Island Off Outer Darkness

[UPDATED REVIEW] Island Off Outer Darkness is one very interesting narrative experience. It's a postman simulator set in a small remote island a fictional world. A very small place where not much happens, yet, is in the midst of various supernatural phenomena. IOOD is a game centered around talking. Getting to know the inhabitans, unlocking new conversation topics... all connected with the premise of making deliveries. Walking is fairly slow, but it does give a lot of room for the minimalistic abstract low poly vibes and FANTASTIC soundtrack to give you a thick grasp of its ambience and mood. About the dialogue tho, this is quite the verbose game. There's a lot of attention to detail, even with very minute details about each character in town and worldbuilding. I could call this a "conversational imsim" and I wouldn't be wrong. There's quite a bit to chew on, but the story so far it's been pretty laidback. It's kinda like living in one RPG town, but removing all the adventuring, action and whatnot, to instead focus on the conversational aspect. Tho you still have a fishing minigame. Thank god for that. I haven't played anything quite like this. It's a one of a kind experience. A lot of the character ramblings drop some gems, or even some idiosyncratic characteristics that you might not see coming. It's very interesting reading about character relations... but above all, it is a slow moving routine-type game about talking to your neighbours while you do your job of the day. It's not a game for everyone, but I'm very fascinated by how unique it is.

This leapt easily into my all-time games pantheon. I can see the influences from all the listed inspirations, but this uses those as a jumping off point and forges its own path with aplomb. Some jaw-dropping moments in this, but also a sustained mood and sense of place and grit. I like that nobody in this game is perfect, or all that easy to get along with, or even very nice (including the player character). Lest you think it's "just" a walking sim, I did a gardening sidequest the last possible day I was able to do it only because I was finally able to grapple with and internalize both the fishing and farming systems; the latter of which has a fun logic puzzle aspect to it. That said, there is a cleverly-handled "postgame" that doesn't remove the story stakes if you are looking to do some cleanup. Magnificent work, and capped off by an astounding OST which I'm going to buy right after posting this.

really well written really well drawn im playing this one well past dawn doo doo poo poo seriously though this game rules and deserves your time

What a wonderfully singular game this is. Clunky, obtuse, intensely autobiographical in a way that borders on uncomfortable. Some of the best character writing in games period. ♥♥♥♥ you too, Clav

There's some good bones here to work with, and I intend on leaving no meat on them when all is said and done. Also shoutout Bucephalus my king.

After purchasing an upgrade that increases my jump height by 0.11 undefined units, I spent ten minutes trying to jump up onto a roof where a crow was perched, only for it to speak to me in the voice of one of the townsfolk: a plumber who is the exact copy of the woman she broke off from when the two were children. Her existence made people uncomfortable, so they always referred to her as the original's twin sister, despite her clearly being a doppelgänger. The plumber doesn't really like talking about being a doppelgänger herself either, not for any nefarious reasons, but because growing up in a family that was scared of her taught her to leave the subject alone. She had no choice about coming into existence, the two were merely a singular person one day and then two the next, but perhaps her family never entirely believed that. She's old now, and has lived a life she's fairly content with, but her story is undeniably tinged with a mundane sadness, despite her extraordinary circumstances, of growing up in a family that cannot accept all of who you are. Anyway, the crow on the roof tells me that there's always something new happening in pipes. A few days later, I find another crow (or the same crow?) who speaks in another person's voice. It seems to just be something that the crows around here do. Wonderful game.

A blossoming flower of relationships slowly opens Music that compliments utterly Still processing the experience

Despite the small setting of the village the game takes place, its obvious that Zugerujk has put a lot of themself into this world with how much detail there is to discover about literally the whole world, and most importantly the characters. Every character has a unique personality and you'll grow attached to at least one of them with how much new dialogue and topics each day unlocks, whether theyre a good person or not. Even with how many days there are in the game, theres always something new happening. The soundtrack is absolutely wonderful and the fishing minigame is fun too, probably my favourite thing to do each day after the deliveries. I love the abstract and trippy visuals and the overall aesthetic is beautiful, its my favourite aspect of the game. The contemplative atmosphere makes this a real nice game to relax to and im glad i got to experience it. Thank you for making this, its really cool and good