Re: What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2024

What Have You Been Playing... IN MAY 2024?

Indika
What Indika is 'about' isn't a simple thing. We meet the title character as a noviate, living in a bleak, uncaring, and brutal world, where she has been shoved into a corrupt and completely irrational religious bureaucracy for past 'sins', coping with inner daemons, being used and abused, and hopefully by the end of her journey breaking out of these mental shackles to confront life as it is with some independence of thought.
Very reminiscent in its presentation of this world to games like Metamorphosis and McGee's Alice & Alice Madness Returns, with mental worlds portrayed with over-sized, fantastical objects, though in Indika's case in an even bleaker monochrome palette, interspersed with child-like platforming interludes from her past (which I didn't care much for).
There's less of a 'game' here than an experience, and I wish more use had been made of the 'pray/demon' mechanic which has Indika suppressing her inner demon by 'praying' to switch between two alternate views of the world so as to navigate a level. Her demon muttering and arguing with her over religious niceties and morality are the best parts of the game. If you want a game that makes you think about fairly serious issues, and not just pure escapism, Indika is a good choice.
The Painscreek Killings
https://store.steampowered.com/app/624270/The_Painscreek_Killings/
I enjoyed this mystery-investigative title hugely, and wouldn't let go until I'd 100%'d it. You're a reporter tasked with solving a long-ago cold case in a deserted village, by visiting buildings and residences in a fully 3D environment, and looking for clues, documents and keys that lead you further into the complicated lives and relationships among these townfolk, in the manner of the famous game Gone Home.
As in Gone Home, there is no UI -- so refreshing. It's just you following clues that lead you from location to location, opening doors, searching buildings, and reading the many letters and documents to build a picture of the past. The writing here is very good, and the central mystery worth the effort to solve. A big thumbs up for The Painscreek Killings !!
rms