FRIST_008 The Forgotten City Review

Briefly about the game's story. Roman aesthetics, 60 AD. You're in a time loop. A city without sin. For any sin, all the residents pay at once and turn into gold. The game has 4 endings. The setup: - it's election day for the new leader - nobody trusts the old emperor - few believe you can't sin, but nobody sins - a new political rival in the election promises freedoms, bribes, abolishing the rule (the gods' rule can't be abolished) - 2 people went missing from the city 3 weeks ago, one of them is the emperor's daughter - you can't leave the city of your own free will You walk a lot, talk to people, learn the truth, the lies, everyone's story. However, since you're, how should I put it =) ALIVE, you can also swipe some cash and get your hands on a weapon, though it's not much use. In short, there's a little interaction with the world. Jumping, running, inventory, a quest log, secondary, primary, everything as it should be. + saving and loading anywhere, like in an RPG. Next: the game is way better than that ghost one, because, as I see it, it gives you a lot of freedom of choice. - remember the scene at the start of Detroit, where a man wants to jump off a roof. There's something similar here, BUT right at the beginning of the dialogue there's a really cool option: "Go on, jump, what are you waiting for! (Bluff)". I won't spoil the result for you. - when you suspect someone, you can, completely seriously, with a poker bluff, start accusing the person, claiming you know everything and hitting them with facts and guesses from another conversation. - since you're the one repeating the day, you know everything that happened. But people are seeing you for the first time, so you can use that to manipulate them. The game is 4–6 hours, platinum takes 12. You can actually finish it in 10 minutes, but you need to know what to do and where to go, and of course at the start you know nothing. At the beginning of the game you choose, in RPG terms, a racial bonus. And, like, it's a tough choice.... - you'll be super smart and notice things others can't, extra dialogue options - a pistol with 10 bullets. Bullets can't be replenished, but, like, umm, a pistol? =)))) I didn't pick it, but I'll definitely start the game again to check how on earth that works =) - and 2 more bonuses that I don't remember. The main thing that sets the game apart, I'd say, is how original the dialogues and the topics of discussion are. For example, with the emperor you can start discussing Christianity and their own religion, or clash democratic and imperial principles through different political options, all those questions of women's inequality, slaves and so on. Let's say the authors lay out pretty interesting thoughts. And the ways of talking to characters let you really play a bad guy and build yourself a really bad reputation. During the day, the characters talk to each other and follow a small daily routine within their area. Overall, my score is 9, I recommend it. The game is usually cheap on sale, and for some variety over a couple of evenings it goes down really well if you're in the mood. Basically, I had a flashback to arriving in yet another city in Mass Effect and having to talk to everyone. But here the whole game is about that. Here there's way more interaction and, most importantly, your words carry weight.