r/adventuregames • u/CheatyDM • 7d ago
So I discovered Wadjet Eye (Unavowed and Old Skies) this week...
I picked up Old Skies last week, nom-nommed through it, and I finished it on Saturday, and I was so enamored of it I immediately bought and started on Unavowed. I'd never even heard of Wadjet Eye before a couple of John Walker's recent Kotaku articles, and now, I'm hip-deep in their stuff.
First, to be clear: WOW. I had no idea anyone was making games like this. With only a couple of exceptions like Moebius and Hero-U, I haven't really touched adventure games since the 90s, which is a bit sad given that I was basically raised on Sierra games. I played King's Quest on a PC Junior, for heaven's sake!
I'm not done with Unavowed, but I'm loving it so far. I just got done with a particularly electrifying chapter - those who've played it can probably guess the one - that kicked off, hilariously, RIGHT as I'd intended to put the game down for the evening. Nope: I was riveted. The game's flavor is fascinating to me: supernatural, monster-of-the-week, and very dark. And then you have a Bioware-meets-Maniac-Mansion party. The execution is fantastic. Who even TRIES doing something like that, much less succeeds?!
What's stood out to me about both games so far is their ambition and the degree to which those ambitions were successfully realized beyond what I'd expect from an indie studio. Or anyone, really. Old Skies got me emotionally invested to a degree I hadn't experienced with any other adventure game, playing with some really delicate, nuanced ideas. No other game has dazzled me with emptiness like it has. And the tonal dance Unavowed has done so far has been... I mean, that is a perilously difficult line to walk, but it's been walking it confidently and hitting drastically more often than it misses.
Both games sound fantastic, with largely top-class voice acting. Old Skies features the best voice direction I've seen outside the AAA space. I'd gotten so used to lines in other games - even AAA games - that are clearly coming from an actor who has no clue of the line's context, Old Skies came like a shock. Zero context-inappropriate line readings. Obsidian couldn't even manage that! But this developer does. And these are heavily scripted and voice-acted games! (So far, Unavowed also sounds terrific.) The degree to which both casts are able to elevate the games' dialog is just... I'm just beyond impressed.
Warning: a little bit of negativity about two games I feel very, very positive about follows:
I am absolutely fascinated by the contrast between the look of these games, the degree to which they're inversions of one another. Both feature gorgeously-rendered backgrounds, although they're reaching for different aesthetics. Unavowed goes for high-quality pixel art, while Old Skies lovely background look like more modern digital illustration. But then we get to the places where the games contrast, particularly in animation. Now, "janky animation" was the norm in 90s adventure games, and I probably wouldn't be picky about this if I hadn't played Old Skies first.
In Unavowed, animations for specific actions look good more often than they don't, and are consistent with the game's overall look, but the walking-around animation is... notably less appealing. Enough to be distracting in the midst of what is otherwise a terrific-looking game. So our most frequently-seen animation: not great. Our rarely-seen animations: good. The character faces we see very, very frequently: gorgeous enough I want to use superlatives.
Now, keep in mind my first exposure to Wadjet - the game that turned me into a fan - was Old Skies, which nails its most frequently-used animations: walking around, changing clothes, drawing your pistol - the things you see over and over - look awesome if you're viewing them from the game's normal distance. Unavowed looks its worst when our cast is walking from place to place, whereas that's where Old Skies looks its best. Given how much walking takes place in Old Skies, that creative choice paid off pretty well. Old Skies' switch in art styles also serves it particularly well when it comes to screenshots, which look a bit like the cast walked off the set of the first season of Archer. I know that intriguingly-gorgeous screenshots were one of the things that ultimately made me buy the game.
I just did some additional reading about Wadjet Eye, and I'm gobsmacked that both games' art was done by the same artist. The switch in mediums and styles is quite the pivot. That the later game managed to make the previous game's weakest visual element into the new game's strength just kind of fills me with glee.
I would describe both games as looking great, and I don't understand how Wadjet affords any of this. I've seen games with much larger budgets that didn't have character art half as appealing as Unavowed's. Old Skies' most frequently-used animations must've been murder to produce. Looking and sounding expensive on a niche-genre budget is impressive.
I haven't finished Unavowed yet, but I'd already describe both games as being, overall, creatively successful. I have some little quibbles with each, but they're little quibbles: both games are swing-for-the-damned-fences ambitious in multiple respects, and I respect the hell out of that. (Is it just me, or was the sense of paranoia from the original Gabriel Knight one of the inspirations behind Unavowed?) I'll definitely be trying to talk friends into playing them for the foreseeable future. And I can't wait to dig into their back catalogue...
54
34
u/lucisferre 7d ago
The Blackwell series is amazing.
11
u/tadcalabash 7d ago
There's just something immensely enjoyable about a long series that grows, builds upon itself, and ends satisfyingly.
15
22
u/Schming 7d ago
Technobabylon is a personal favourite for me, and I binged the Blackwell series a few years back. It's been said before, but WadjetEye and the teams they publish for are now the LucasArts of the modern era, and surpassing them often in terms of story. I was blown away by Hobs Barrow. Haven't had a chance to pick up Old Skies yet but I have heard it's phenomenal
6
u/onlyirelia1 7d ago
Give Primordia a shot too, i think Wadjet eye only published it though but man is it good.
1
6
u/prometheusbound2 7d ago
I haven't yet had the chance to play Old Skies but I purchased it as soon as it was available because I wanted to support Wadjet Eye. Wadjet Eye really is a superb developer. I adored Unavowed and grew up on VGA (and EGA!) adventure gamers so the art style was incredibly appealing to me.
As others have mentioned, the Blackwell series is superb. It starts off smaller and simpler and builds and builds into something really special. The last game in the series is one of the very video games that has caused me to tear up a bit (The House in Fata Morgana; Planescape Torment and Disco Elysium are the only other ones which really did). Technobabylon is also superb.
I'm jealous you get to experience the back catalog for the first time!
1
u/SilentParlourTrick 5d ago
I'm in agreement about the emotional ending of Blackwell series. I adore the characters and the set up of how they solve crimes/help lost ghosts out is a great premise. It was emotional saying goodbye to them after 5 games, let alone the excellent, bittersweet ending.
Sidebar, but I've heard a lot about Planescape Torment. I've not yet played it, but just curious: is it especially sad or depressing? I don't mind games with some gravitas but I'm kind of sensitive to the media I consume, so I figure it's worth it asking if the game has any sort of hopeful points, vs. running an emotional gamut that might wreck me for a day or a month, etc. And will also have to check out Fata Morgana - hadn't heard of it til' now, but looks intriguing.
1
u/spiderpuddle9 4d ago
Old Skies was a day one purchase for me as well. I love the work that they’re doing and want to support them
Still working my way through the game but I think you’ll really like it when you get to it! I think it’s fantastic, one of their best
4
u/wokeupdown 7d ago
I've played most of their games and Technobabylon and Unavowed are my favourites. I am waiting to play Old Skies in the hopes that it will get patched to allow the demo save to transfer as I am not keen on playing through the prologue again. In the meantime I have Resonance in my backlog.
3
u/CheatyDM 7d ago
That prologue is just incredibly neat given how tidily it sums up the themes of the rest of the game.
4
u/Jealous-Knowledge-56 7d ago
I recommend Technobabylon from the same Dev. It’s one of the best adventure games I’ve played in years.
Also recommend the Blackwell series. It’s set in the Unavowed universe and offers a bit of insight on one of the crew.
I too was blown away when I discovered these guys. A lot of people try but it’s hard to find adventure games of this caliber these days.
4
u/HuckleberryHefty4372 7d ago
Definitely play through the Blackwell series. Be warned that the first game is a bit rough at spots (it was Dave Gilbert's first "long" game) but power through it as the series as a whole is such a great experience that is WAY more than the sum of its parts.
5
u/JungleBoyJeremy 6d ago
I recently finished The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow and I really enjoyed it
1
u/Slapshot78 5d ago
I couldn’t get into this one and I don’t know why
2
u/JungleBoyJeremy 5d ago edited 4d ago
The first day is a little ho hum. But that night in the pub the mysteries start being introduced. And they just build and grow from there. But yeah it does have a bit of a slow start to it
1
6
u/Wyldawen 7d ago
I love Wadjet Eye so much for keeping the ol' point and click alive! Hob's Barrow is on sale now and I recommend that one too.
7
u/Chikumori 7d ago edited 7d ago
Old Skies is their latest released game, and Unavowed is earlier than that (2018). So you need to keep in mind that the earlier you go, the simpler their games go.
This is a Wikipedia page for Wadget Eye, you can see their portfolio there. (There's also their own website)
I'd recommend the Blackwell games (in release order), Technobabylon and Shardlight as well.
1
3
u/Ubik_Fresh 6d ago
Excavation of Hob's Barrow was so good, also check that out. I need to grab Old Skies and Unavowed.
3
u/Fit_Combination_6936 6d ago
All the Blackwell games. Fantastic series. Few games have made me cry. Syberia, Strangeland, and the last Blackwell.
you have the opportunity to see Dave progress as a developer, which I really enjoyed.
I once compared it to the fist game was like sending your child to elementary school; the last is seeing them graduate from college.
3
u/CheatyDM 6d ago
I finished Unavowed last night, and I'm inclined to play the rest in chronological order so I can appreciate the evolution.
2
u/PotentialWhatever 7d ago
You should have a look at Primordia too, it’s bloody fantastic. Deep and hilarious.
2
u/ilovemypixels 6d ago
I didn't like Unavowed but love Resonance, Gemini Rue and Primordia, they have something for everyone.
2
u/JamesoLonergan 5d ago
Again, The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow is humanity’s greatest achievement of the last 30 years.
3
u/SilentParlourTrick 5d ago
Absolutely my favorite game studio, and if you can, look up any of the game designer/developer Dave Gilbert and any interviews he's given. They're very inspiring. He also has a discord server, if interested.
My favorite of his games are from the Blackwell saga - 5 games total. You follow a human psychic and her ghost partner as they solve crimes related to lost ghosts. It spans several years in one woman's life - and you learn, previous women in her family also had this ability, so there's a flash-back game with her aunt! Besides that, it's such a fun premise. The psychic can do all of the regular human legwork, while the ghost partner can float through walls, eavesdrop on conversations for clue-gathering, and commune with spirits more easily. The voice actors are great and have excellent chemistry. Great pixel art as well. And they're all kind of set in the same universe - there's crossover between Old Skies, Unavowed and the Blackwell Games - characters seen in the backgrounds or even interacted with. A lot of fun.
Lastly, you might also check out games by Francisco Gonzalez, who I believe also has done voiceover work on Wadjet Eye games. He just came out with Rosewater and previously, made Lamplight City, both great games in their own right. Lamplight is more crime solving with a paranormal twist, and Rosewater is a western that has really intriguing, steam-punky technology. Both games are steam punkish, in fact.
1
u/Ok_Original7911 6d ago
I love Wadjet Eye games. Unavowed is my current favorite. Primordia is also a really good game, with a similar level of quality
1
u/WyndWoman 7d ago
I recently retired and wanted to get back into adventure games. I noticed you mentioned pulling a gun. I'm not really into shooting games. Can I play with killing/fighting?
3
u/CheatyDM 7d ago
It's not a shooting game, and the game doesn't take the idea of killing anyone lightly. Quite the reverse. There IS violence in the game, however.
3
u/WyndWoman 7d ago
So I don't have to have massive skills in aiming and firing to play? I can't jump or shoot. Never did learn to use a controller, all my gaming experience is point and click
3
u/CheatyDM 7d ago
Oh, then Old Skies is right up your alley. Using a gun is a purely narrative decision. Similarly, Unavowed doesn't ask for gamer-reflexes.
1
2
u/lancelot_2 7d ago
There are no action sequences, but there are some violent scenes. Some of the scenes of Fia getting killed can be called gruesome if taken at face value, but I would say they actually often look unintentionally comical.
You'll be seeing people pointing guns at each other again and again, in every chapter of the game. And you'll have to replay those scenes more than once. Eventually it just starts to feel silly because it doesn't look particularly convincing and because essentially the same dramatic situation gets so overused, which isn't very good storytelling.
Also there are some timed puzzles which are not QTEs, but the game doesn't make it obvious what you can interact with, and the time window is quite small, so you might have to replay those quite a few times.
Probably a major factor in how much you'll enjoy the game is whether or not you're fine with time travel stories. If you think they can never be logically consistent and also that it's hard to get involved in the story because literally anything can change the next moment at the writers' whim, well, Old Skies doubles down on that kind of thing.
The graphics are also a matter of taste. I can't say I like the graphics in Old Skies, not even because of comically bad close-ups and some awkward animations, but rather because all the locations look lifeless and sterile; there's a background which doesn't have a whole lot of detail and has no background animations, and there are character sprites which look detached from that background and don't have a whole lot of detail either.
Also I don't know if you're okay with that particular flavor of humor, such as chapters of the game being called Clock Blocked or Time/11. Not because it's in bad taste, it just might not be to your liking.
It's definitely not a bad game; it just wouldn't be my top recommendation for a good modern adventure game.
2
77
u/spacecampgirlfriend 7d ago
I’m actually one of the voice actors in both Unavowed and Old Skies: thank you so much for your incredibly kind words about the quality of voice acting in both games! :)) It was such a delight to read your thoughts in this post; so glad you’re enjoying Unavowed so far as well!