Pentiment - Review

When Pentiment first showed up, I thought it was an indie games, its art style was far too out there for any major developer. Learning that it was in fact an Obsidian game, changed my expectations, as they are know as RPG masters. What takes place in the 15+ hour game was not exactly what I was expecting, but it still has moments of brilliance.

The game has you taking on the role of Anders Maler, a young man who dreams of becoming a highly respected artist. When you first meet him, he is having a conversation with Socretes, a King, an imp and a lady, all of which takes place within a dream. Soon after that, you are given the chance to shape your version of Anders, by having conversations with members of the family he is renting a room from. While Anders is in Tassing to work on his masterpiece, a Baron shows up to check out the work on a commission he has placed. Some of the folk at the Abbey are happy with his visit, others are not and the townsfolk are generally ambivalent. Walking towards the Abbey though, Anders and the Baron strike up a friendly conversation and that in turn leads Anders to be given the task of completing the work that was commissioned. The next day, the Baron is found murdered and the monk who was working on the commission is detained as the murderer, something Anders does not agree with and sets out to find the real killer.

From this point the game picks up and events start to move at a decent pace, but before then the pace is glacial. The amount of time it takes you to walk to the Abbey is just crazy, as almost every character that you meet, has to talk with you. It is in these conversations where you can choose the background of Anders, did he study in Italy or Belgium, does he follow his hear or his mind?  The choices you are offered are plentiful and will pop up later on in conversations, so choosing is important. Once you complete Act 1 and move into Act 2, time has pushed forward another 7 years and that is really the only time, that time, does that. The acts themselves take place over a few days, but events only move forward once critical information is found, otherwise you can explore and investigate as much as you desire.

The conversations that you have with the townsfolk are what drives the game, some of them are simple exchanges that take place out in the open. Others will take place over a meal, something Anders is always being invited to. These meals will let you learn more about those across the food, from their history to their plans for the future. The questions you ask, or don’t ask, can really impact how the world changes because like any good RPG, decisions you make will be remembered. The remembrance of these events doesn’t show up all that often, except when Anders is attempting to do something he knows people won’t like. The catch is that a question you answer 45 minutes ago, may have lowered someone’s opinion of you and as such they won’t help. With the countless choices, prompts and people to speak with, this could easily be a game that has you revisiting a few times.

The rest of the gameplay is mostly set about looking at the world, my Anders studied flowers, so I could check out the plants, shrubs and trees around the place. Outside of that though, there is nothing else you can do, everything is based around conversations, it is really a choose your own adventure book, right down to the art style. This is likely what will turn some folks away, not the art style but the lack of things to do. There are puzzles to solve at times, but even those are rare and while you do get the occasional task to complete, that is usually only given if you get the questions right when speaking to someone. Given the period that the game is set in, I wasn’t expecting a thousand side-activities, but I would have thought some pub game or random card game would be presented, but that was not the case. Talking is well and good, but given that is all you really can do, those looking for more action are going to be let down.

Something that is sure to delight though is the games visual presentation, well depending on your fondness of hand-drawn visuals. From the opening scenes to the closing, the visual style will draw you into the world. Characters move on 2d planes, which helps keep the book style going, but even with that, there are nice touches to help extenuate everything. You will see wind blowing across the screen, causing trees and shrubs to move as it does. Candles and torches will light up the scene, flickering as they do, giving more life to the static backgrounds. As the story takes place over many years, you also get to see the town of Tassing evolve, from a small farming community to a much larger one. The folks that live there will grow older, babies will be born and people will die, such is the way of things, but getting to see it all is the more intriguing aspect.

The game doesn’t have spoken audio, all the dialogue is presented with on screen text and something you are either going to love or hate is the authentic fonts. With those on, which they are by default, you will get presented with some hand written text, or some carefully presented calligraphy and everything in between. The problem is that with the fonts being so vast in their style, understanding one or two, won’t make the rest suddenly legible. The developers clearly knew it would be an issue and they have provided an easy font mode, something that I turned on pretty early into my playing and I suspect you will to.

The games soundtrack is a strong one, much of the music feels old in its design, or period appropriate one might say, but it doesn’t sound bad. There were times when I would put the controller down, to do something else and I wouldn’t pause the game, just so I could enjoy the music. Sadly the games audio balance is way out and sound effects dominate the screen, the quill on parchment effect is something you will hear a lot of and you can’t adjust the volume of it. Rain and lightning, animals and nature, all of that is dwarfed by the writing sound effect and it hurts the game in the long run.

Pentiment is a game that is so unique, I am not sure that it fits into any single genre. It offers up an intense, multi-year mystery that will shape itself based upon your choices. Once you have made a choice, your actions will have consequences and sometimes watching them play out can be heart wrenching. The games lack of other things to do, other than talking to people and solve the occasional puzzle will likely frustrate gamers looking for some classic Obsidian gameplay, but even with that sticking with the game is worth it. The pacing is not the smoothest, it behaves like a rollercoaster at times, but Anders journey is one that paints a satisfactory picture, so if you have the time, you should pencil some time in to check it out.

The Score

8.0

Review code provided by Xbox

The Pros

+There are so many characters, trying to remember who is who is a wonderful challenge

+The games visual style is so different from everything else around, it quick takes hold and won’t let go

The Cons

-The gameplay is very one note, just a lot of talking, which may not be enough for some gamers

-Fonts are fun, but the constant scratching on parchment when they are being shown is so annoying, it can be hard to focus