The initiation of case, be it a main case or a side case, is always well relayed to you. Don’t get me wrong, I wont go so far as to say that this is the best investigator game on Xbox One, but mechanically, it gets a lot right. This is achieved through a number of differing systems, and although quite basic on their own, these systems, collectively speaking, unify remarkably well. Speaking of case solving, The Sinking City falls quite inline with Frogwares’ Sherlock Holmes games, being that you’ll need to carefully weigh up gathered evidence to deduct where to head to next, in an attempt to further advance your current case. These cases, for the most part, can be solved through a range of different means, with conclusions that vary based on your actions. Each area houses a number of cases both main quest cases, and heaps of side quest cases. There’s several districts to wade through, many of which are separated by bodies of water that require boat traversal to flit between. That to the side, and speaking more specifically of its setting, Oakmount is a fairly sizable map that takes quite a bit of time to explore, not only on its surface, but underwater too. Sure, there’s a few that standout, Charles included, but many of them just feel tacked on, needless, and dare I say, boring. It’s a shame, then, that the game’s characters, the driving force of the whole story, aren’t all that memorable. What unfolds from thereon out is for you to solve, and then further, for you, as the player, to decipher what’s real, what’s not, and what the underlining meaning of it all is. You’ll land at port, and will be thrust straight into your duties as a hired investigator. Nevertheless, that’s the crux of the game’s premise. You need to remember, you’re playing as someone with a fragile mind, set in the backdrop of a city that’s full of people of similar ilk its narrative a constant seesaw as such. This lack of characteristic distinction means that you cant always believe what you see, and you can rarely place any trust in what the game is relaying. I quite enjoyed this design choice, as, if anything, it only makes you feel more invested as you question what’s real, and what isn’t the game never truly making any definition between throughout much of play. Instead, the game toys with you, the player, rather than going for the narrative angle of watching you see Charles slowly losing his mind. What makes it more bearable is the fact that it’s never really in your face, but then, it’s never really left to the sidelines either. Charles will often dance on the line of insanity, but it’s not overly done. Naturally, given the source material, sanity plays a large role here. It’s a very interesting setup to say the least, and one that does a fairly good job at getting you invested in its world and its plot. No sooner than Charles pulls to port do things start becoming ever more elusive and mysterious, and it soon transpires that things, despite already being clearly quite horrific and somewhat convoluted, are not as they seem. Now, however, and due to the aforementioned flood, Oakmount is cut off from its surrounding landmass. In fact, through visions and other like-minded convulsions, several of its residents have been pulled to it from all corners of America. It’s clear from the absolute get-go that Oakmount is subject to the supernatural forces too, and that’s where Charles comes into play he’s charged with uncovering the truth of what’s gripped the city.Ĭharles isn’t the only character to be drawn to Oakmount, mind. Players take on the role of Charles Reed, an investigator that’s not only invited to the half-submerged city of Oakmount, but drawn to it through mental, supernatural disturbances. I’ll dance around the story as best I can, because due to how the proceedings unravel, giving away just a few breadcrumbs could amount to hours worth of playing time. This, by all means, is a fairly interesting game that’s marred by some baffling design choices and a shed load of technical faults. The question here, however, is where exactly does The Sinking City fit into all of that? Well, frankly, it sits somewhere in the middle. ![]() ![]() Lovecraft’s concepts many hit, and many miss. We’ve seen several games this gen alone taking on the traits of H.P. Lovecraft, often touted as the master of horror, has become quite a dominating force as of late, or, at least in the spectrum of video game media.
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