The Opening of Misty Beethoven
Most Cyberpunk movies that are not Blade Runner
Mass Effect
chocolate cake
This is a short list of things that City of Broken Dreamers is better than. No, it's not just like any of those things. It is, obviously, just a visual novel, with limited interaction dotted throughout an otherwise linear story advanced through prose and computer generated illustration.
But the art and art direction is so good that it might as well be a fully animated feature film. It certainly captures as much atmosphere and sense of place as anything in any AAA action rpg. At a certain animation heavy point about halfway through the series, the sense of grandeur and suspense--of plot lines and characters coming together for a climactic reckoning--is unparalleled in computer gaming. Bioware wishes it could tell a story this well, make its players this invested in its characters.
I would say that I hope the author produces a de-pornified version so that a bigger audience can experience this, but the game is so good that the sex feels intrinsically linked to the storytelling. Like any good sex scene, each one here tells its own story, fleshing out the characters involved and their relationships.
I teared up twice playing this game, not because of anything tragic happening in the story, but because it is so so good. Really, the talent involved here could change the industry. I'd all but given up on both traditional fiction and gaming as a narrative art, and this game restored my faith in art and literature. And porn.
Most Cyberpunk movies that are not Blade Runner
Mass Effect
chocolate cake
This is a short list of things that City of Broken Dreamers is better than. No, it's not just like any of those things. It is, obviously, just a visual novel, with limited interaction dotted throughout an otherwise linear story advanced through prose and computer generated illustration.
But the art and art direction is so good that it might as well be a fully animated feature film. It certainly captures as much atmosphere and sense of place as anything in any AAA action rpg. At a certain animation heavy point about halfway through the series, the sense of grandeur and suspense--of plot lines and characters coming together for a climactic reckoning--is unparalleled in computer gaming. Bioware wishes it could tell a story this well, make its players this invested in its characters.
I would say that I hope the author produces a de-pornified version so that a bigger audience can experience this, but the game is so good that the sex feels intrinsically linked to the storytelling. Like any good sex scene, each one here tells its own story, fleshing out the characters involved and their relationships.
I teared up twice playing this game, not because of anything tragic happening in the story, but because it is so so good. Really, the talent involved here could change the industry. I'd all but given up on both traditional fiction and gaming as a narrative art, and this game restored my faith in art and literature. And porn.