Tacoma Reviews
I did enjoy Tacoma, it was a compelling story though short and I felt as though it had the potential to be expanded upon.
Tacoma is a high quality walking sim that tells a brilliant story of hope, whilst delivering complex and interesting characters.
Tacoma introduces a solid roster of characters into a brilliantly realised way of viewing and interacting with a story, but wastes both on a narrative that is unfortunately fairly dull. And because this is an interactive narrative experience, Tacoma doesn’t really have anything else to fall back on. It’s an okay time that introduces a great new mechanic that I want to see more from in the future, but the experience itself sadly falls short.
It's hard not to think of Tacoma as a game or even a narrative piece, but the truth is that Tacoma is an interactive experience. It might not reward you in the same ways as other games, or books, or even plays. It's a different kind of medium, where you get out of it what you put into it. I say play Tacoma, it might not tickle you in the same way it does me, but if you enjoy Sci-Fi and digging through people's personal lives, you'll dig Tacoma.
Perhaps not as heavy as Gone Home, but Tacoma still provides an intriguing and emotional experience, and with the addition of 3D recordings to view and explore, the game offers up a unique take on the genre.
Tacoma tells an engaging tale with memorable characters. Exploring the abandoned station and reliving pivotal moments alongside the crew has become an experience I won't soon forget.
Tacoma is a carefully put together piece of art in the narrative-story driven genre of games. The team at Fullbright have taken everything they learnt from Gone Home and improved on everything from the pacing to the delivery of the story, only without such an emotional ending this time. The majority of your time will be investigating spirit-like reconstructions as you look into the crew members lives and create a bond with each of these people who are no longer aboard the ship. Tacoma isn't a long game, but it's a game which will stick with you and make you want to go back for more, even if it's just to listen to the director's commentary.
Exploring and learning about Tacoma's world and the crew is a lot of fun. I was always interested to learn more; to turn over every object in someone's room, to pilfer someone locker, to judge their book collection. This is the heart of Tacoma. Fullbright succeeds in what it did so well in Gone Home again, with some fantastic writing and environmental storytelling.
Tacoma shows that with great writing and voice acting, you can become attached to characters you only know through colored body outlines and a couple of pictures. I even wanted to know more about the crew’s family back on Earth and I was desperate to dig further into the corporate structure of Venturis and the overall state of the global economy. Tacoma is enjoyable enough that it left me wanting more, even if the experience didn’t hit quite as hard as Fullbright’s groundbreaking debut.
With Tacoma, it begins to feel like this optimism might be getting in the way of the message that actually needs to be heard. Unions and activists groups can change the world, it is not just a matter of working together that is needed for these systems to change. To borrow from father Marx, “there are no happy endings under capitalism.”
The follow-up to Fullbright’s much-discussed exploration game Gone Home is an effort both ambitious and familiar, a frequently haunting, character-driven sci-fi drama that mostly overcomes its occasional divergences into ennui. Mostly.
If you want a great story told well, that will last an afternoon, then get Tacoma. It knows what it wants to be, and it does that perfectly.
Tacoma is a beautifully told story filled with real characters and real emotion that you won't be able to put down until you've experienced it in full.
Tacoma puts forth a well-crafted and fleshed out world with a narrative that can't pull its weight.
The lean gameplay and mechanics don't gel with the unfocused narrative, and it's a singular flaw that Tacoma can't overcome. There's plenty to like in the game, but it struggles to find a cohesive theme that brings the experience together.
Tacoma tries to tell a tale in a unique way, but does not quite achieve its vision. The disconnect between the player and the characters, along with the short length, make it a hard sell for fans of walking simulators.
Tacoma is not for everyone. Even if you like this sort of game, we should warn you that it lasts only about 5 hours. Now, as brief as it is, the experience is also pretty satisfying. You will hardly find any good reason to play it more than once but if you are willing to commit with the story, you will surely enjoy it.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
What Fullbright has delivered is rich, affecting storytelling that's truly worth experiencing.
Tacoma is a game of hope. Fullbright showed that they are able not only to look into the past with nostalgia, but also instill optimism in our future. Well, this is a rarity in our time, what with all the disturbing news and bad premonitions. Here, space is also a premonition, but a rather bright one.
Review in Russian | Read full review