REVIEW of JazzPunk / A Sleuth Aloof

From the moment that you press ‘start game’ on Necrophone Games’ Jazzpunk, you will know that you’re in for a totally unique experience. Jazzpunk, like the title suggests, is a clashing of styles and ideas that mesh into one wild story of espionage in the virtual world. Jazzpunk is two parts Saul Bass, mixed with some Ren and Stimpy, thrown in with Naked Gun,  and garnished with some Cowboy Bebop- the game is whatever it wants to be whenever it want to. This first person game operates like “Gone Home” or “Dear Esther” in that you play a singular character walking through the narrative and experiencing the story as it is thrown at you. Personally, I have found these types of games to be effective for a singular narrative to champion the gamer’s narrative, but I have also found it to be limiting when considering the relationship of the gamer to the video game. This is not to say that Jazzpunk sucks, it’s very good at what it does and it’s very funny at that- it’s chock full of sly references and gut busting jokes. Jazzpunk sells on steam for 14.99 USD and is available for Mac, Pc, and Linux.

The most commendable element of Jazzpunk are the ideas it throws onscreen: many design elements suggest a spy-espionage game set in a retrofuturistic 1950’s, but the game is constantly taking you to different places. I opened up a pizza box and ended up being sucked into a computer game where I fought zombies made of pizza and found a pizza-cabin in the woods that had references to The Shining and The Evil Dead, I helped a geisha swat flies but ended up smashing more pots in her shop than flies (Zelda reference), and I fought a car just like in Street Fighter 2. Everything about the game is absolutely absurd. The sidequests have no purpose other than to deliver a punchline, but the punchlines are worth your trouble. The whole of Jazzpunk is made around jokes and it delivers them to you if you take the time to seek them out. I think it’s cool to see such an eclectic mix of elements onscreen- you never know what to expect when the game does whatever the hell it wants to.

The game is a short experience- I beat it in around two hours. Granted, I didn’t experience everything that Jazzpunk has to offer, but I did a lot given that I took my time and explored what I wanted to. This has been happening a lot with indie games I have played recently- most of these narratively rich stories can’t last forever, but it would be nice to see them drawn out a little more- especially given that Jazzpunk has a 14.99 pricetag on it (I consider it to be high-priced given the length). But, despite my game-length woes, it is a well rounded and unique experience. The most fun parts of the game for me were some of the mini-games offered in sidequests like the streetfighter 2 parody or the Quake Arena parody- they made me want something more from the game. I wish the game had played out more like its mini-games, I think it would benefit from having more involved action with jokes strung-along in between. Narratively, all of the spy genre elements are present: there’s the double cross, the other spies that shadow you, the mysterious woman, the dubious villain who takes all you love- but when it comes to player action, I felt that it could have been more involved. When I see a spy in a video game I want to BE the spy and I want to be heavily involved in the actions that take place- when the narrative experience makes it more of a walk-through cinema in the same vein as Gone Home, I feel like there’s a lost potential given what the video-games can do for narrative. What’s lost in being subject to a pre-determined narrative and side-quest gags are that they limit the replayability of the game and offer very little in the way of player choice or player constructed narratives. To me, games like Jazzpunk that follow this design can be wonderful for first time experiences and can really offer some genuinely wonderful moments, but the problem with these games is that I don’t see myself going back to replay them anytime soon- the jokes are already told, the twists won’t be surprising, there is nothing I can do in the game that hasn’t been done before. This was my only frustration with Jazzpunk given that other games that riff on the spy genre well like the conspiracy theory level in Psychonauts, offered up a lot of laughs with jokes about spies and espionage, but also had a lot of player-centric action that kept me involved. It’s really a matter of personal opinion and preference for Jazzpunk to be a more involved experience, but I still enjoyed my time with it and laughed pretty hard at some of the jokes in the game.

Jazzpunk is a great meshing of pop culture and comedy and it certainly offers a well written narrative that will most certainly be enjoyed the first time around. The controls for both keyboard + mouse and gamepad work smoothly, the game runs well, and the games visual style is unparalleled- so there is little to complain about with the game’s functionality and design. The one consideration for the gamer to take in before purchasing is this- are you looking for a good one-time experience? If so, then this game is a fantastically well-crafted experience. But, if replayability is of concern, then I would recommend waiting for a Steam sale or playing this at a friend’s house to experience all the laughs and surprises that the game has to offer in the first playthrough. I have no doubt in my mind that this game will inspire a lot of game designers to make something unique in the future based on how Jazzpunk blended styles and genres so well, and the game will be remembered as one of the funnier games in existence- so I’m not knocking this well made experience, but I do think that it’s very much a one playthrough experience for most gamers.

Steam Recommendation:

Experience it at least once,

but you can wait to buy it at a cheaper price 

+Blends Styles and Genres Well

+Unparalleled Visual Style

+Big Laughs

+Absurdity at its Best

-Pretty Short

-A One-Time Playthrough Kind Of Game

REVIEW of Octodad: Dadliest Catch / World’s Best Cephalo.Pa

Well here it goes… the first review of 2014. It has been exactly 2 months since my last post right here on the Steam of Consciousness blog. Between school, work, and being lazy, I haven’t taken the time to review Steam games… and I really missed it. So, with that being said, let’s start fresh and let the reviews begin! I thought the best way to kick off my game reviews for 2014 is with a game so wild, weird, and conceptually fresh that it’s hard to recall any game quite like it. Its name is Octodad: Dadliest Catch and it’s currently offered up on Steam for $14.99 USD. This game reminds me of other wildly hilarious games like Katamari Damacy, Sumotori Dreams, and QWOP and, like QWOP or Sumotori, features a protagonist whose main challenge is trying to mimick human movement despite a lack of bone structure.

Octodad’s plot is simply this: you are an octopus who dresses, acts, and has a family like a normal human father and must convince everyone else that you are, in fact, a regular human dad. Despite your wife and kids who are hilariously blind to you being an Octopus, there is an angry Sushi Chef who is out to turn the beloved Octodad into “moderately priced sushi” as he follows you through the different areas in the game.  In order to perpetuate the idea that he is a human father, Octodad must attend his own wedding, attend to his domestic affairs, go grocery shopping, and visit the dreaded aquarium before the story reaches its conclusion. The scenarios are hilarious and the difficulty Octodad finds getting by in day-to-day situations makes for an interesting tale worthy of a primetime sitcom. The voice acting is a nice touch to the story and really keeps with the pacing as people react to the different things you do in the game.

But Octodad’s story isn’t the selling point of this game- everything about the game centers around its movement mechanic. Without the hilariously difficult controls that move Octodad’s hands and feet (er, tentacles), this game would not exist. Octodad can only control one limb at any time and alternating between both of his legs and his hands is a joy to watch- he practically destroys everything in his path when trying to walk! The game becomes challenging with the addition of a ‘suspicion meter’ at the bottom of the screen- suspicion is triggered when human beings see you knocking everything down in your path or when you accidentally smack them with one of your tentacles. The suspicion element progresses and becomes somewhat difficult toward the end when you run into marine biologists at the aquarium who know an octopus when they see one. Although the controls make it somewhat difficult to maneuver around the different stages, the controls are well thought out and, when mastered, can be a breeze to handle when doing simple tasks.

The first Octodad was a freeware game that featured similar gameplay elements, but only allowed one player to use a keyboard and mouse to control the octopus. Fortunately, this time around, players have the option to use keyboard and mouse or a gamepad and both work great. Along with this, two to four players can be invited along to play the local co-op mode where one player takes the keyboard and mouse and controls either the arms or legs, and the other players take a gamepad and choose to control the other arms or the legs. Another option is available that allows the cooperative teammates to play roulette with the tentacles: after a task is completed, random tentacles are assigned to the player – so I could be controlling the right hand and right leg while the second player could only be controlling the left leg… once a task is done, I could end up controlling the left hand while the second player takes control of the left and right legs. Co-op adds a lot of replay value to this game- after beating story mode, I was able to go back with my friend and share some new laughs as we tried to get Octodad to move in the same direction. There is a lot of value in playing with friends- it’s great to show to a buddy who has never seen or heard of Octodad and say “hey, want to play a really strange video game?” and see the pleasantly surprised look on their face when they see that we’re an Octopus trying to moonlight as a human dad.

The only big thing I have found disappointing about Octodad: Dadliest Catch is its length. I was able to complete the story in somewhere around 3 hours for my first playthrough- this includes me messing around, trying to get a handle on the game mechanics, and exploring some of the levels for secrets or pop culture references. And while it did end in around 3 hours, every minute of the game was totally worth it- I had a great time as it never got old. There is incentive to replay the story after beating it, too, there are 3 ties hidden in every stage (and are a bitch to get a hold of) and there are several fun achievements that make it worth going back and experiencing again. The games developer, Young Horses, have also added a level editor and Steam Workshop support. I was able to download some neat user-created maps for Octodad and it has really contributed to the game’s replayability. The camera that follows you in the game would be my only other complaint- for the most part, it behaves itself and follows you around well, but there are times when it becomes inconvenient and only gives you one perspective in a stage where it would be useful to get another angle and see your character hiding behind in-game elements. While $14.99 may be a bit high for the game’s length alone, the asking price can be justified in that Octodad is a hilairous romp, oozing with charm and personality and offers more than just a story mode… PLUS the game has an awesome theme song, and who can put a price on having a great theme? But seriously, let’s face it- at the end of the day, what gamer wouldn’t like to be under the sea in an Octodad’s garden, in the shade?

Steam Recommendation:

Definitely buy it, but you can wait for a Steam sale

+Great sense of humor

+Hard, but rewarding controls

+Steam workshop and Local Co-Op

-Short Story Mode

-Camera can be iffy at times

+You play as an Octopus Dad… ’nuff said