cpb-54589

This has Laex Lawther in it. He doesn't get killed-off early in some satisfying way either. He just keeps on moping his way through ep after ep in a a show that's already mentally taxing - not taxing in a good way either, more like mall-fatigue taxing. The skip-button got a lot of use.

Otherwise, for the fans, this show includes:

• X Acid hole
• X Facehuggers
• X Pulse rifle
• X Science lab
• X Cryosleep waking scene
• X Mealtime bickering
• X smoking
• X Retro computer boot-up
• X Synths with behavioral problems
• X Slobbery mouth-in-mouth
• X Super lax biosafety

... and so on.

Goofs and cultural-cringe galore. Too much to list here. Definitely showing the age of its creators.

Vfx, sets and props were budget, besides a certain CG character. Don't remember the music.

Its impressive to see artists who can communicate so much with so little, and this production is a masterclass in such communication, with little emphasis on 'gameifying' it. If anything, the gameplay elements were a distraction to the art, and I'd rather they dropped it and played to their strengths.

Story can be deeply affecting for many reasons, from nostalgia, to mortality, to small-town angst, to 'cracking the code'. The way the protagonist's hurt body parts glow skeletal is something any older player will relate-to, as well as how he insists "it's OK", while limping in pain. Clearly he's doomed, but must see his increasingly surreal quest to its conclusion.

Characters were silent, allowing the player to fill the gaps with their own imagination, led by certain visual cues: a posture, s hairstyle, a type of prop... Doing more with less to great effect.

The story does disappear up its own posterior towards the end, but I haven't played a game with a great 'final act' in ages. Once a game hits the chickenscratch end of the horse there's no shame in reciprocating with proportional effort.

Music was highly memorable, and perfectly complemented the visuals.