Where is my camera?
One of the most compelling things a game can do in my eyes is have a clear artistic vision and dribble from the wall to do it. American Arcadia is one of those games. From the first trailer I watched, I knew this was going to be one of those aesthetic and conceptual titles that could be spectacular or fail in its face. After playing the preview of American Arcadia As for the Tribeca Games Fest, I have a feeling it’s going to lean forward.
Sometimes a game can bite more than it can chew with a bunch of different factors – more complex is not always better. There are definitely more games than I have to play American Arcadia, but from what I’ve seen, it looks like a really interesting balance between different art styles and gameplay. It’s got a bit of a ’70s futuristic flair, a bit of eye-popping, capitalist scares, some background, some puzzles, some puzzling dialogue – but somehow, all work together.
The premise is everything
The story follows Trevor, a man who thinks he is living a normal life, but it turns out that he and all the other citizens of Arcadia are being televised live 24/7. Sound familiar? It is inspired by Truman’s show, but really gives the concept an interesting new twist instead of resting on its laurels. It’s one of my favorite movies, so seeing a pretentious game and running with it is really fun as a fan.
The hard part is that an outside hacker, Angela, has taken an interest in Trevor and wants to help him escape. American ArcadiaThe two characters’ stories are cut short as they attempt to navigate the escape, with Angela using the feed and camera controls to clear the way for Trevor to escape the dodge.
Let’s talk about how to play
Trevor’s portion of the game features 2.5D side-scrolling gameplay with platforming, chasing, and puzzles, while Angela’s perspective is first-person with exploration, stealth, and hacking. At first, I thought the two halves of the game would feel too disparate and apart, but like I said, from the part of the game I’ve played, they actually seem to balance each other pretty well.
Honestly, none of the gameplay elements seem to be really recreating the wheel here, but the real magic comes from how all the different pieces and sequences fit together to create overall experience. There’s a certain lack of control in Trevor’s part that you don’t really notice until you play as Angela, and that makes for some pretty powerful stuff.
Aesthetics, colors and themes
For me, the art style is more important than I like to admit when it comes to gameplay, and American Arcadia has one of the nicest aesthetics I’ve seen in a while. It’s a photo party that knocks images of the ’70s in the distant future right out of the park. A walk through the office building where Trevor works is something beyond a dream about the exciting capitalist craze, and I love it – never in my life did I think I’d see a conversation for those the small room. What a hilarious detail that clearly shows off these characters’ relationship to their work, and if that’s any indication of what the rest of the game will be like, I thought we would enjoy.
What I think is the most impressive about American Arcadia and its use of so many different elements is how it uses a two-pronged/dual play style to reflect the main themes of the story. We can’t see the world through Trevor’s eyes (at least as far as we know at this point), but instead through the eye-catching perspective that others have seen him transparently. his life.
While Angela is trying to get Trevor to a place where he will have his own autonomy, she is still controlling everything he does to get him there. This game raises a lot of interesting questions just on premise, so I’m really looking forward to seeing how they tackle those plot elements throughout the experience. In the same way that contrasting perspectives make for some compelling games, they also make for a compelling story.
It’s definitely on the wish list
As one story lover, American Arcadia is at the top of my list of desirable games. Out of the Blue Games know how to deliver in the right style, as we saw with their first release The Call of the Seaso I have nothing but confidence that Arcadia will be one of the coolest and freshest interactive narrative experiences in the next few years.
The game doesn’t have a release window yet, but we know it will be released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC thanks to publisher Raw Fury. For now, this is one of those things I’ll have to be patient with.
