Book 8 of 2024: Batman: The Killing Joke

 Batman: The Killing Joke

Author: Alan Moore (words), Brian Bolland (pencils)

Genre: Graphic Novel, Noir, Detective

Pages: Not that many, can't be bothered to check

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 7.5/10

I've never been a huge Batman fan outside of the animated series in the 90s, so in order to change that, I figured I would give one of his seminal stories a whirl and see what happened.

This is really more of a Joker story than a Batman story, and I guess it's one of the better ones. Brian Bolland's art is fantastic, and not just on a technical level (although it shines there, too). His visual storytelling is on a completely different level and is something that I think can only accomplished in a comic book.

The story is decent, I just wish there was a little more of it. It centers around the Joker, who escapes from Arkham and holes up in an abandoned amusement park. After attacking Barbara Gordon and uh, doing unsavory things to her (this really didn't sit well with me) he kidnaps Commissioner Gordon with the ultimate goal of driving him insane. Of course, Batman must come to the rescue.

In between plot points, we get flashbacks to the Joker's previous life where he was a struggling stand-up comedian with a beautiful girl and a baby on the way. In an effort to try and earn a bit more money, he ends up taking a job with the local organized crime outfit which goes horribly wrong. I believe you know the rest.

One bad day turned a good man into the Joker, and one bad day turned a kid into the Batman.

And then the story kind of just... ends. It's weird.

Book 7 of 2024 - Cosmic Detective

Cosmic Detective

Author: Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt, David Rubin (Art)

Genre: Graphic Novel, Sci-Fi, Noir

Pages: 208

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 8.4/10

Cosmic Detective is a gritty, hardboiled graphic novel about a detective trying to solve the murder of what could be called a god. In true noir fashion, the more he discovers the shittier his life gets. 

The art really drives home what a cross between cosmic horror and sci-fi detective work might look like. Strange allies, mysterious technology, and a backstory that's really only hinted at serve to draw in the reader even more.

I read this in a single sitting, and I would recommend it to fans of the genre. Give it a shot.

Book 6 of 2024 - Counterweight

Counterweight

Author: Djuna

Genre: Science Fiction

Pages: 176

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 8/10

Counterweight is a slick techo-noir thriller set in the near future, on the fictional island of Patusa. Our narrator, Mac, LK's Chief of Internal Affairs, gets caught up in a truly Byzantine plot of corporate intrigue and transhumanism that would make William Gibson proud.

Counterweight is a tight sub-200 page novel with plenty of cool ideas and action, complete with red herrings, twists, turns, pirouettes, twirls, etc, etc you get the idea. The plot involves the world's first space elevator, with a secret hidden inside the counterweight that uh, anchors the elevators cable in space I guess. The counterweight is more than a collection of space junk though, as it holds a potentially dangerous secret.

Djuna is a pseudonymous South Korean author that I had never heard of before reading Counterweight. I believe this is the first and only novel of theirs that has been translated into English. According to Google, the novel was originally conceived as a short film.(which I'm sure would have been awesome). Counterweight really whet my appetite for more of Djuna's work, so I hope more of it is translated in the future.

Game 12 of 2024 - Dread Delusion

Dread Delusion

Developer: Lovely Hellplace
Publisher: DreadXP
Platform: PC
Genre: CRPG

Difficulty: Easy-ish
Hours: 25

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 8.6/10

Picture this: You are a nameless, faceless prisoner of the Inquisition, arrested long ago for crimes that are never made clear. One day you are released by the High Confessor and tasked with bringing in a fugitive for some strange reason. From then on, you are free to make your way in the world, exploring, looting, and fighting as you see fit.

Sound familiar? If you've played any of the Elder Scrolls games, it probably should. Dread Delusion takes a lot of inspiration from Morrowind in particular, but while it shares a lot of DNA with that old RPG treasure, Dread Delusion is it's own beast.

First off, this is your boss, the High Confessor:

...the fuck is this thing?

You're immediately greeted with an alien world, rendered lovingly in low-poly circa 1999 textures. Dread Delusion takes place on the Oneiric Isles, which are a bunch of floating islands orbiting something called a Neuron Star. The isles are bathed in a pink/purple light, which clashes delightfully with the more mundane elements of the world, like houses and trees invoking a mild sense of... well, dread.

While I loved Dread Delusion's visuals, they aren't going to be for everyone. After a while I didn't even clock that the graphics were low-res, that's how well they're used. Every pixel in every texture is used to maximum effect to create this exotic world.

The story is also great, I just wished there was a bit more of it. You end up getting some cool companions, but I don't think we really get to spend enough time with them to bond. They have some great backstory though, and they look awesome.

The Emberian is a badass.

Dread Delusion likes to keep things simple. There is a simple alchemy system, a simple weapon and armor upgrade system, and you can even buy property and upgrade it if you like. I found owning property was mostly pointless since there isn't a great fast travel system in the game, so I almost never visited the houses I owned.

You engage with enemies in both melee and ranged combat, but other than a few swords and bows there aren't any other weapons. You get throwing knives and shurikens as well. There isn't a wide variety of loot to be quite honest, but the game doesn't really need it.

I guess if I had some criticisms, it's that the game's too easy. You can just avoid most fights, and when your hand is forced, combat isn't that hard and health potions are plentiful. The only time I was ever in any danger is when I was outnumbered or fighting a certain endgame bullshit monster. The map, while nice, could use a little work, It would have been nice to have some labeling or even the ability to make our own notes so we could remember interesting places.

The Duchess.

Ultimately, I kind of wished there was both more and less of Dread Delusion. I could have used less wandering around and a little more interactivity and characterization of our companions, especially considering how well-written they are.

Nice.

 

Anyway, the Oneiric Isles are a captivating place and I hope RPG fans give this a try.

Game 11 of 2024 - Jack Move

Jack Move

Developer: So Romantic
Publisher: HypeTrain Digital
Platform: PC
Genre: JRPG

Difficulty: Moderate
Hours: 7.1

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 8.4/10

Jack Move is slick, bite-sized JRPG that satisfies without giving you the meat sweats. My playthrough was a little over seven hours, which includes some light grinding towards the end, and I feel that was the perfect length. It was enough to get a sense of the world , the characters, and the conflict, and the shorter length really helped keep the story grounded.

You control Noa, hacker extraordinaire and resident of Bright Town. Most of the game takes place in the Bright Town's surrounding areas, which helps anchor the story and give it a sort of cozy feel. Bright Town is your standard cyberpunk neighborhood, lit with neon and a chrome veneer that just barely disguises poverty. You'll explore sewers, slums, corporate buildings, and virtual reality, and meet a crew of colorful, beautifully animated characters.

Bright Town

Jack Move's pixel art is gorgeous and colorful, and each sprite is meticulously animated, accentuated by a solid soundtrack. The story isn't particularly groundbreaking or challenging, which might be a letdown to some fans of a genre that often explores some heavier themes. That being said, it's fun, paced well, and short; it's not trying to be something it's not. It's more about the parent-child relationship than transhumanism (touches on this one though), income inequality, or drug culture.

That's not to say Jack Move doesn't have heart; the developers clearly put a lot of care into their world. Most NPCs are named and at least have the framework of a personality rather than being info dumps, graffiti decorates the walls of buildings, and the world is sprinkled with small businesses just trying to get by. It's a story with characters in a world that feels lived in.

Plus jigawatts.

Combat is the meat and potatoes of most JRPGs, and I think Jack Move (mostly) delivers here. It doesn't bog you down with overly complex systems and gambits and whatevers. Nora has different types of attacks at her disposal: hacks (physical), wetware (purple stuff), electroware (blue stuff), and cyberware (green stuff). These come in the form of software that you install in your cyberdeck. Your cyberdeck is limited by the amount of RAM it has, but you can upgrade this during the course of the game. Most enemies are weak to a specific type of attack and they are usually color-coded to give you a hint. Your cyberdeck can be upgraded with hardware as well; this gives you more RAM, boosts to attack or defense, or some other ability.

You should sit this one out, Executive Power Dresser.

Be warned: Jack Move uses random encounters. You can tweak these and even turn them off (although you shouldn't because money and xp). Despite that, combat is mostly pretty easy. There are a few enemies here and there that give you a run for your money, but you level pretty quickly and money was never an issue so I was able to hang without really grinding (until the end).

If I had to complain about something, it would be the final boss. Without spoiling anything, the final boss has a HUGE difficulty spike and the fight took me something like 45 minutes. I feel like a boss battle shouldn't be like an 8th of your game's run time.

Anyway Jack Move is decent and you should check it out.

Game 10 of 2024 - Redtape

Redtape

Developer: Pollaris Studios
Publisher: DreadXP
Platform: PC
Genre: Adventure

Difficulty: Easy
Hours: 1.5

Finished: Yes
Final Rating: 6.5/10

You're an angel that has fallen to Hell under mysterious circumstances. The question is - can you be a good enough worker bee to ascend the corporate ladder and maybe even uncover a vast conspiracy that threatens Hell's very existence? Yes, you can, and it's not particularly difficult or time-consuming.

Biblical angels go pretty hard.

My playthrough of Redtape was about 100 minutes, most of which is walking around doing fetch quests. The idea is kinda cool and I loved the art style which is very reminiscent of early 90s 3D games like Doom or Daggerfall. Hell's denizens are a strange mixture of what I think is a mix of royalty free and classic art. It's neat to look at.

Aristotle is sick of being Hell's receptionist.

As far as gameplay goes, there's not much here. You're pretty much just fetching things for Hell's higher ups and letting the story unfold. The problem is that there isn't that much story to experience. It's not that funny or well-written; it's just kinda... there. Which is fine, this is a niche game made by a small team for a low price and I have a great deal of respect for that.

There's also a minotaur. No, you don't fight him.

My major issue with the game was the end. The end is a an absolute bullshit parkour sequence in a courtroom where you dodge attacks while Hell's lawyer finds you evidence to hand to The Gamemaster (God). Does that sound cool? Well, it isn't. It's unbelievably frustrating. If Hell was a real place it would consist of this awful parkour sequence over and over again, so if Redtape was trying to convey that experience then mission fucking accomplished.

Redtape has its moments but it's hard to recommend. There's a lot of potential here, though, so I'm glad I gave it a shot. Despite my issues with the game, I love that developers are making this weird niche stuff, and I will continue supporting them as weird niche games are sort of my thing.

Game 9 of 2024 - The Talos Principle

The Talos Principle

Developer: Croteam
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Platform: PC
Genre: Puzzle, First Person, Philosophical

Difficulty: Moderate
Hours: 10

Finished: Not yet
Final Rating: 8.1/10

The Talos Principle is one of the best puzzle game I've ever played, and yet I'm not so sure I'm going to finish it. You see, I'm a little on the dumb side and there are only so many puzzles I can take.

The Talos Principle explores philosophical topics such as what is a person, and can a machine become a person if they are indistinguishable from one? The story is the best part and is what kept me going through the puzzles (which range from insultingly easy to stupid hard), of which there are many. You learn about the world you inhabit little by little as you find ancient correspondence from a long gone team of scientists and engineers. Speaking of the world, it's super pretty!

See? Would I lie to you?

A mysterious voice known only as Elohim guides you through the worlds it has created for you, warning you to stay away from the tower as you will only find death, which sounds like a threat to me.

Must be this tower. It's the only one.

I guess my real complaint about The Talos Principle is the number of puzzles. There's a shitload of them, and you need to finish them to collect these little tetromino lookin' things that unlock more abilities and more areas to explore. Despite finding the story engrossing, I got a little tired of the puzzles that have very little to break them up. Also, some of the puzzles are just... not fun. They don't challenge logic and deduction so much as spatial awareness (not my strong suit) which I found pretty frustrating.

There's a lot here for a puzzle lover to enjoy, and I think most gamers will really enjoy the story and themes attached to the game.