A Plague Tale: Innocence

hugo is so cute and the game is a masterpiece

Interesting story, and decent gameplay mechanics make Plague Tale a worthwhile time. It overstays it's welcome by an hour or two. Game gives you some variety on how to approach it's situations and puzzles but it doesn't feel really engaging enough to really want to sink your teeth into. If you like the theme and story I'd recommend playing for that, especially if you play with the French audio, the voice acting is very well done. The gameplay isn't nothing to write home about though.

Wasn't expecting much from an AA game that is clearly being inspired by Sony's story-driven formula, but was rather surprised by the quality and creativity of the game.

Visuals are pretty good for a game of this caliber; character models are good to look at, the environment is well detailed and forbidding, the setting is highly dark, and the game always does a good job presenting it as such.

The narrative is quite compelling with a good cast of memorable characters. Amicia is probably one of my favorite female protagonists from the recent years in gaming; she has a well-written personal arc, and her motherly type love towards Hugo is sweet to follow. What is disappointing is the final villain; his presence is lacking, making the final encounter with him not impactful. The dangerous setting is more of a villain towards Amicia and Hugo than he is.

The Plague Tale: Innocence does more than enough to feel unique; it is much more raw in a good way. Gameplay is more focused on stealth and problem solving, which throughout the game keeps every encounter, even of a simple group of knights, feeling like a real threat. Also, I rather enjoyed crafting and constantly evolving the arsenal of the protagonist, making Amicia gradually more competent in stealth, open combat, and problem solving when the rats are involved. Rats initially felt like a gimmick but are used consistently enough throughout the entire game to become a crucial part of the setting and the identity of the game, never losing their frightening presence.

Definitely deserves more attention than it received, with production quality higher than most of the modern AAA titles.

Rating: 7⭐
A Plague Tale: Innocence tells a touching and compellig story with enjoyable characters and good dialogue. The world design is superb, the music is very good, but i can't get over the janky combat levels. If you don't do exactly what the devs intended you to do, you'll die 100%, and that's so annoying beacuse they're punishing any creativity and it totally breaks the immersion.
Played on: Steam Deck🎮
Finishing date: 3 feb 2024🗓️

Rat simulator goes brrr

Adore this game so much, can't wait for the sequel