Reboot! Reboot!

Starting back up with my blogging activities. Once thing I'd like to do here is just jot down some of my thoughts, feelings, and impressions over the week. It might not really be related to gaming, but it's a creative outlet I'd enjoy.

That being said, I do think that there are some interesting things going on in the gaming sphere. Specifically as it relates to PRAGMATA, and how they handled the character model for Diane.

If you haven't played the game, you might assume that the "pedobait" discussion isn't warranted. It's just an android that is a child! I would have agreed with you, and I'm still on this side of the fence. However, there are a lot of factors that make this less black and white than I originally thought.

I don't really want to get into too much of the story, but one thing that really bothers me is that Diane has a lot of cutesy animations, but she doesn't move throughout the game world as a child. She is decidedly mature in the way she interacts with objects; it looks as if an adult is putting on the mannerisms of a child. This leads to having a few moments where the childlike mask drops in all ways except visually. On top of all this, the standard outfit for the character doesn't show anything on the lower half of the body, presumably alluding to a lack of clothing. There is no narrative reason why the android child is wearing such an outfit, and it casts a large shadow on the rest of the game.

Despite this, the game does not progress in a way to support the accusations as we see the characters interact with each other in a wholesome and lovely way. It doesn't leave room for imagination, even though the outfit for Diane isn't what could be considered "in line with the character".

Do I still recommend you play this game? Yes, I think that the game is worthwhile and has been a great narrative from what I've played so far. On top of that, the gameplay loop is extremely engaging when you're managing both Diane's hacking and the gunplay, although the gunplay feels a bit lackluster on purpose to let the dynamic between the two main characters shine. At the time of writing this, I'd rate the game an 8/10. A great title, great visuals, but not enough depth for a higher rank.