Chapter One: Introduction
This is an review for a pre-release demo.
Chapter Two: Gameplay (1/5★)
Section One: Overview
The goal of the demo is to defeat the boss; leading up to the final fight are baddies, platforming and unpredictable projectiles from above. If you take too long between killing enemies, you’ll health will begin rapidly depleting. Otherwise, there’s no point in wasting time on baddies — it’s best to skip to the end by jumping over them and resetting the timer only when necessary.
I hope the full game doesn’t follow the same trend.
Section Three: Balancing
There are only two enemies in the demo (including the boss), so it’s hard to comment on balancing. It’s not clear how to defeat the boss, and dying resets the game. Every time I tried a different approach to defeat the boss, she just insta-killed me and reset the game. What the fuck are the point of “lives” if every time I die the game resets?
Section Three: Controls
The controls are awful. The animations don’t make it clear how far your attacks reach, and jumping is bugged to shit. “CURSED LIFE”? More like, CURSED CONTROLS.
Chapter Three: Sexual Content (NA/5★)
Despite advertising “Nudity” and “Sexual Themes”, I have a feeling A Grim Tale of Vices is not intended as an erotic experience. I didn’t finish the demo but I still got to see some tiddies!
Chapter Four: Story (2/5★)
Section One: Plot
As a victim of DANGEROUS RESEARCH, RECKLESS AMBITION AND THE DEVELOPMENET OF UNPREDITCABLE TECHNOLOGIES”, “YOU, AN ORDINARY MAN, FIND YOURSELF. . . DYING.”
Well actually, “YOU ARE ALREADY DEAD” by the end of the loading screen.
You have been granted “A SECOND LIFE, A CURSED LIFE” for which to “TAKE REVENGE NO MATTER WHAT” I’m not sure why “YOU” of all “ORDINARY [Men]” men earned “A SECOND LIFE”, but maybe you’re not the only one . . . ?
Section One: Character Development
Maybe I would have learned more about the protagonist if I defeated the boss, but I’d rather forget about this game. However, I would like to talk about his character design; I don’t understand why his internal organs are exposed. Why would he wear armor everywhere but his vitals?
Even if his body was already decayed before it was granted “SECOND LIFE”, that still doesn’t explain why his rib cage is exposed. It’s not that hard to come up with an explanation. Here, I’ll give y’all a freebie; his open organs are part of the “curse”, a sort of net or cradle for “REVENGE” in the form of blood and gore.
Chapter Five: Sound (2/5★)
Section One: Soundtrack
The music is fitting for a tale about a man brought to life for revenge — but hearing it skip every time it loops really kills the mood.
Section Two: Sound Effects
Movement sounds stock, but monsters sound nice and guttery and gross. Normally I’d complain about jittery playback, but dialogue boxes sound like some real creepy pasta shit, I loved it — but I’m unsure if that’s what Born of the Mind Studios was going for.
Section Three: Voice Acting
I liked how the main protagonist “oofs” whenever he takes damage. It’s a little silly, but it’s a nice audio que upon taking damage.
Chapter Six: Visuals (2/5★)
Section One: User-interface
The user-interface is hit or miss. Dialogue boxes look great, but everything else looks amateurish. There are no configuration options available in-game, but limited display options are available via a Unity pre-boot menu.
Section Two: Graphics
The sprites are stylistic but thematically cluttered. For example, there is a stark contrast between the monstrous, dark-fantasy protagonist and the half-naked, muscle-bound cyber-amazonian at the end of the demo. I don’t understand the mix of medieval, modern and futuristic sprites; cheesy street signs, laser beams and flaming cars just don’t vibe with edgy knights. The lack of thematic consistency in this demo killed my suspension of belief.
Chapter Seven: Verdict (1.5/5★)
I sure hope this “demo” isn’t a representation of what to expect from the full game! It took less than fifteen minutes of gameplay before I had enough shitty controls and mindless button mashing. The only positive I can say is that the main protagonist looks kinda metal. I sincerely hope the final release is dramatically enhanced in every way.
