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Tacoma Review

By  August 19, 2017  No comments

The Fullbright Company surprised everyone in 2013 with Gone Home, one of the most acclaimed games of that year, and in our opinion one of the best indies of the last decade. An adventure very ingenious and totally focused on the narrative that, with a history and a very minimalist approach, was able to excite you and empathize with characters that you never really see.

Just four years later, they return with their second work, Tacoma, which has a virtually identical approach to their first game, but with a very different setting, this time futuristic and science fiction. The adventure takes place in an abandoned space station in the year 2088, to which we are sent to recover some data, without knowing hardly anything of the personage that we control nor the motives of the mission.

Duration


There is no challenge in Tacoma, it's simply a story that tells you a multitude of narrative resources, and that you can taste the rhythm and depth that like the most (I have lasted 3 hours, but it's something that depends on the player ). With this adventure, Fullbright returns to demonstrate how well they are created to create diverse characters that feel real, well above most video games, and also know how to play all kinds of subjects with a surprising naturalness.

Gameplay


At first, you discovered that the space station Tacoma, suffered an accident, that put at risk the life of it's six crew, to run out of oxygen within 48 hours, and you don't even know, if these characters were saved, something that you have to discover little by little, exploring the installations. The crew left behind a series of documents and recordings, which tell you the plot of the game and, what is more interesting, it's personal history, as it happened in Gone Home.

Through audios, videos of augmented reality, emails, all kinds of texts and personal objects, you unravel a story in which, you can go deeper at different levels, depending on how curious you are or what interests you found in the the characters, which are the authentic heart of adventure.

The great playable novelty of this adventure regarding Gone Home, are augmented reality recordings that you find in certain areas of the space station, and that when, you can pause and rewind at your whim, discovering all kinds of details. Something necessary since there are simultaneous conversations and in different locations at the same time, and the characters move during these recordings.

It really is a game much more complex and ambitious than Gone Home, but not necessarily better. Although the characters are complex and well written and developed, and you enjoy immersing yourself in their lives as a true voyeur, at least in my case, i don't connect emotionally roundly with them, and that was one of the greatest achievements of the previous Fullbright game.

Undoubtedly Tacoma is a remarkable narrative adventure, but the problem is that Gone Home, was outstanding, a small but round and resounding game, and this second work of Fullbright leaves that feeling of being below the first, despite being once again a great game. This series of adventures is rising a lot (we have the brilliant and recent What Remains of Edith Finch), and without doubt this study has become a reference in the genre, and i will not lose sight of it's trajectory.

Graphics & Design


In the audiovisual section, a discreet but functional graphical section, which perfectly fulfills his work. I like very much, that you can interact with so many objects on the stage, which becomes a valuable narrative resource, and that the textures are good enough to pry into personal belongings and see details like the titles of the books you find in the scenarios, something that helps a lot to the immersion.

Conclusion


Tacoma is once again an example of how to make an adventure completely focused on narrative, well written and telling an interesting story, with complex characters who feel real, something that isn't too common to see in most video games, Focusing on other tasks, if you are one of those who enjoyed Gone Home or other similar adventures, you are sure to like what is new in Fullbright, despite being one step below your previous work; Is a game more ambitious and complex, and quite round, but less emotional.

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