Kentucky Route Zero: The Complete Season Reviews
Above all, Kentucky Route Zero is an argument that games can be more. That argument isn’t nearly so revolutionary now as it was in 2011 when development began, or 2013 when the first act released. We’ve (thankfully) made some decent progress in the years since. People bought Kentucky Route Zero, and those people did go start their proverbial bands.
Kentucky Route Zero is lost in the illusive premise of the American Dream but found in the elusive dream logic of its weird, wild, and wonderful prose. Through it all are characters who conceal pain and loss with whimsical musings of hope and escape and locations engulfed in a meditative haze where brutal reality is indistinguishable from isolated reverie. At the end lies a paradox that suggests a circuitous path was the shortest course to an inevitable destination, and the assurance that Kentucky Route Zero's seven-year voyage knew its direction all along.
I'm not in the unenviable position of giving a score to a game with no generic touchstones or precedence. I can't help but laugh at the absurdity at giving a score to something like Kentucky Route Zero. Did it accomplish everything it intended to do? Almost certainly. Was it "good?" Making a qualitative determination for art almost certainly means you missed the point entirely, doesn't it?
More than being a video game, Kentucky Route Zero is a work of art
There are few other games like Kentucky Route Zero. The point-and-click/text-based adventure captures the economic anxieties and the loneliness of America in 2020, but it still manages to be hopeful amongst the tragedy. You don't want to miss this.
Those looking for a challenge or something a bit more action packed won’t find what they’re looking for here, but those looking for a surreal and mysterious tale will have come to the right place.
Kentucky Route Zero isn’t a game for everyone, and as a piece of art it is bizarre and gives no clear answers. However, it doesn't have to, and instead allows its characters the room to breathe and push forward its themes in a way that very few games have been able to manage. Kentucky Route Zero has a finale well worth the wait, and a complete package that stands as one of the most interesting video games ever created.
Kentucky Route Zero feels breathtakingly original. For something this powerful to exist in any medium would be a triumph. But for it to exist now, as an interactive narrative drawn with striking visuals, meaningful choices, and moving music, feels more like a miracle.
Developped during nearly a decade, the last episode of Kentucky Route Zero has finally arrived, and with it the complete edition of the game. It can almost be considered as an interactive fiction, but with a real attention given to the player and the meaning of its actions throughout the game. As a subjective experience, it also questions the connections between video games and other forms of art.
Review in French | Read full review
After seven years, Kentucky Route Zero reaches the end of the road, and the full portrait it paints is melancholy and sorrowful but also absolutely beautiful.
A transcendent magic realist adventure, Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition is a singular experience that rewards perseverance and commitment to its vision.
Kentucky Route Zero is an incredibly dull and over-embellished text adventure that fails to engage, entertain, or provide much value to anyone but perhaps the uppermost art connoisseurs.
Kentucky Route Zero is a game that I'm still thinking about days after reaching its conclusion. Though it's slow (maybe too slow for some) and introspective, it's also an exceptionally engaging interactive experience. If you are into the slow burn kind of story then this is definitely for you, but if you're not then you may bounce off of the Zero.
Kentucky Route Zero is a game for those who are happy to slowly digest the measured nuances of a text heavy, but visually stunning and thought provoking adventure. Narrative weirdness abounds but it is anchored by a cast of charming and gentle characters who you will grow to love.
A work of art that I can’t recommend enough.
Although its moment to moment gameplay might not always hit the mark , the captivating story and colorful cast of characters make Kentucky Route Zero: TV Edition a journey worth taking.
Kentucky Route Zero is a one of a kind storytelling experience, but I'm not entirely sure what story it is trying to tell.
Those intoxicated by the game's dreamy brew may argue that there are no detours—that, like the Zero, you're either on it or you're not. If you're anything like me and Conway, however, you'll be somewhere in-between.
I tried so hard to love this game, but in the end, I only really liked it at best.
Kentucky Route Zero is a masterful piece of interactive storytelling. Mysterious, mercurial, and exquisitely beautiful.