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A Plague Tale : Innocence |OT| A Mischief of Rats

Cranberrys

Member
I finished the game on Xbox One X and missed one cheevo, so I decided to do a rerun. I didn't expect to like it so much. There's a great atmosphere all along, the characters are pretty good and the voice cast is top Notch. It has a sort of 90's PC gaming vibe (I mean that in a good way) and it also reminds me the 90's "french touch" : Delphine Software and early Infogrames games.
 

Exentryk

Member
Some screenshots below. Game is gorgeous!

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TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
I told you that you'll have a blast. Enjoy mate!

The mission requirement or in general? Because if its in general then you can't
I'm referring to the DLC
 

Stuart360

Member
Are those gifs zoomed in or somethihng?, the game doesnt look as blurry as that on my PC. Although ui have done a few INI chenges to get rid of stuff like Chromatic Abberation.
 

Mithos

Member
Are those gifs zoomed in or somethihng?, the game doesnt look as blurry as that on my PC. Although ui have done a few INI chenges to get rid of stuff like Chromatic Abberation.

I was thinking AND are thinking the same everytime, then I see gfycat saying SD instead of HD and I switch and it looks better.
 

Exentryk

Member
Yeah, click on HD for better quality. Gfy also adds some compression. The actual quality I'm playing at is 4K (can see screenshots above), but the video captures are in 1080p.

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DragoonKain

Neighbours from Hell
I really really liked this game. What prevented me from loving it is the latter quarter of the game when you
Get the power to control rats. I didn't like that mechanic at all. It took stealth and strategy out of it a little bit and they started introducing sections where you needed to fend off waves of enemies, which IMO was not what the gameplay was about up to that point. And I thought the final boss was really lame, I just didn't like it. It just felt like in the last quarter of the game they kinda lost sight of what made the first 75% of it so great and unique.
So that dropped it down a peg from great to just good. Still highly enjoyed it, but would have loved it if not for that.
 

Exentryk

Member
Finished the game today. Was a good ride!

Pros:
  • Graphics
  • Story-telling
  • Clean UI (for exploration)
  • Voice Acting
  • Music
  • Environment Variety

Cons:
  • Gameplay
    • Stealth started to drag later on.
    • Switching between different actions from action wheel is clunky (Action Wheels in general suck)
    • Could have simplified some actions like only having one type of Throw. This would have freed up a controller button that could have been used for something else.
  • Animations - These can be improved a lot. Really jarring in cutscenes.
  • Characters could have used more development. I didn't feel anything when a few of them died.
  • No HDR on PC
  • Characters' eyes look dead during gameplay. This looks bad when taking face screenshots.

Overall, I enjoyed myself. Took my time and did one or two chapters a day. The pacing was great, though sometimes it felt that the game would have been better if it slowed down a little and gave more time to the characters.
If the devs make another similar game, I hope they allow some melee combat. They might be able to focus more on gameplay for their next game since they now have a nice engine and other tech stuff sorted out.

Anyway, looking forward to what this studio does next.

Edit: I took a bunch of screens but they're on my PC. Will post later. Have a gif for now:

 
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HotPocket69

Banned
Patiently waiting for that price drop

I’ll happily pay $30 for this

I forget if it was answered before, but can you replay chapters once you’ve finished for collectible cleanup and specific trophies/achievements?
 
Patiently waiting for that price drop

I’ll happily pay $30 for this

I forget if it was answered before, but can you replay chapters once you’ve finished for collectible cleanup and specific trophies/achievements?
So am I, but the fucker is holding its value like a trooper. I assume that means it's selling well, which is a good thing. Well, except for my tight ass.
 

HotPocket69

Banned
So far I'm enjoying it. Just got to the point in Chapter 2
when you get to the old lady's house and she's got some spare clothes for you

Very atmospheric. Nice voice acting. Looks gorgeous. Definitely wasn't afraid to start off with some fucked up, sad dark shit happening either :messenger_anguished:

They did good with the music too.
 

Kadayi

Banned
Heads up ppl,


As promised, our brand-new Photo Mode is available on PC and console! You can now take amazing screenshots of the game whenever you want!

You can easily access the Photo Mode from the pause menu.

You just have to select it to get access to the mode itself. You are now manually able to change the brightness, contrast, the depth of field or even choose to take only Black and White screenshots.

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This game is really good. Im in chapter 3 and so far it's really good.
Can't wait to play more.


Playing on X and wow this game looks stunning. Glad they added photo mode. ;)
 

HotPocket69

Banned
Man, whoever said that the last few chapters of this game were a bit of a drag wasn't kidding. Like, the long stealth bits with the one hit and your dead shit mixed with the long reloads are a massive pain in the ass. NO ONE LIKES THIS.

On a positive note I'll be getting the Platinum after one playthrough. I was extremely anal about searching every goddamn nook and cranny for crafting materials and was able to fully upgrade my sling and equipment bag by the time I hit Chapter 15.
 

nowhat

Member
Somewhat late to the party - got this near launch, played it a bit and got distracted by something, off to the backlog she goes. I've now some time off work so I've been trying to clear my backlog, as futile as the attempt may be, and just finished this.

And I'm seriously impressed. First, the presentation. The graphics have received a lot of praise, but deservedly so; given that this is an in-house engine it looks pretty much insane. Some more work could be put into animation, especially facial ones during cutscenes, but really - the quality here is still much better than many AAA games from large studios. The voicework is very good (at least in English), and the accents create the illusion of French people (whether they actually are accurate or not, I cannot say). The soundtrack is great and fits the game well. Bonus point for when I was trying to escape a bunch of guards (in vain), they were throwing spears at me. They missed me, but impaled a nearby guard killing him. Nice attention to detail.

The gameplay was a surprise for me. I went in with the impression that this was barely above a walking simulator, but there's much more variety and depth to it than I expected. This is not to say there wouldn't be some parts of just walking/running around, and some stealth sections are very much "my way or the highway", but on the other hand how to deal with some larger encounters can be pretty much up to the player. There may be an ideal solution, but you can get creative with it too.

Then there's the narrative, and... it's fine, I guess? I quite liked the characters. The story has some incentive to keep things moving. But towards the end...
The game starts off fairly grounded. Sure, there are some "game-y" elements like being able to craft ammunition mid-battle, and the swarms of rats afraid of the light are not that realistic, but hey, let's not nitpick too hard. But about two thirds into the plot it really starts to go off the rails, by the end when I was fighting a mainlining head inquisitor controlling a horde of albino rats I thought the game went way too far. I do like campy B-movie stuff too, love it even, but I think you should go either with realistic or over-the-top, not change the narrative mid-story.

But I guess what impressed me most was the game design. For example, it's refreshing to have a game without a (mini)map or quest marker. But this means you'll have to design your levels and environments so that the player knows where to go just by subtle visual cues in the environment. Now you may be thinking "that's just like every good action adventure", and you'd be absolutely right, with the emphasis on "good". It's very, very hard to get it right. It's easy to get it wrong in so many ways. The pacing is also good (I'll concede that the ending does drag though), new gameplay elements are drip-fed at a suitable pace, allowing the player to get used to the new gear before introducing the next one. There are, and there are not, elements copied from similar games, and this is done with good taste. For example, there's ammo crafting and gear upgrading with random stuff you scavenge from your surroundings, this is good as it gives a reason to explore beyond collectibles. There isn't a skill tree, as that would be completely unnecessary. A good game design is something that's best when it's basically invisible, and for such a small studio to pull it off so well is no small feat.

All in all, while this probably won't be regarded as an all-time classic decades later, it's a very solid game. For the price (bring back the mid-price titles, this is a proof they can work) and length I really can't complain. But more than that, I'm eagerly waiting for what the studio comes up with next, with this game they instantly went from "who?" to "tell me more" to me.
 
I've just got back around to playing this again today on one x. I'm pleased to see they have added a graphic option to set the chromatic aberration level. Just the two settings available - Low and Normal. Looks far better on the low setting. I'm on chapter 6 now and enjoying it quite a lot so far.
 

Hostile_18

Banned
This game needs more love

It depends how they add it for me. It really broke the pace of the game in Control for example. I wouldn't like stop and read it Kindel or iPad documents in this every 5 minutes.

Anyways just finished it and absolutely loved it. I thought the final boss fight was really well designed and a good challenge. Just the right length, totally worth the full price if anyone is reading this still on the shelf. I waited for the sale but I'd defo be day 1 for a sequel or a similar game by the studio.

Overall probably my second best game of the year, only been beaten by Days Gone. If you like the team dynamics of God of War, Last of Us and Uncharted then don't wait!

Ps did anyone else read something into the end of the final boss battle involving Hugo?
 

Little Chicken

Gold Member
I finished the game last week, it was great. Surprisingly long. Visually it's very impressive.

What wasn't so great was the "combat".
 

Shagger

Banned
LLTP Really enjoyed this game. Looks great, very immersive, impressive graphically especially for a comparatively small studio and with surprisingly deep and varied gameplay.

I found it a little stiff to control, it did take little getting used to and checkpoint placement sometimes felt a little off. I wouldn't say the story was as interesting as alot of people say either, seen these elements of religious inquesitions and revenge in other other media many times before, but it was a story well told if not that well set up and unique. Dem rats, though. They were genuinely creepy and well worked in a a game mechanic.

Definitely a GOTY contender for me.
 
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Little Chicken

Gold Member
LLTP Really enjoyed this game. Looks great, very immersive, impressive graphically especially for a comparatively small studio and with surprisingly deep and varied gameplay.

I found it a little stiff to control, it did take little getting used to and checkpoint placement sometimes felt a little off. I wouldn't say the story was as interesting as alot of people say either, seen these elements of religious inquesitions and revenge in other other media many times before, but it was a story well told if not that well set up and unique. Dem rats, though. They were genuinely creepy and well worked in a a game mechanic.

Definitely a GOTY contender for me.

Oh yeah, the checkpoint placement was abysmal! Always before a cutscene.
 

Chittagong

Gold Member
Completed the game today. Here are my thoughts.

Graphics
The game looks spectacular. Not only is it impressive in terms of lighting, texturing and fidelity, also the art direction is gorgeous, referring to old painters for a dramatic, middle ages look. The characters are some of the most convincing, especially the main villain is phenomenally rendered.

Sounds
Fantastic orchestral soundtrack, amazingly delivered by just half a dozen musicians. The epic score adds to the dramatic moments of the game. Voice acting is very good in my opinion, and again it’s delivered by an amateur cast but to a very high standard.

Gameplay
This game was mostly about the story, for me - reflecting some of the advice I was given earlier in this thread. There is a delightful variety of different mechanics in the game, from fire to stones, distractions to extinguishing light, pushing things around, fun little puzzles.

What isn’t so great are the clunky mechanics of the game. I have not been yelling ‘fuuuuu-uuuuu-UUUCK’ this many times this side of Halo 5 MP. But here it’s not for lack of skill, but because the aiming and locking-on is just completely random. Often I knew exactly what to do, but executing that sequence in order took many more tries than it had to, because of the combat controls. There is a souls-like satisfaction in finally getting it right, but for the wrong reasons.

Longevity
The game is surprisingly long, with lot of stuff to find, but I can not see many people wanting to endure the mechanics again for a second try. The first third of the game is great, the middle part is a serious drag (so much so that I struggled to push through), and the last third is fantastic.

Story
The story of the game is really great. It starts with you not knowing anything, and ends up in you understanding completely. The characters are well fleshed out and relatable. The story is pretty predictable overall, but that doesn’t lessen the impact.

Overall
Plague Tale is a fantastic achievement, almost unbelievable achievement for a small team of 40 developers (as per the Making Of videos). It looks, sounds and lasts like much bigger budget AAA games, with the only letdown being the infuriating mechanics.

Happy that I played it, and happy that I am done with it.
 
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