Old Skies is the tried-and-true point-and-click adventure that takes us back in time

What would humanity do with time travel if it had been invented? Capitalist society would obviously use it to make money. Therefore, the wealthiest could pay for trips to the past to satisfy their curiosity, reliving particularly happy moments or changing bad events. Of course, there will be rules to follow such as not disrupting the continuum of time by acting on key events, but there will be assigned agents like Fia Quinn there to ensure everything runs smoothly. One way or another, take care to solve all problems.

This is the future more or less predicted by Wadjet Eye Gameswe have I tried Old SkiesAn incredibly captivating new point-and-click adventure in development for PC and Nintendo Switch.

Interface

Old Skies is divided into seven sections. time travel. The demo provided to us by the development team allowed us to try a whole. The game begins when Agent Quinn and a client of his agency ChronoZen arrive in contemporary New York, an area crucial to the man’s past. The two chats, briefly, allow us to understand most of the user interface from the very beginning: dialogs are governed by a multiple choice system, lines are shown in comics that appear at the beginning of characters when the cursor is passed. A pop-up message appears on the screen with a description above an object that can be inspected, while when an object is interactive, the cursor icon changes depending on the type of linked action.

part ofinterface hidden at the top of the screen. There you can access the inventory, search for a colleague who is currently moving, inform us and monitor the situation, and access a database where you can search for places, objects and people that will be necessary to carry out the investigations. .

gameplay

this gameplay Old Skies is a classic of the genre in which we scan scenarios in search of interactive objects, talk to characters we meet and, if necessary, use objects collected or obtained from the agency. For example, Quinn has a small multi-tool, which is a kind of sci-fi Swiss army knife that lets him force locks. During the trial, he’ll also get a gun (sure, it’s not a shooter) for reasons we won’t specify. In reality, the demo, which lasted about an hour, showed us a game that focused more on research than searching for objects. That’s why we talk a lot, catching clues, reading documents, hacking computers, etc. We research some scenarios well and sometimes objects are used, moreover, it is easy to understand.

It is difficult to say whether the same will be true for other time travels, but our impression is that Dave Gilbert, the author of the game focused on the narrative part rather than the puzzles as usual, and tried to make the player’s experience as fluid as possible. All in all, the demo showed us a really high-quality writing, with the episode’s naturally faded tones from comedy to tragedy, i.e. without any coercion, giving the actor contradictory feelings, resulting in a much more difficult outcome. it’s ending. more than we expected.

Ideally, Quinn’s role and the essence of her work are immediately questioned, such that some wants which becomes one of the reasons why you want to keep playing. What can be bought with money? When does capitalist society consider it acceptable to change the past? What if doing so is against your interests? What measures can you take? To discuss the issues raised by this very first Old Sky story alone, we must go into more detail. Of course, we won’t do this to avoid giving you advancements that could ruin the experience. Just know that it is truly worth experiencing.

artistic direction

from perspective artistic / technicalFor the work of Old Skies, Wadjet Eye Games, hand-drawn scenarios at 1080p (three times larger than that of Unavowed, one of the studio’s most famous adventures), are a defining leap forward among very large and fluidly animated characters. full dubbing (English only) etc. The overall impression it left on us was generally very good. Of course, we haven’t been in particularly impressive places, but still, some are very well done and perfectly reflect the claustrophobic style seen in many of Gilbert’s other works, including the student-favored rooms, dormitories, and offices. They represent the entry into the daily life of a person whose more human side is learned when forced to make an excessive gesture.