The Fall Reviews
The first instalment in a planned trilogy, The Fall does a respectable job at feeling complete while setting up upcoming entries. Although shorter than most adventures, the length does work in its benefit, as the slow pacing would likely overstay its welcome in a longer journey. Worth noting, the pacing is by no means perfect, with the ending coming off feeling especially rushed, but the rest of the experience makes good use of a slow, methodical approach. Atmospheric and appropriately lonely, with enough narrative weight to think on, this makes for some enjoyable point-and-click fun.
Over the Moon presents this great science fiction story that will give us a lot to think about, seasoned with a classic gameplay of graphic adventures, and although not so well resolved, an action and platforms component that, although they do not feel necessary , if they give a little variety to the development. Highly recommended title for all lovers of science fiction from the 80s and 90s, they will not be disappointed.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The Fall is the first game of a trilogy where the subject of artificial intelligence - what it means and its consequences - are a heavy focus of. Over The Moon excels in this department. For a point & click genre with shooting, they've done the job quite well providing a believable atmosphere and notable plot surprises. It's a pretty short game, but it is sweet. It's worth seeking out its playtime for those interested getting into this series. If you enjoy The Fall, you'll want its sequel as well.
The Fall is a sci-fi adventure game that harkens back to the days of classic adventure titles and in some instances, brings with it both the good and bad aspects of the classic genre.
In the end, while the puzzles are fun, and combat is simple, what really sells The Fall is the story, even if you’re not a huge fan of adventure games. I feel that this one captures a good balance between combat and puzzles so it never feels tedious and can work as a good introductory game to the genre. This review is based on the Switch version which doesn’t add anything new to be honest. If anything you lose the achievements available on other versions. But if you want portability it’s a good option over the PC, PS4 or Xbox versions. The game is out for $10 and as mentioned above, give it a try even if adventure games aren’t your thing, the story is worth it.
Ultimately, The Fall feels like you're playing your way through a movie. Aside from a few control hiccups, it's a playable movie in a genuinely good way.
In order to aim, cover, aim and shoot I have to make a total of 5 button presses over 3 buttons. It’s ridiculous.
You should definitely dive into the universe of The Fall with this first slice so that you can then carry on with the story in The Fall Part 2: Unbound, a game I enjoyed when I played it for my review, and which is also available on Nintendo Switch as well as on PlayStation 4 – it offers an adventure that is twice as long and that sets things up for the final entry in the trilogy… which will hopefully release soon because I can't wait to see how the story ends!
If you enjoy a decent sci-fi yarn and exploring concepts around AI, its limitations, and how systems designed to protect humans could conceivably also get in the way The Fall may be worthwhile for you. However, if that isn’t a pull and you don’t have a particularly high threshold for frustration it can be tough to recommend. With a relatively diverse set of adventures already available on the system this feels a bit more awkward than most.
Arriving almost four years after the Wii U version, The Fall still manages to offer one of the most engaging takes on the age-old 'robot starts to feel alive' concept without feeling tired or rote. Sadly, the limitations of its gameplay haven't been addressed for this port, so while there's a great story to be experienced, the game itself remains a forgettable miasma of genres.
Overall, The Fall has me intrigued and scared and amazed at how the twists and turns are presented. The gameplay could use a bit more smartsy action, but the whole narrative pulled me through. It was a shame ARID’s adventure ends in just a couple of hours. Hey, at least The Fall Part 2: Unbound is now available, right? Just be prepared to cash out for Part 2. You’d definitely want more of ARID’s adventures. Hey, don’t say I didn’t warn you.
Now available on the Nintendo Switch, The Fall is a neat tribute to old-fashioned point and click, but also an engaging narrative and deep adventure that should be worth your time.
If you're looking for a thoughtful sci-fi story and/or a point-and-click adventure in the LucasArts mold, and can tolerate the short running time, this is a good pick.
The Fall is a fine example of an adventure, with the better puzzles demanding some out-of-the-box thinking, and a hardcore, almost Isaac Asimov/Ghost in the Shell-ish sci-fi plot revolving around robots and AI, which is so good that it's easy to forgive this for its less impressive segments, and its unwieldy control scheme.
The Fall is the poster child for indie game development, and the start of what is sure to be an interesting trilogy. Over The Moon has successfully merged two genres and exceeded all expectations; all this from a Kickstarter campaign that raised 40,000 Canadian dollars. Yes, that's right; there is not a zero missing. Wii U owners hungry for Metroid Prime's atmosphere or Monkey Island's puzzle solving really can't go wrong with this one.
This is supposedly the first of multiple chapters to this story, and if the writing stays as strong throughout then it's going to be a tale well worth exploring, but hopefully the next title will reduce the difficulty a tad.
The Fall takes inspiration from all the right games, merging Metroid-style platforming and atmosphere with Dark Souls difficulty and Portal writing. Its deep and thoughtful explorations into the technicalities of AI are intelligent and surprisingly thought provoking. It's unfortunately hindered by clunky mechanics and overly complicated puzzles that often border on the obtuse when it comes to the specifics required to finish them. Google will be your best friend when playing through this, but try and avoid cheating or giving up entirely; solving The Fall's conundrums is actually somewhat worth the hassle for once, proving to be a creative and rewarding challenge that shows creativity and promise.
The Fall is definitely more than worth your time and money, and whilst the experience may be over quickly, it will certainly be one that you thoroughly enjoy.
The controls could be more intuitive, as could interacting with objects, but overall The Fall's winning combination of great storyline, well-penned script and impressive game world makes it one of the best indie titles out there.
'The Fall' is a great story and interesting discussion of synthetic morality, but ironically has some problems with its own mechanical side. It is possible that these issues were caused by the port to the Xbox One, but things like checkpoint saving are fundamental and cannot be overlooked. Regardless, I am happy that Over The Moon is continuing with the series, and hopefully we can expect the second episode before too long.