<\/td><\/tr><\/table>My subconscious will drop me into a dream where I’ve just committed a bloody murder and I have to deal with the consequences. It is not the inevitable punishment that terrifies me, but the ghastly permanence <\/em> of the deed. I never make any attempt to escape justice in these dreams, but they usually don’t last long enough for the police to arrive anyway. It’s over in a just a minute or two when I wake up filled with anguish and flirting with a heart attack. <\/p>\nI bring this up because this is how Indigo Prophesy begins. Lucas Kane finds himself in a restaurant bathroom, draped over the bloody remains of a man he’s obviously just murdered. Lucas doesn’t know why he did it. Or what it means. His first thought is escape. <\/p>\n
This was a powerful opening to the game, as I was immediately drawn into Lucas’ plight. The player is given an unprecedented degree of freedom in how they can react to this situation. The only thing you must<\/em> do is wash off the blood before leaving the bathroom. Hide the body? The murder weapon? Clean up the blood? Look for clues? Go out and finish your meal? Dash out without paying? Go out the back? <\/p>\n These decisions matter, because the next stage of the game has you revisit the diner, this time as the detectives investigating the murder. That is, you will be investigating all the stuff you just did while controlling Lucas. The first act follows this revolving chessboard idea. You play as Lucas, and then you switch sides and play the cops chasing him. <\/p>\n A lot has been said about the failings of the plot later in the game, but the important thing to note here is that this is some of the most innovative gameplay I’ve seen in years. The plot is intriguing. The gameplay is compelling. The action sequences are tolerable. The voice acting and motion capture are top-notch. The dialog is authentic. <\/p>\n Most of what I have to say about the rest of the game will be negative, but the truth is that if the developer puts out another game along these lines I will buy it without hesitation. The fact that they tried something so unconventional is praiseworthy enough, and the first act of Indigo Prophesy proves that the idea itself is sound, even if they failed in the execution before the end. This game makes a lot of mistakes. The third act is almost comical in the way it manages to fail in every single way the first act succeeded. But the idea presented in the first scene is still a good one, and I’d hate to see it forgotten because of the package in which it came. <\/p>\n The opening scenes of the game are worth checking out. I’ll temper this suggestion by adding that you really will want to be holding a gamepad when you do so. The controls do not lend themselves to keyboard & mouse. You can<\/em> play using the keyboard, if you like, in the same way that you can dig a trench with a pitchfork if you’re motivated enough.<\/p>\n You interact with the world via You must also manage the mental state of your three characters. When traumatic stuff happens the character will lose a bit of mental stability. Success and comfort will restore it. If a character bottoms out they commit suicide – game over. This is really only a problem for Lucas, who is dealing with the aftermath of the murder, the threat of arrest, freaky visions, bad health, and a couple of dysfunctional relationships. The guy is a mess, and you have to be careful if you don’t want him to implode on you. Carla and Tyler – the two detectives chasing him – have their own problems, but they seem so minor compared to what Lucas is dealing with that it seems almost insulting for them to have their own sanity meters. <\/p>\nmouse<\/del> thumbstick gestures, making decisions about how your current character will behave and what they say to other people. I really enjoyed the gestures, except for the climbing parts of the game where it was used to add “challenge”. <\/p>\n