play one Do the artists of 16th-century Bavaria fascinate you? Would it convince you if I told you that the game has no voice-overs and is narrated in slow-rendering text, and that all you, as an artist, have to do is illustrate the Abbey’s manuscript? Sounds like dozing off, that’s for sure. But get this: it could be a Game of the Year contender.
game is repentance, while it sounds as gleaming as a root canal, it’s actually so wacky and different that it’s a welcome reprieve from the age of rowdy and bombastic AAA titles. You play as Andreas Mahler, an artist hired to illustrate the Abbey’s manuscripts. In doing so, Andreas finds himself trying to solve a brutal murder. Every action you take in his shoes changes the narrative. Who are you going to have dinner with? Which lead are you following? The town welcomes you so warmly; whose secrets are you going to betray in order to find out?
Again, this may not sound like a joke idea, but trust me when I tell you that arguing with the seminarians about Martin Luther and figuring out whether removing the cross will bring the Inquisition to town is a joke good time. Especially for history buffs.
There are endless strange games. A quick glance at Steam’s catalog gives you an idea of how many niche games there are for each buff.but what’s the big deal repentance Yes it’s not some small game.This is a product of Obsidian Entertainment, the same studio behind it Fallout: New Vegas and The Outer Worlds. A game so rich, varied, and quiet from a major studio feels like it couldn’t possibly be possible. And yet it’s here, and it’s beautiful.
Perhaps the best part is that you, as Andreas, don’t get definitive answers about what happened to that murder. It’s up to you to put the pieces together and present your best impression, but don’t know if you’re doing it right. But the choices you make in the first part of the game (and who you let go of) affect what happens later, when you revisit the town you once made such an impression on.
Narrative design is also a big part of what makes this game so fun. The whole thing is structured like a book – you can tell what kind of people you’re talking to by the type of script their words are rendered on-screen – be it academics, aristocrats, religious people or peasants. (If the different fonts bother you, you can also turn it off, a very welcome accessibility choice.) It makes the whole thing feel like you’re contributing to history while playing the game.
The game itself asks interesting questions about history, art, and literature. What is Andreas’ role as an artist? Is it to satisfy his clients or to produce his own unique artwork – his “masterpiece”, as it is called in the game? Set in Germany before the Protestant Reformation, when the printing presses were churning out works like Andreas, it makes you think about the whole nature of art (especially as it relates to money) and how it affects our understanding of history.
repentance Very meta in that respect – a work of art about the nature of art itself. It’s a visually beautiful game that makes you think about the modern world and the world that came before it.It’s also a fun detective story that fascinates me in a way I’ve never been before Horizon Forbidden West Early 2022.
There. Do you trust me now?
