Solstice

it was okay i guess

Choose wisely. The consequences matter.

Many show runners, authors, and game developers try and fail to craft a morally grey story filled with intrigue, backstabbing, courtesans, and sellswords. They fail because of predictable story beats, antagonists who lose their agency in the final act (see: the final season of Game of Thrones), or believing "shades of grey" means that everyone descends into amoral sociopathy. (Again, see the final season of Game of Thrones.) I loved Solstice. The people act like people. They have their own agendas and insecurities and secrets, and unlike Westeros the game rewards you for compassion, patience, and trust. There's human corruption, but they're not cruel for cruelty's sake. (Is this review just an excuse to harp on Game of Thrones? Maybe. The books were better, okay?!) Setting aside the gorgeous art and the music that I didn't feel like muting after nine hours, the writers set up a mystery that surprised me with every twist and turn. On a second and third playthrough, I noticed how these twists were foreshadowed, how every character acted according to their motivation. Also, I simp for Sem.

Solstice tells a rich and interesting story and does a wonderful job at building a detailed fantasy world. I was immediately drawn into this one. The background art is stunningly gorgeous. Sometimes I stopped reading just to enjoy the world art. The character art is gorgeous and very lifelike. Even the UI is fluidly animated and pleasant. The music does a great job at communicating emotions. For such a beautiful, miraculous city, there are a lot of morbid, dystopian elements. Minor spoiler: Pretty much all of the endings are [spoiler]bittersweet[/spoiler], but that's a sign of good writing. It takes a good bit of fiddling to unlock all of the endings, but I liked it a lot. I'd go as far as to say Solstice is a masterpiece in digital storytelling. Excellent - I'd love to see more from these characters and/or the world they're a part of.

Great game

I think I got this on humble. Way too much emphasis on lgbtq representation and not enough actually interesting content.

The setting was intriguing and the premises rather promising, but I still feel bad about wasting 6 hours on horrendous writing. I wouldn't recommend this game to anyone who's ever experienced the satisfaction from a well-written game.