I Saw Black Clouds
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Critic Reviews for I Saw Black Clouds
I Saw Black Clouds is awful. The story is stupid and confusing. Halfway through the game, you’ll be treated with this bizarre twist completely negating the first half of the story, and then the final half is a rushed mess that ruins anything the first half of the story had built up. The filming is brutally amateurish. I can’t help but think this mess could have been saved by a director who had a better understanding of camera angles, movement and so on. The only redeeming quality is that when you replay the game, you can skip any scenes you’ve previously watched – this will allow you to experience alternative scenes faster. Ultimately, there really is nothing here worth recommending. I Saw Black Clouds so you don’t have to. You’re welcome.
Ultimately, how much you enjoy I Saw Black Clouds is going to hinge on your appreciation level for schlocky horror and low-budget psychological thrillers. It's an amusing enough diversion, but the story may leave you unsatisfied depending on your route through the game, and there's nothing here that you haven't already seen in a dozen straight to DVD clangers starring Stephen Baldwin or Tara Reid.
I Saw Black Clouds is a good idea with a terrible implementation, where a good cast plays at the level of a school play.
Review in Russian | Read full review
Though technically something of a wreck, I still enjoyed I Saw Black Clouds' narrative audacity. The choices the game makes aren't necessarily good, but they are often bold. Even through the rough editing and sound issues, the game still delivers some surprises and suspense. Holler at the screen and throw popcorn with your buddies, and you just might enjoy this one.
I Saw Black Clouds has some bold ideas, but the execution on a structural and technical level is a total failure. Even if the writing, acting, and scene editing were immaculate - which they are not - it would not forgive how all of the decisions the player makes carry no weight. Decisions only have consequences in vague, indirect, unpredictable ways, and it's extremely unsatisfying to have so little control over a story that isn't overly engaging in the first place. The best decision you can make is to just not play I Saw Black Clouds.
I Saw Black Clouds has very little to redeem it. The characters are unrealistic and the plot twists and turns in an incoherent manner that introduces continuity issues. Player choices occasionally make a difference but are often ignored and sometimes even dubbed incorrect. Endings are mixed up and player relationships are pointless, plus the game can be buggy too. The irony is that Shropshire has its fair share of ghost stories and it even claims to be the most haunted county in the UK. Maybe the game would have been better telling one of those stories instead.
As a player, I often felt appeased I Saw Black Clouds, like a child pretending to play their older siblings console. The controller is off and they're really in charge but I certainly feel like I've done something. I Saw Black Clouds isn't worth perpetuating that facade for. Sometimes, you're just better off putting the controller down and walking away.
Bringing together all the main techniques of the FMV genre, I Saw Black Clouds is a title that focuses on sensitive topics in a perspective of terror and tension that offers an acceptable gaming experience within its own limitations. Allowing the plot decisions to be made by the player, the main objective is to tell a story of friendship and personal overcoming that can be understood from different points of view causing impacts and emotions at specific moments, but that do not take the game to another level.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
