While I play games across a vast variety of genres, the one type that doesn't impress me as much is the linear cinematic action game. Of course, these types of games have expanded a fair bit this generation, but at the end of the day, it feels a bit too much like interactive cinema than leveraging the potential of the interactive medium. They definitely have their place, and do offer a substantially different experience from cinema, but can't quite escape their inspiration.
A Plague Tale: Innocence is one such game, very obviously inspired by the likes of The Last of Us, but keen to create an unique experience regardless. Right from the first chapter, A Plague Tale is strikingly beautiful - some of the best graphics I've seen. This is particularly surprising for an independent studio, having created its own custom engine. Usually, we expect studios of this size to use something like Unreal Engine 4, and graphics is not a high priority on a limited budget. Not Asobo. They have of course used a fair amount of middleware, and much of the textures are sourced from Quixel. The textures in this game are particularly notable for their realistic, high-resolution quality with perfect physically based rendering properties.
OK, enough about the technical stuff. A Plague Tale: Innocence's greatest strength is in its world building. Yes, it's very much a linear game, but the art direction, soundscape, music and level design are all sublime. It really immerses you in the a plague-torn, rotting 14th century France - a pretty rare setting. A Plague Tale features a strong narrative, once again reminiscent of The Last of Us, but features some of the same pitfalls as that game, while lacking some of the magical moments. I had initially decided to explain, but figured it would require an essay length post by itself! In short, it relies too heavily on character relationships - which could make a pretty good movie, but lacks the dynamism I expect from a game.
Fortunately, the gameplay is a lot more interesting than The Last of Us. The rat swarms are bonkers - another impressive technical feat, but also, a terrifying bit of game design. Light and stealth play a big role in the game. Of course, as you'd expect of a linear game, it's rather straightforward, with very little in the way of strategizing required. That's fine - even though each sequence is scripted and predictable, they are no less exciting. There's a fair amount of variety too, with some light puzzling and traversal breaking things up. The game is really well paced, and never feels repetitive - a common issue with linear games. There's very little to no combat (depending on how you play) in the game, definitely a refreshing change, but also forces the game to innovate with different mechanics to keep things flowing. They do go a bit too far with some missions, but overall, mission design is really well structured.
Some of the set piece "boss battles" are engrossing, but the bosses themselves are thinly developed. I welcome evil villains with no redeeming qualities, but some development would have worked, especially when the game spends so much time developing the protagonists. The siblings are wonderfully realized, and the game does a fair job at building empathy for them. Not quite The Last of Us, but well done regardless.
By now, it would seem clear that I'm not the ideal audience for this game. I prefer games which are dynamic, which offer player agency and freedom, both in narrative and gameplay. A Plague Tale: Innocence is very much a linear cinematic game. However, it has enough unique flourishes that make it stand out significantly from the crowd. The rats really steal the show, and an emphasis on stealth, puzzle solving and other mechanics over combat is definitely appreciated.
Oh... this is one game that I've been wanted to play! It does look really nice, and although it doesn't sound like it was quite your cup of tea... it does look like something that I would like!
If this type of game is up your alley, you're in for a treat!
I might check if it is on my backlog, the are times where I just want a movie like experience and not too much choice!
Sure thing! While I generally prefer freedom and agency, I definitely also enjoy a well made movie-like experience. It's just that too many games do it, and most of them feel familiar. A Plague Tale: Innocence is definitely an exceptional example of its kind.