This is my review:
Who knew death was so tedious
Everybodys Gone to the Rapture is ultimately a disappointing game. As someone who was massively hyped for the newest offering by developer The Chinese Room, I must admit that I walk away from the experience extremely let down. But first, lets get the good out of the way.
To say that this game has an amazing soundtrack would be a massive understatement. While not an absolute favorite, its easily a top five of mine. In fact, the sound in general is very good. The voice work is excellent and like the music it aids in the drama of the story. There were multiple scenes that gave me chills and accompanying goosebumps. Not everyone will feel this way, but the story definitely tugged on my heart at times. Without spoiling any details let me just say that a plot in one of the first houses will stick with me for some time.
Speaking of story, I did find the ending to be satisfying and enjoyable. Im sure there will be people on the internet calling it pretentious as it gets a little philosophical but that is just the nature of the beast. Again, I wont provide spoilers, but it is worth noting that the end is somewhat ambiguous, but I think that is to be expected of a game like this.
Sadly all of the good above is muddled by a tediousness Ive never encountered on a console offering before. Patience is a virtue and this rapture aims to drain every ounce of it out of you. For one, the walking pace is the slowest movement speed Ive probably ever seen. There is an option to run but even that pace is fairly slow. In all reality its what the non-running speed should have been. The run option is made worse by a truly odd implementation of it. It requires the player to hold down the right trigger and it takes around 5-8 seconds to reach max velocity. The player can also expect a sore index finger from holding down the trigger for the entire duration of the game.
Another bothersome aspect of movement is that you cant run inside buildings or anytime there is a ceiling above your head. Go inside a barn with ruined walls or a storage hut with only a partial roof and you instantly slow down to the excruciating walking speed. This might not be obnoxious at first, but by mid-game the annoyance builds to a level that I just wanted to be done with the entire game.
Speaking of buildings, the amount of locked doors in this game pissed me off. For a game centered around exploration I was incredibly let down. Maybe 35% of the games doors can be opened. Maybe. Granted its not like there is much you can do inside the places you can enter. Player interaction is minimal. Besides deciding where you want to go there really isnt much for the player to do in this game. Before release I was hoping it would be like Gone Home where you can pick up and manipulate and examine objects, but this game has none of that. The most you can do is open doors/gates, answer phones, turn on radios, turn on a single toy train, and turn on microwaves. Oh, and you can flip light switches on and off.
And, not to dawdle on speed for much longer, but it is worth mentioning that the end of each act will wear on your patience even more. Though more on that in a moment. Its first worth noting that the game itself is broken into five areas, and each area has an accompanying act that focuses on a specific character (though you will see a crossover of other characters within each act). At the end of each act you walk a lighted path. The first time is actually quite mesmerizing and very beautiful and the less said the better as its one of the first great experience of the game. However, it is later ruined by every act ending the same way. By the third, fourth, and fifth time its a pain to deal with as I just wanted to rush through it, but for the 2+ minute duration youre stuck at that awful walking pace, like buildings there is no running here.
Lastly I want to make mention of the trophies because they make it quite obvious just how tedious the developer wanted this game to be. One trophy requires you to sit at two separate bars for 3 minutes and do nothing. Another asks you to set your controller down for 5 minutes (anywhere) and not move. The next has you sit in a phone booth for 3 minutes. Then there is one that has you watch a toy train go round a small track for 3 minutes (took 5 for me but Ive read that others got it in 3). And then there is yet another trophy that asks you to sit on a park ride (it goes incredibly slow) and spin in a circle for 2 minutes. Just like the walking pace Im sure in their mind they thought this would be a good way to cause gamers to mediate and reflect on the experience, but I think theyre going to have the adverse effect. Like many aspects this game it just adds to a tediousness that borders on the unpleasant. For a game about the rapture this experience sure can be hell.
It's hard to score a game like this. If solely on the merits of gameplay I'd give it a 3 or 4, but due to my enjoyment of the story and the beauty the experience provides, I rate this game a very generous 7/10. You might want to wait for a price drop or sale first.
