Backbone Reviews
Howard's journey ends far, far away from where it began and each step continuously develops the emotional investment for everyone in this world. While there are minor mechanical issues such as the "interact" input not always being immediately responsive, each element of Backbone is polished and expertly crafted. Backbone is a must-play GOTY contender that deserves every bit of mainstream recognition it receives, and exceeds the usual reach of its genre, making for a compelling experience that even those with little interest in point-and-click adventures will find difficult to put down.
Backbone features a compelling story and a well-realised post-noir dystopia, with engaging characters and some smart gameplay.
Between the clever mechanics, the compelling narrative, and the gorgeous pixel art, there’s a real fire lit beneath you from the very start. If you’re looking for a detective story with glistening fangs, glittering eyes, and sharpened hooks, Backbone will be perfect for you.
From beginning to end I was hooked on Backbone
Weird, unique and brilliantly designed, Backbone is a game like no other in 2021. The narrative is both mysterious and absorbing, the characters and dialogue are fun and it never overstays its welcome. I wish I was given a little more information in the second half of the game and the ending a bit more fleshed out but I was left wanting more. Backbone surprised me massively and I enjoyed it a lot.
The game also delivers on its tonal shift and twist and does things that a simple noir detective story could not. Backbone understands the value of good writing and works hard to make words matter. The development team has already said that it has more stories to tell in this universe and I very much want to see how they expand on the best elements of Backbone and how they can make the world even more intriguing.
Backbone does both, striking a balance between nostalgic and new, breathing another breath of life into the genre with its gritty, sad grin. This 2D, sidescrolling, pixel-art noir is a short but solid adventure mystery with stunning visuals and meaningful characters.
Even if it's brief and falters during the third act, there's no denying that Backbone is a truly gorgeous and captivating adventure, with an engrossing world that you'll want to see even more of.
Backbone offers beautiful graphics and evocative music, though it takes some shocking swerves as the plot progresses.
The narrative flourishes of Backbone are wildly ambitious, and the tonal shifts will butt up hard against expectations set by the opening hours’ clear love for noir-narrative and tropes. It’s a game obsessed with change and transformation, and in a world as damned as this, perhaps that’s the best one can hope for.
While the game isn’t as grand as I initially thought from the first act, the story is one that’s well worth seeing through. The characters you meet are interesting, the world is gorgeous, and the ideas are certainly relevant to the world we live in.
I walked away from Backbone puzzled about the ending, and in truth, I was a little disappointed. The game kind of squandered the excellent setup it spent hours developing, but because the setup is so good, I don’t feel totally let down. I still enjoyed my time in this dystopian Vancouver populated by animals, and I would almost certainly play a sequel if one were ever developed. But there’s the rub. Backbone feels like it needs a sequel. The story just doesn’t feel complete right now, and given that the game is pretty short (you can probably beat it in about 5-7 hours), it’s hard for me to enthusiastically recommend it. If you’re still interested despite the issues I’ve outlined, make sure you’re prepared for an abrupt conclusion. If you’re on the fence, well… maybe wait for a sale.
Promising and lovely, Backbone can't live up to its stellar early chapters, but there's still a worthwhile experience contained within.
If you've come to expectation by playing Prologue, you'll be disappointed. A more linear, puzzled and different environment awaits you, especially in the second half.
Review in Turkish | Read full review
Backbone is an interactive narrative-based adventure with some underused classic point-and-click gameplay elements mixed with choice possibilities that don't always represent real cause-and-effect options, but bring in its artistic style and well-written text its best qualities.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Backbone dwells into the dark reality of a dystopian world full of corruption and injustice. Though the game has some gameplay issues and the story isn’t as long and well-paced as I had hoped, it brought a gorgeous cityscape with a comprehensive narrative. The dialogue is well-written, and the plot is greatly engaging, as it keeps you desiring to know what could happen next in the life of Howard Lotor.
The main reason it’s hard to recommend Backbone is that so much is left unanswered. I truly hope there will be more games in the franchise, because the world building and character development are outstanding. If they could bring back the puzzles and stealth elements from the prologue into future titles, then I have no doubt EggNut could have a classic on their hands.
Backbone sells itself as a new kind of point-and-click adventure that includes dialogue choices and some light stealth mechanics. It does technically have these, but whether they help Backbone stand out over traditional games in the genre is a matter of debate. The main attraction here is definitely the masterful pixel art design that is head and shoulders above the crowd.
Backbone is a result of an engaging story and interesting characters, with incredibly detailed pixel art as a bonus.