this post was submitted on 18 Apr 2024
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I think I'm dropping it. Besides the abrasive characters, the world's lore is very info-dump-y and not particularly interesting, and after 5 hours with the game, I'm not especially curious to see where the plot is headed either. It is definitely an RPG in the way its systems work and open up different paths, but even coming at it with a change of perspective of what the game offers, I'm not coming around on it.
Interesting, I personally found the world building and lore to be excellent and fascinating. I also just love the balance they strike between making the world familiar and yet strangely alien. Have you found out about the pale?
Otherwise yeah, the game is definitely info-dumpy and exposition heavy, I was just eating it all up.
As for plot, the ostensible plot of the game is less important than the pervasive themes. And for me those just resonated very heavily, I think. Dealing with depression, failure, addiction, loss... I could very easily relate to (or at least sympathise with) the protagonist. And I enjoyed the knife's-edge balance between nihilism and hope.
I don't think I made it far enough to see half of that stuff, and I think there's something to be said for hooking your audience early and without asking them to keep track of too many proper nouns out of the gate.
I think it's probably just different tastes in the end, then. I was hooked by the writing and voice acting pretty much immediately from the start at the dialogue with the Reptilian Brain and the Limbic System during the blackout. The dialogue option "I like pain and burning light and wanting things from people who don't want to give them to me." and the bit about evil apes duking it out on a giant ball had me from the get-go, and after the very funny failed first couple of red checks I knew I was in for a trip.
But even then I underestimated how profoundly moved I ended up being by the game. It's ability to make me laugh, cry and think in almost equal measure is very special among games I have played. Though again, I definitely came out of it feeling like I had consumed an interactive novel, rather than played a game.
It's most certainly different tastes. I'm just surprised to find a reaction like mine so underrepresented.
I've definitely seen some people bounce off the game, though maybe not for the exact same reasons as you. I think the nuanced characters are a real strength the game has, and even though there are definitely some bad people to encounter there are genuinely sweet and lovely characters as well. Right out the gate you have not just Kim but Lena, Anette and Tommy Le Homme. Even Mañana is a very pleasant character, though whether he is a good person becomes a more philosophical discussion.
Most people I've seen who stop playing early are those who get very upset at how the main character behaves. They come into the game with the idea of being given a blank slate like many other RPGs, and get incredibly frustrated by being forced to select "stupid" or insane dialogue options. You're not really allowed to live out any character concept, the whole point is to explore this deeply flawed, pre-defined protagonist.
And there are also those who finish it but end up disappointed. These are typically players who wanted and expected a detective game, a CRPG whodunnit about a murder mystery. The game isn't really that, and if you skip a bunch of "side stuff" and just try to focus on the case you probably miss not just many important moments but probably the whole point of the game. And then the conclusion will leave you disappointed.
I love Disco Elysium, but I totally get that it's not for everyone.