Disco Elysium is the deepest hangover simulator I've ever seen



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And I'm the worst cop of all time

Sometimes the title of a game tells you everything you know. Knight shovel, Battletoads, and even Super Mario Odyssey all give you a good idea of ​​what you are before you start the game. This is not the case with Elysium nightclub, and I did not know what to expect when I arrived at my PAX appointment last week. But what I found was one of the deepest and most intriguing computer RPGs I've seen in a long time, and something I'm looking forward to replaying.

Let's start with this title. Elysium nightclub contains music from the 1970s, but the disco portion of the title has more to do with the discovery than the afros, the leisure suits and the bell bottoms. The world of Elysium is the framework of the game, and the developers have said that they had the intention to create more games in this space. Elysium nightclub is meant to be an introduction to this universe.

As for the game itself, it is very much inspired by the computer-based role playing games of the late 90s, as Baldur & # 39; s Gate. One of the developers told me that his mind was gone when he saw a quote from Friedrich Nietzsche when introducing this game, and Elysium nightclub borrows this idea. It's not exactly isometric like these old CRPGs, but the perspective is similar and it's pretty intentional. I've also had a good idea of ​​table mechanics while playing, but we'll come back to it a little later. The developers told me that they wanted to allow more meaningful interactions with the world than to film everything in sight, and in my opinion, they were perfectly successful.

The artistic style is something completely different from all the games I've played before Elysium nightclub a unique look that should help to stand out. The developer with whom I spoke mentioned that some of the game's artists are oil painters, trained in Russian academies. The color palette is unobtrusive in some areas and surprisingly vibrant in others, using colors that you do not expect to add interest in or suggest a character's state of mind.

When the game begins, you begin by reading an internal dialogue between your rational and animal impulses. It seems that last night you consumed a really heroic amount of alcohol to try to kill brain cells and forget … something. Ethanol is however not a precision instrument, and the player quickly realizes that the character has become so blotto that he does not even remember his own name.

You can choose to prolong the effects of the self-induced mist by choosing the appropriate dialogue options, but eventually you wake up and need to take stock of your environment. You are in your underwear, your tie is hanging on the fan, pants, shirt and coat are scattered throughout the room and you can only find one shoe. If you decide to continue your investigation, you may discover that it is because you threw it out the window on an inaccessible balcony. (I never figured out how to get it back, and I spent the whole gaming session running in a shoe and a sock.)

After getting dressed, you can leave your hotel room and explore a little more. If you choose to talk to the woman who is standing right outside, you can try to talk normally or have the idea of ​​trying to seduce her. I tried this and I miserably failed, and she laughed and told me that it was going to be difficult for me later when I had to ask about the murder. It's at this point that you learn that your character is a policeman, sent to investigate a body that was lynched about a week ago.

The writing in the demo that I played was excellent. There is a certain dark humor that permeates every interaction, and when I tried some of the most stupid options, I was not disappointed. At some point, your character notices rum spills soaked on the carpet and the options are: Ignore it (requires a will check), lick it from the carpet (no check required) or lick it, but only a little). The main character wins quests based on his internal monologue, things like "Find and smoke a whole carton of cigarettes". when he notices another character who lights up.

You will eventually meet your partner and investigate the body, which has been suspended for more than a week and is mature enough at this point. A nearby children's couple may be interviewed, but prefer to continue throwing stones at the corpse and ruthlessly mocking when you throw your cookies at the smell. Your character may try to steal the deceased's boots or maybe discover that he threw his police notebook in the trash when he was stunned.

There is a deep system of interdependent mechanisms associated with each skill check in the game, from dialogue challenges to physical feats. Your statistics play there and you earn points by exploring and talking to people. There are many places where you can spend your stat points, and the three main trees that define your character are Intellect, Psyche and "Fysical", your strength and your stamina.

Your character may have poor impulse control depending on the statistics you choose, and one of the unique features of the games is a certain amount of punishment for a subspecialization. If your adrenaline state is too high, for example, you may not be able to prevent yourself from hitting and hitting someone during a tense negotiation. If your intelligence is too high, you can skip unnecessary information and preemptively reduce people's opinions before you know it.

The skills checks take these statistics into account and add or subtract modifiers based on the actions you took before attempting. Trying to persuade someone to leave you in the back of their store will be a little more difficult if you have rejected their child-rearing skills in a previous conversation. On the other hand, you can try to break the door and get a bonus if you bring a crowbar. Each control allows you to know your chances of success before trying your luck. You can go back and try to change your chances if necessary. When you commit, the game starts 2D6 and adds your modifiers to the required skill level. It's a bit like playing D & D, and chess can be just as entertaining as success.

There are many mechanisms of thought and play in psychology, and the main character has what is called a "cabinet de réflexion", a separate inventory for non-tangible thoughts and ideas. You can equip some of these ideas, and keeping one for a moment can give rise to a belief, which can give your character additional dialogue options or cause status effects.

Play a different construction Elysium nightclub will provide an entirely different gaming experience, and the programmer has said that they basically write three completely different games depending on how the character is developed. A complete course in the game should last about 20-25 hours. No release date has yet been announced and no system other than PC has been confirmed.

Elysium nightclub was one of the highlights for me at a PAX loaded with great games. If you are interested in a deep and mature game filled with black humor, put this one at the top of your list.

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