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Always Sometimes Monsters - an unconventional RPG about life

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Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=MEPAJgNKN_o

Independent developer Vagabond Dog and the consummate professionals of Devolver Digital have announced Always Sometimes Monsters, an unconventional RPG about life, love, and the lengths that we will go to find happiness in both. Set to release on PC in 2014, Always Sometimes Monsters aims to explore themes and issues of the modern world where decisions you make affect your life and the lives of those around you.

Players will assume the role of a character out of luck, out of money, and on the verge of collapse after learning their beloved is set to marry someone else. Choose from characters of different gender, race, and sexual orientation and set out on the open road to overcome everything and everyone that life throws at you on your way to redemption. Start and end relationships with a colorful cast of characters, make an honest buck or lie for a few more dollars more, and deal with friendship and prejudice as you make your way through the modern grind.

“Developing Always Sometimes Monsters has been a continual process of evaluating not only our game mechanics, but also an evolution of how we regard ethics and morality.” said Justin Amirkhani from developer Vagabond Dog. “Concepts of right and wrong can easily whittle away within the game, so we are very much looking forward to seeing what choices players make during their unique journeys.”

Always Sometimes Monsters will be playable at PAX Prime booth 871 with a custom demo taking players through a few of the initial sequences and asks players to make a decision that will permanently affect the character in the game upon its release next year.

Always Sometimes Monsters will be available for PC Spring 2014 and gamers can follow development at vagabonddog.com or on Twitter @VagabondDog.

http://www.devolverdigital.com/blog/view/introducing-always-sometimes-monsters
 
Always Sometimes Monsters is out now on Steam

Eurogamer - 9/10
Always Sometimes Monsters isn't the first game to get clever with morality. It's not the first game that's had a few grey areas. It also isn't about either of those. It's about perspective. It's about empathy. It's about who we are and why we do what we do. That narrative is one of contradiction and hypocrisy, because that's what real people are about.
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PixelBedlam - N/A
Surprisingly dark and gritty, some choices will haunt you. Many will be put off by the graphical style and mundane jobs but a well written game that is very much worth your money if you value story.
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That Eurogamer review made me interested. Though I dont know if I want to play an emotionally exhausting game right now.
 
Will check out a Let's Play or two on YouTube to get a feel for how variable this game allows the player to get and then dive in myself.
The assorted trailers certainly make a vivid impression.
 
This is a very interesting concept. I'm picking this up right now!

Gonna live stream this game. Come hang out. Twitch.tv/bleether
 
Zeta_Enforcer said:
This is a very interesting concept. I'm picking this up right now!

Gonna live stream this game. Come hang out. Twtich.tv/bleether
Click to expand...

I cut and pasted the link above, not noticing that it was mispelled, and it consistently pops up a "Annual User Survey" malware link for me. Not sure if it is something on my end or something with that link. Be careful.
 
Wow. I kinda like this. I hope they release them in portables. The game couldn't be that demanding based on the graphics.
 
This looks so far up my alley, I may need to send a friend to retrieve it. Should be picking this up within 24 hours to experience and write about. "Always Sometimes Monsters has content dealing with
racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, mental health, sexual assault, child abuse, animal abuse, drug abuse, and suicide."
Maybe it can be an intersectional tool to teach others to practice empathy toward people who are different, by putting them in their shoes.
 
BigWeather said:
I cut and pasted the link above, not noticing that it was mispelled, and it consistently pops up a "Annual User Survey" malware link for me. Not sure if it is something on my end or something with that link. Be careful.
Click to expand...

Fixed, sorry bout that!

This game has some heavy stuff in it for sure, and it wasn't something i was comfortable playing on stream which is weird because i play violent games all the time. One thing set of choices i made
caused a guy to commit suicide. I guess i convinced him his life wasn't worth living.
It definitely wasn't what i expected, but that is not to say it is a bad game, i haven't finished it yet. Some interesting things going on here.
 
Zeta_Enforcer said:
Fixed, sorry bout that!
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No problem at all, I knew it was just a typo. Just some people setting up fake surveys on misspelled URLs it looks like -- my computer turned up clean on malware and I haven't had any more appearances of it (other than my going back to it to verify that it was at that URL before I posted).
 
Phlebas said:
Any Gaf impressions? The premise is interesting.
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I've only just started, and I don't really want to spoil anything, but they chose a really interesting method of choosing your character and sexual orientation.

I like what I've seen so far. Lots and lots of dialogue but overall its surprisingly good.
 
On Steam, people are saying a playthrough is like 9-10 hours. I didn't expect that. I though this would be like a 2-hour experience, but with a lot of replayablity in terms of choices (which it obviously has)

Am I reading that right? Playing through the game once is about 10 hours? Or is multiple plathroughs trying different choices over 10 hours?
 
Another review
http://www.mweb.co.za/games/ViewNew...Monsters-Review-Bloody-brilliant-torture.aspx
The dialogue is brilliant, the narration gorgeous. This is what would happen if Chuck Palahniuk did games. Indeed, violence might be something you find yourself doing. Might. Maybe.

It's something everyone should play. It's a reason why video games do more for me than film and, lately, books. If it is showing us the realities of adulthood in us, it is also showing us adulthood in gaming. And that is the only adulthood we should perhaps long for.
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I'm about 3 hours in now.

I'm in the second town and just met Larry again. No spoilers since he's like the first character you meet.

Anyway, he gave me a
job in a warehouse
where I just spent 30 minutes
loading boxes into a truck.

I liked Shenmue a whole lot but this takes it to another level of
boredom.

Granted, you're not forced to participate in this part but I'm playing my character like an honest dude so...

There are brilliant and heartfelt parts so far but I hope there aren't too many other sections like this.
 
GamingTrend - 85/100
Always Sometimes Monsters is one of those independent, cult-classic-to-be, games that fans of narrative storytelling should really give a chance. Whatever flaws it may have are obvious and avoidable, and at no point did I encounter something game-breaking that soured my time. There are plenty of paths to choose from, feelings to explore, and surprise consequences that will make you give yourself a high-five or scream at you monitor. The Vagabond Dog boys have made a solid start.
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Daily Crate - 4/5
There are moments in Always Sometimes Monsters when you find yourself over analyzing everything you just said to an NPC. There are moments that are painfully realistic and achingly relatable. Most importantly, there are moments when you have to stop and wonder if you are, in fact, a monster. In may ways, Vagabond Dog’s title maybe the best real life simulator ever.
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OK I just beat the game and I think it's pretty great. Tons of replay value here.

There are moments where I had to make a choice and walked away from the computer for a while, had a beer and thought about things. There are moments that made me feel guilty, and sad, and happy.

It's really an interesting experience, and I'm glad I gave it a go. It's buggy. There are game mechanics which suddenly become meaningless, spelling errors, and other small issues that crop up but nothing which breaks the game or ruins the core experience.

Definitely worth it if you like indie titles, especially ones with a story that can go in multiple directions. There are things that happened in the game that I didn't know if I would be able to change or find out more about, NPCs I never talked to and plenty of alternative choices that I didn't make. I think it will take several playthroughs to see everything here.

Right now I'll digest the first one before I go back.

Took around 7 hours to beat the first time round.
 
Thanks for making/bumping this topic. Never heard of this game until I saw it, based on the reviews/impressions, I just bought it.
 
I know 8bit graphics has been a cliche these past couple of years but i can't help like it. Definitely will check it out, the review's have been encouraging.
 
This is a very cool and fun games. I find myself seriously hooked with its mechanics. There are so many possibilities, so many ways, choices and consequences. Where Walking Dead promises choices and consequences, but falls flat on delivering said promises, this games totall delivers. I made fours runs so far and the game unfolded drastically different every time.

I urge everyone to test this fun and innovative indie game (it is not a graphical powerhouse) - but if you cant get behind the rpg maker-like graphics, its oh so much fun.

Best 9 euro i spend in a long (gaming) time.
 
This is one of the weirdest games I've played. I can't really figure out what is going on or what I'm doing but I can't stop playing.
 
lol, this game gets pretty dumb.

Early game(I think?) spoilers:
I'm in the part of the story where I'm part of an ebil union trying to hack the elections by triggering a shitty minigame with my PERSONAL HAX DEVICE so that fake rob ford(called "bob hoard") can win and crush the protests against said ebil union.
Not sure if I like it yet. It's got some interesting concepts and mechanics -- they do a good job emulating how tedious everyday life can be and they manage to keep it interesting -- but it's hard not to notice that it's an RPGmaker game. I love the concept too, but the writing isn't good enough to make it work at least so far.

There's quite a bit of content, though. I expected this to be a 5 hour game or something, but I'm a couple hours in and as far as I can tell about a 1/3rd of the way through the game.
 
I like it a lot. Reminds me of that other RPG Maker 2000 game that came out years ago, where you play as a guy named Bob who has lost his fortune and has to struggle to survive on the streets. Of course, that game was made for comedic effect, but it's still similar in style.
 
The thing I like about the game is that there are many ways of reaching a particular goal, instead of meeting some arbitrary point system.
 
Another review
Dealspwn - 9/10
Always Sometimes Monsters is a fascinating, utterly engrossing morality play, delivered as a Game Maker adventure that constantly asks questions of the player. There have been games that deal with difficult decisions before, but perhaps none so deftly as this. Always Sometimes Monsters is a marvel.
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I bought this on gog.com last night. I agree that the storyline is deep and it definitely hits hard with the focus on the lost relationship.

Honestly though, I can't say that I agree that this game presents a sophisticated depiction of choices and consequences. Most of the choices you are presented with in the this game are functional/mundane (e.g., do you want to keep working at the pork factory today? yes or no?, do you want to sleep here tonight? yes or no?).

Every so often, you encounter a choice on a more controversial matter. But - I feel like the game's narrative forces you to get involved, rather than challenging you to really think through a situation. For example - if a character asks me to break into someone's house and hack their computer, etc., I can either agree to do this or say no. If I say yes, the story continues and is more interesting. If I say no, then I am basically choosing to forgo the storyline and spend another day walking around town and "working" at the pork factory.

I feel like my "moral" choices in the game are driven by a desire to keep the story going - rather than leading me to take a stand on ethical dilemmas such as "fairness in a monetary situation versus keeping an important relationship" or "choosing short term positive consequences over a long term negative outcome".
 
I beat this last night, and am pretty intrigued by the idea of replaying it again. I'm wondering just how many branching paths there really are. I noticed many places where it COULD be greatly different, but I want to replay and see if it really is. One thing I am wondering mainly is about the main characters in my storyline, and if they change at all with different ways of playing. I tried to play mostly honestly and these were some of my main experiences:

Helped Darkef and his girlfriend go to rehab
Made friends with the Ad agency guy and he drove me to Beaton
Made friends with Larry's terrible wife, ended up angering Larry even though he was wasting money just as much as she was.
Worked at the warehouse, made friends with the foreman, but didn't help him rig election, though it seems I was rewarded as though I had anyways.
Bought Bus ticket to Salt City, and stayed with Mark. Got all the upgrades for the hotrod and did not cut Stan's brakes.
Stayed with Casey in San Verdano, ex-girl's father.
Former best friend Sam was the one getting married to my girl, and after going to Las Vargas with him, had to give up my journal to stop him from getting killed.
Objected at the wedding, was rejected.
Let the hitman shoot my main character.
Then I'm left playing as Sam, but can't really do anything....masturbated five times in shower, cause I hate Sam.

So I'm wondering, do the characters of Darkef/Larry/Mark/Casey/ Sam change depending on your gender/race at all? Are there other main storylines? There must be, because I didn't interact with lots of characters very much. Not necessarily looking for specifics, just wondering if anyone else's storylines varied too much.

I loved this game either way, though some situations didn't feel like they were completely used to their full effect. Larry's wife for instance.
 
I'm about 5 hours in and every area since the starting town feels less fleshed out. It's a bit disappointing but I'm sure it was difficult to keep up that high level of content, but I still wish there was more to do in subsequent areas other than unload boxes in a warehouse (I got to 80 or so before realizing that it would just go on forever.)
 
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