Virtues Last Reward Review
Let me start off by saying that I love this game and it deserves a sequel. From my last post, if you've read it, you already know that I was enjoying the game and getting very involved in it. As such, instead of just an overview of the story and what I liked I'll approach this in more of a straightforward manner.
Here is a brief synopsis for the story though, so that there is some context: The main character, who you control, is named Sigma. Sigma is a young man who one day was knocked out by a mysterious man or woman named Zero and brought to an abandoned warehouse to play a game of life, death, trust and betrayal.
Throughout the game Sigma and the other eight people trapped with him must go through a series of rooms with puzzles in them, and then play a game with the partner they had in the room. In the game you have to choose to ally or betray that partner to gain points. When you have enough points the game is complete and you can escape. Lose too many points though, and you die.
Each decision makes an impact on the story, and it plays out like a choose your own adventure novel with long sequences of text with voice acting to move the plot along, and then the puzzle rooms. You have access to a flowchart of the branching paths so if you make one decision and follow it to the end you can easily go back and see what happens down the other branch.
There are multiple endings, and so you have to go through the different branches to get the most out of the overall story and get the best ending.
Story 10/10
As stated above in the synopsis, the story is a mystery. Not just a mystery about why the nine people are playing the game, or how they are tied to one another, but also about the characters themselves. They each keep secrets and know a little bit more than they're willing to let on, and so even as you learn more there are always questions unanswered.
The game genre is called a "visual novel" and with good reason. As you go through the game it's more like reading an incredibly well written novel or a really suspenseful (albeit long) movie. The writer/director of this series is brilliant and he must have either done a lot of research or had a background in science because a lot of scientific theory is woven into the narrative. I won't say that I'm the person to talk to about science, but for a layman it is an eye-opener to certain theories and speculative fiction.
There are many twists in the story, especially as you get to the end and have seen some of the endings. It doesn't really wrap things up neatly at least in the traditional sense (I won't provide details, but it leaves it open for a sequel.), but every bit of it is intriguing and makes you want to know more. It's the type of ending that fans will talk about to no end, like Sopranos rather open-ended fade to black, there will be debates. (Don't worry, that wasn't a spoiler, just an example)
If you love stories, then this is a good gateway game if you aren't a gamer. It has only like game elements, and while the puzzles can be hard there is an easy mode where the characters will give you hints if you need them.
The story is the main reason why I would recommend this game, and it's where it truly shines.
Gameplay 8/10
This is the only detriment, but not by much. As I stated above the puzzles can be hard, and often it was very convoluted to find the solutions to some of them. I didn't want to go into the easy mode simply because in order to get the best ending you need to finish it on hard. As such, I often went to a guide for how to proceed in certain areas.
This is on the 3DS, so in the puzzle spots you use the touch screen to examine the environment and find clues on how to escape the room. There are certain puzzles which require you to touch certain areas to pick up something, but it's obscured or in a corner so it's easy to miss with the poor camera controls.
It is a relatively minor gripe against an otherwise great game. The only other problem in this regard is that there are certain notes which give extra information, and on some of them the text wasn't adjusted so it runs off the screen and there's no way to scroll, but it's not important to the game to read so once again, minor.
The only major problem in the 3DS version is a game crashing bug which will corrupt the save file if you save in a certain puzzle room. It is rather inexcusable to have this sort of thing left in there, especially when we're talking about a 30 hour adventure that could be ruined in one stroke.
Graphics 9/10
The graphics are vibrant and colorful and unlike the previous game it has 3D character models so the range of motion and expressions are more detailed than before. The characters are varied and there's no way that you could mistake one for another. Different hair styles and colors, odd clothing and characteristics help bring life to them.
The rooms are detailed and also assorted enough that you could easily distinguish which room is which without any help.
The only problem I had was when I upgraded to a 3DS XL (A larger size screen than the normal one.) I really noticed how much clearer the expressions of the characters were with the larger screen. They maybe could have had the character models a little closer, but then that would have also created issues when more than one was on the screen at once. I would always recommend the XL over the regular 3DS anyway, and that is a prime example why.
Audio 10/10
This is another area where I find the game shines. The characters are all voice acted, save for the main one who you are playing as. All the actors do a wonderful job of displaying emotion and subtlety to the characters. Each one fits well and a line never feels out of place whether the character is displaying anger, curiosity, or kindness.
The music is phenomenal and another reason why the story grips me so well. Some of the music is re-hashed from the previous game, but this is not a bad thing. In fact it may have become the authors intent to drive a Pavlovian style response into those who played the first. Every time something bad happens there is a loud bang of a drum and then an eerie music plays with a sense of urgency and mystery behind it.
This is the one that comes to mind most for me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6ZBoqbupyc&feature=plcp
It's taken straight from the first game, but that only means that it's more effective in eliciting a response in the second. This music is what makes me fear the night, not you Batman.
Total Score 9/10
This game is near perfect for me, but I felt that it could have used just a bit more polish in the final release. If you want a trippy story full of awesome voice acting, writing, and mystery, then this game is for you.
Here is a brief synopsis for the story though, so that there is some context: The main character, who you control, is named Sigma. Sigma is a young man who one day was knocked out by a mysterious man or woman named Zero and brought to an abandoned warehouse to play a game of life, death, trust and betrayal.
Throughout the game Sigma and the other eight people trapped with him must go through a series of rooms with puzzles in them, and then play a game with the partner they had in the room. In the game you have to choose to ally or betray that partner to gain points. When you have enough points the game is complete and you can escape. Lose too many points though, and you die.
Each decision makes an impact on the story, and it plays out like a choose your own adventure novel with long sequences of text with voice acting to move the plot along, and then the puzzle rooms. You have access to a flowchart of the branching paths so if you make one decision and follow it to the end you can easily go back and see what happens down the other branch.
There are multiple endings, and so you have to go through the different branches to get the most out of the overall story and get the best ending.
Story 10/10
As stated above in the synopsis, the story is a mystery. Not just a mystery about why the nine people are playing the game, or how they are tied to one another, but also about the characters themselves. They each keep secrets and know a little bit more than they're willing to let on, and so even as you learn more there are always questions unanswered.
The game genre is called a "visual novel" and with good reason. As you go through the game it's more like reading an incredibly well written novel or a really suspenseful (albeit long) movie. The writer/director of this series is brilliant and he must have either done a lot of research or had a background in science because a lot of scientific theory is woven into the narrative. I won't say that I'm the person to talk to about science, but for a layman it is an eye-opener to certain theories and speculative fiction.
There are many twists in the story, especially as you get to the end and have seen some of the endings. It doesn't really wrap things up neatly at least in the traditional sense (I won't provide details, but it leaves it open for a sequel.), but every bit of it is intriguing and makes you want to know more. It's the type of ending that fans will talk about to no end, like Sopranos rather open-ended fade to black, there will be debates. (Don't worry, that wasn't a spoiler, just an example)
If you love stories, then this is a good gateway game if you aren't a gamer. It has only like game elements, and while the puzzles can be hard there is an easy mode where the characters will give you hints if you need them.
The story is the main reason why I would recommend this game, and it's where it truly shines.
Gameplay 8/10
This is the only detriment, but not by much. As I stated above the puzzles can be hard, and often it was very convoluted to find the solutions to some of them. I didn't want to go into the easy mode simply because in order to get the best ending you need to finish it on hard. As such, I often went to a guide for how to proceed in certain areas.
This is on the 3DS, so in the puzzle spots you use the touch screen to examine the environment and find clues on how to escape the room. There are certain puzzles which require you to touch certain areas to pick up something, but it's obscured or in a corner so it's easy to miss with the poor camera controls.
It is a relatively minor gripe against an otherwise great game. The only other problem in this regard is that there are certain notes which give extra information, and on some of them the text wasn't adjusted so it runs off the screen and there's no way to scroll, but it's not important to the game to read so once again, minor.
The only major problem in the 3DS version is a game crashing bug which will corrupt the save file if you save in a certain puzzle room. It is rather inexcusable to have this sort of thing left in there, especially when we're talking about a 30 hour adventure that could be ruined in one stroke.
Graphics 9/10
The graphics are vibrant and colorful and unlike the previous game it has 3D character models so the range of motion and expressions are more detailed than before. The characters are varied and there's no way that you could mistake one for another. Different hair styles and colors, odd clothing and characteristics help bring life to them.
The rooms are detailed and also assorted enough that you could easily distinguish which room is which without any help.
The only problem I had was when I upgraded to a 3DS XL (A larger size screen than the normal one.) I really noticed how much clearer the expressions of the characters were with the larger screen. They maybe could have had the character models a little closer, but then that would have also created issues when more than one was on the screen at once. I would always recommend the XL over the regular 3DS anyway, and that is a prime example why.
Audio 10/10
This is another area where I find the game shines. The characters are all voice acted, save for the main one who you are playing as. All the actors do a wonderful job of displaying emotion and subtlety to the characters. Each one fits well and a line never feels out of place whether the character is displaying anger, curiosity, or kindness.
The music is phenomenal and another reason why the story grips me so well. Some of the music is re-hashed from the previous game, but this is not a bad thing. In fact it may have become the authors intent to drive a Pavlovian style response into those who played the first. Every time something bad happens there is a loud bang of a drum and then an eerie music plays with a sense of urgency and mystery behind it.
This is the one that comes to mind most for me: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6ZBoqbupyc&feature=plcp
It's taken straight from the first game, but that only means that it's more effective in eliciting a response in the second. This music is what makes me fear the night, not you Batman.
Total Score 9/10
This game is near perfect for me, but I felt that it could have used just a bit more polish in the final release. If you want a trippy story full of awesome voice acting, writing, and mystery, then this game is for you.
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