pleasure of playing the unique adventure game Her Story, in which you search through a Police database for interviews about a missing person investigation. It’s a phenomenal and innovative game, one where you must pay attention every word spoken as it may have a crucial clue in the investigation, which in turn leads you to another interview and closer to the truth…or to confusion.
It’s not a typical adventure by any means and I thought it would be the only game of its style that I would play in a long time. So, imagine my surprise when I find Sara is Missing, a game where you find a missing person’s mobile phone and must piece together what happened to the titular Sara, the phone’s owner.
But you’re not on your own. You have the game’s version of Siri, Iris, an AI advanced enough to want to find its owner, and with the ability to restore corrupt parts of the phone’s memory and operating system.
As you read through Sara’s private messages, emails and read her notes, if something catches your eye, you can tap and hold on the screen and tell Iris that you’ve found something potentially interesting. Of course, not every term is relevant and often you’ll just hear a buzz, forcing you to try again, and again, and again. It can sometimes get a bit frustrating.
It can take a while to get to that next crucial clue, but soon enough you’ll be diving into the real mystery, almost drawn from the creepiest of creepy pasta you can imagine. What you discover, what you see happening and even the phone’s behaviour become freaky and disturbing. The phone will ring, you will receive calls where you just hear groans on the other side and even more strange happenings.
I’ve already cleared it once, with a less than stellar result. I’m now trying my second playthrough, hoping to not only get a different ending but perhaps dig deeper into the mysteries, as I ended with very few answers. There were some crucial answers tied to specific choices that I didn’t make, and in fact, my lack of choice led to the most disturbing and frankly awesome moment.
Have I mentioned one of Sara’s emails has perhaps one of the most awesome analyses of Ghost in the Shell and the implications of cyborg bodies in human development, both on a biological and societal level? It’s riveting stuff.
Conclusion
If you’re into creepy stories and investigative games, you should play Sara is Missing. You can find it on the app store or on the developer’s sites with a price tag of “whatever you want.” Some parts of the game will genuinely screw with your head. It’s on the short side for an adventure, but it’s still impressive.
|
TMA SCORE: 4/5 – Exceptional! |
Review: Aragami
Aragami, shades summoned to wreak vengeance upon the enemies of their master. They used to be legends, but now you’re playing as one!
Review: Armello
The King is corrupted, sending the land into chaos and turning on those he promised to protect. Now new champions must rise to save him, manipulate him or take his place outright. This is the story or Armello.
Continue reading Review: Armello
Review: Era: The Consortium
I first heard of Era: The Consortium during MCM London Comic Con earlier this year, I had the pleasure to speak to the Shades of Vengeance guys about their new RPG system “Era”, of which The Consortium was the most fully realised product, serving as perhaps the flagship title at the event.
A few weeks later, I received a review copy for Era: The Consortium, but at the time it was impossible for me to get a game going, but thanks to my recently formed RPG group, I had the chance to play a demo game and put the system through its paces.
Review: Obduction
What would you do if a strange seed of light suddenly took you from your home and placed you in a land enclosed by a dome? Would you accept things or would you explore and try to find the mystery at the core of this and many other worlds? That’s what I did in Obduction.
Continue reading Review: Obduction