Playlist (October 2020) (Patreon)

Hello! Time for this month's playlist video.

Should have some big releases to chat about in November (I've just started Watch Dogs Legion and there are plenty more games on the way). For now, though - some indies. 

If you prefer, you can read this video as an article below.

Disc Room (Switch, Steam)

Disc Room is a cute, charming, and devious little game. It's all about dodging a bullet hell spread of spinning saw blades for as long as possible. Which would be pretty fun in of itself… but there's a lot more going on.

Each room - each, disc room - has a few challenges associated with it. Like survive 20 seconds, or get killed by 10 types of disc, or survive 10 seconds in every room in this zone. Finish the challenge, and it opens a new door to another room.

This gives the game a nice string of challenges to focus on, and lets you explore the world in your own way. You might have to forgo a challenge for a while, then come back with a power-up that will help you tackle it.

Where it gets really cool, though, is that some of the challenges are more like mysteries and secrets. There are special rooms that seem to hint at solutions to overarching puzzles, and rooms that require smart use of your special power-ups, and more.

And it's this that kept me so engrossed, I had to finish the game in a single two hour sitting.

And… well that's about it. There are additional challenges, a hard mode, and leaderboards. But I was happy with what I played: a lovely, bitesize snack of a game. And sometimes, that's all you need.

Disco Elysium (PC, Mac)

So, I finally finished Disco Elysium. I know, I'm late to the party. But here we are.

So this is a game about being an apocalyptically hungover detective. Like, you first need to remember that you actually are a detective before you can get started solving the game's central mystery: a murder in the port city of Revachol.

In play, the game is like an isometric western RPG - think Baldur's Gate or Planescape Torment - but with no combat. It's all dialogue trees and, most importantly, skill checks.

And because skills play such a big role, Elyisum does something smart: it gives these skills a personality and voice. They actively talk to you, popping up mid conversation with ideas, suggestions, and information. Sometimes they lie. Sometimes they fight amongst themselves. Sometimes they do more harm than good.

While this is a detective game, you shouldn't expect crime-solving mechanics like Obra Dinn or Her Story. You don't play a particularly active role in uncovering the mystery - you just sorta nudge it along, maybe speeding it up or slowing it down based on your choices. In fact, the story is surprisingly linear and I've seen plenty of criticism of this fact.

But, really, it's more about deciding what sort of person you are. With your mind blank, there's an opportunity to rebuild yourself in whatever way you like. To make friends and enemies. To choose your politics and outlook. And the game really responds to those decisions. With that perspective, the game wraps up in a really nice way I felt. I had a good time with it - though, boy, this game is really long. Set aside a few dozen hours if you want to dig in.

Paradise Killer (PC, Mac, Switch)

Paradise Killer actually has a lot in common with Disco Elysium. The rich world building, the existential themes, the fact that it's a detective game… to an extent.

Okay, so in this game you play as Lady Love Dies - an investigator who is brought out of exile to figure out who murdered the island's council members. A suspect is in detention, but it's likely that he's being framed. You'll have to seek the truth.

This is an open world detective game, which means you get complete free roam of a large island. Which is built in a sorta faux-PS2, by-way-of-Unity style. While on the island you'll hunt for clues, talk to witnesses and suspects, and then - when you've made up your mind - trigger the final trial.

It has an almost Breath of the Wild-style structure: complete freedom, and the opportunity to face the final challenge at any moment.

Which all sounds pretty wonderful. But unfortunately, it's a little less exciting in practice. The game has a handy checklist of things to do, and eagerly tracks and files any evidence or statements into a database. And when you talk to characters, there's a simple dialogue system to run through. All of which meant I was able to play the game mostly on auto-pilot, just sorta asking everyone… everything.

But okay, for this final trial I guess I better bone up. Understand the case, figure out who I think is guilty, get my facts in order. And… well, kind of. You can pick whoever you want as the perpetrator, but that's about as far as you'll need to go - the rest is done for you.

I have to say I was a little disappointed by the final trial. Sure, I felt satisfaction in picking all the right perps and arguing my case. But I was hoping for a climatic Phoenix Wright-style showdown that would test everything I've learned. The reality was a little less exciting.

And ultimately, your ability to pick the right killer and argue your case isn't exactly dependent on your detective or lawyer skills but more on simply how much time you spent in the world before starting the trial. And similar to Breath of the Wild… why would you go straight to Ganon? Why not do all the dungeons, boost your strength, and so on. Likewise, in Paradise Killer, with no penalty or incentive to make you wrap the case up fast, the optimum way to play is just to keep going until you get bored or run out of leads and then start the trial.

However! While mechanically it fell a little flat for me, I have to say I found the game, in general, pretty delightful. The writing is fun and fresh, the characters are bizarre, and the worldbuilding is top notch. It seems the devs were heavily inspired by Daganronpa - a series I have regretfully not played - but even so, they've put their own spin on it.

So, yeah - definitely an interesting game and one I would recommend. But I felt that it didn't really live up to the exciting promise of its elevator pitch. Obra Dinn, you have yet to be dethroned.

That's your lot! Speak soon.