Detroit: Become Human

[ratsoalbion]

It’s still on our list, but whether we’ll ever commit to completing it and schedule the show is another matter...

[chase210]

I think the game has really hit its stride

Spoiler: show

Markus in the android junk yard screen was actually really great. And Kara having to struggle to find somewhere for her and Alice to stay was pretty good too. I appreciate what they were going for with the house with the messed up android, but it didn't feel terribly well written. The whole sequence was excellent though.

[kintaris]

I agree that those scenes were significantly better than I expected Chase, unfortunately I think it once again takes a dip into mid-afternoon soap nonsense towards the end of the second act.

I think it's the best David Cage game so far, but in my opinion it's still staggering behind a lot of games in terms of pacing and plot and character and dialogue. And I just think the discourse keeps elevating these games above a lot of excellent storytelling out there because, somehow, someone gave this guy the budget to make his narrative adventures the prettiest and most heavily marketed.

[Simonsloth]

Definitely the prettiest. The main menu screen is both remarkable and creepy in equal measure...much like cage perhaps

[kintaris]

Definitely the prettiest. The main menu screen is both remarkable and creepy in equal measure...much like cage perhaps

Oh goodness me, completely agree. The menu screen is like an excellent trippy indie game in its own right but with state-of-the-art graphics. I would play a game where the story unfolded just through that main menu interaction. Very reminiscent of Blade Runner Voight-Kampff-style tests or Ex Machina. A shame in a way to have to leave the menu at all.

[Simonsloth]

So I’ve played another hour or so and I’m gradually growing more and more fond of the game.

I think my main issue earlier was that I seemed to have little impact on the storyline.

The end of scene flowchart of the part I just completed has my brain frazzled as to the possibilities that could have occurred.

Interestingly I had the same outcome as kintaris though.

[rob25X]

I just bought the game. Should have it in a couple of days. Can't wait.

[Simonsloth]

I think the game has really hit its stride

Spoiler: show

Markus in the android junk yard screen was actually really great. And Kara having to struggle to find somewhere for her and Alice to stay was pretty good too. I appreciate what they were going for with the house with the messed up android, but it didn't feel terribly well written. The whole sequence was excellent though.

Absolutely agree. Also the first scene you refer to is possible the most visually stunning single scene in a video game perhaps ever?.

From a technical standpoint this game is incredible.

[kintaris]

From a technical standpoint this game is incredible.

Unfortunately stuttering frame-rates in the late game and now a corrupted save file perhaps 10 minutes from the finish are proving otherwise for me could be that my PS4 is packing up of course.

I didn't find that scene particularly stunning, not sure if I'm missing something. Most of Hellblade was considerably more technically impressive in my opinion, not to mention God of War. It's slick in places, don't get me wrong, but visually it's not blowing my socks off.

[chase210]

The thing of using the right analogue to perform actions but also move the camera is still a pain.

[Chopper]

The control scheme is a mess. Why did they mix in motion controls? My first fight was an absolute nightmare as I was sat back on the couch with my feet up (PS4 at floor level).

Played the first couple of hours last night. Clunky controls and writing (the villainous characters are just caricatures) so far, hopefully it improves.

Unfortunately stuttering frame-rates in the late game and now a corrupted save file perhaps 10 minutes from the finish are proving otherwise for me could be that my PS4 is packing up of course.

Oh man...

[kintaris]

I managed to finish it off after storing my saves and reinstalling everything.

There is a very simple way to summarize this. If you have problems with Cage's games you'll find the same ones here. If you have overlooked them in the past and found something to enjoy, same again here. At the end of the day I don't think the narrative or gameplay design have evolved significantly.

There is a point near the end that made me cringe so hard that I felt physically winded.

[Simonsloth]

There is a very simple way to summarize this. If you have problems with Cage's games you'll find the same ones here. If you have overlooked them in the past and found something to enjoy, same again here. At the end of the day I don't think the narrative or gameplay design have evolved significantly.

I’d agree with this. I don’t think this game will win over anyone who had issues with the previous PlayStation games.

I actually like the control scheme and have no issues at all with it. Perhaps I’m used to QDs atypical controls but it always seems intuitive to me.

There’s some nice ideas which I’m hoping get fleshed out. We shall see.

[ThirdDrawing]

I managed to finish it off after storing my saves and reinstalling everything.

There is a very simple way to summarize this. If you have problems with Cage's games you'll find the same ones here. If you have overlooked them in the past and found something to enjoy, same again here. At the end of the day I don't think the narrative or gameplay design have evolved significantly.

There is a point near the end that made me cringe so hard that I felt physically winded.

One main positive I've heard is that there aren't the twists that come out of left field like in previous games. Without giving away any spoilers, would you say that's the case?

[kintaris]

I managed to finish it off after storing my saves and reinstalling everything.

There is a very simple way to summarize this. If you have problems with Cage's games you'll find the same ones here. If you have overlooked them in the past and found something to enjoy, same again here. At the end of the day I don't think the narrative or gameplay design have evolved significantly.

There is a point near the end that made me cringe so hard that I felt physically winded.

One main positive I've heard is that there aren't the twists that come out of left field like in previous games. Without giving away any spoilers, would you say that's the case?

I guess that's true, though there are some odd developments here and there especially towards the end, but none of them are significant enough to think of as twists.

As far as I've seen, anyway. There are a lot of combinations to see.

[Chopper]

I've played a bit more and I think I can say this is a big step back for Quantic Dream. Just to provide some context, this is coming from someone who thought Fahrenheit was very good, Heavy Rain promised much but turned into a car crash, and Beyond Two Souls was really, really good.

I think it's a failure both thematically and gameplay-wise. It just doesn't do anything interesting (at least to me). They could have done some really interesting things with self-aware AI, but instead they've drawn parallels to slavery with a little mysticism and religious awakening thrown in. Given the situation with people of colour in the US at the moment, it seems a bit heavy handed to me to conflate this with a largely white, geeky population (all the androids are delightfully awkward) being oppressed. It's valid I guess, but doesn't sit well.

Gameplay wise, user actions are plentiful but almost a waste of time. It just feels like you're pressing a button to progress. It's basically walking down a corrridor opening doors (or picking up dishes, or pressing a button to examine evidence). User interaction is largely meaningless. 'Choices' so far are underwhelming, and there is little to draw the player in, I think.

There are some good scenes, but they vary wildly and haven't had much emotional impact due to various combinations of cliche, caricature and dull protagonists. Connor, the investigative android, is looking promising as far as character development goes, but the other two have very little going for them.

It's more coherent as a story than previous games, and that is good, but there's no spark.

It's pretty disappointing. What should have been a great premise has been turned into something bland. I'm hoping it will pick up in the second half.

[kintaris]

One positive I will say is that I quite enjoy some of the soundtrack themes. I like the minimalist piano touches.

I'm now starting to explore some of the alternative pathways. It's fairly cool to see entire scenes open up because of a different choice made but the ultimate consequences of most of them just don't feel dramatic enough.

[KSubzero1000]

Is

Spoiler: show

Clancy Brown

in this game? I think that "someone" on YouTube might have spoiled that for me...

If so, good for him. Great actor.

[kintaris]

Is

Spoiler: show

Clancy Brown

in this game? I think that "someone" on YouTube might have spoiled that for me...

If so, good for him. Great actor.

Yes, and his performance is a highlight. No one else works as hard to squeeze something meaningful out of a fairly tepid script. Apart from maybe

Spoiler: show

Lance Henriksen

But that's a much smaller role, and once again another veteran actor who knows his stuff.

[KSubzero1000]

Oh, I can imagine. The thing about actors who can't rely too much on their looks (sorry, Clancy!) is that they tend to have worked three times as hard to get where they are as opposed to their front cover featured colleagues.

He's is in GoW3 as well. Minor role with only one chunky monologue to shine, but his performance is deliciously hammy. One of the highlights of my recent playthrough.

...You know what, I'm just gonna go rewatch Shawshank while you lot are inflicting Monsieur Cage upon yourselves.