Gamedec

This article is about the video game. For the short story collection that inspired it, see Marcin Przybyłek § GAMEDEC Saga.
Gamedec
Developer(s)Anshar Studios
Publisher(s)Anshar Publishing
EngineUnreal Engine[1]
Platform(s)Windows, Nintendo Switch
ReleaseWindows
September 16, 2021
Nintendo Switch
July 1, 2022
Genre(s)Adventure, role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

Gamedec is a point-and-click adventure role-playing video game published by Anshar Publishing. It released for Windows on September 16, 2021, and was released for the Nintendo Switch on July 1, 2022.[2] The game takes place in Warsaw and features a cyberpunk universe and themes of film noir, tech noir, and transhumanism. Players control a "game detective" or "gamedec" and participate in solving mysteries related to virtual-reality games, collecting clues and making deductions in order to drive the story forward.

Gameplay

Gamedec features a protagonist with customizable appearance and background.[3] The player may choose from a variety of starting personalities which influence their beginning number of points in each of the game's four personality categories. These points, earnable through dialogue choices,[4] may be spent on skill tree nodes which will enable new dialogue options when interacting with the game's characters and various scripted events.[5] Dialogue choices are permanent, as are "deductions", which are a core element of the game's progression system – players are presented with irreversible choices based on optional evidence, where the number of choices is fixed for each deduction, but the choices' availability is determined by progression.[6] In this system it is possible for a player to select an answer without having examined the entire field of clues or unlocking every answer available, yet the story will continue regardless.[7]

Plot

The game is based on a collection of short stories by Polish science-fiction author Marcin Przybyłek, which portray the adventures of a "gamedec"—short for "game detective"—a private detective tasked with solving mysteries related to a variety of full-sensory-immersive virtual reality games.[6]

Reception

Gamedec received "mixed or average" reviews according to review aggregator Metacritic.[8][9] PC Gamer described it as "A cybersleuth RPG that wastes its great premise.", citing bugs and "inconsistencies" as part of the criticism,[5] and Rock Paper Shotgun noted that the translation and in-universe terminology can make the dialogue difficult to process at times.[15] Tom's Guide called it "… a fun and engaging decision-driven RPG", hailing its positive aspects as being "decisions that matter", "beautiful art design" and "plenty of replayability".[14]

References

  1. ^ Thang, Jimmy (2019-12-31). "Awesome games coming in 2020 and beyond". Unreal Engine. Archived from the original on 2023-06-27. Retrieved 2023-06-26.
  2. ^ Romano, Sal (June 7, 2022). "Gamedec for Switch launches July 1". Gematsu. Archived from the original on June 23, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  3. ^ Morton, Lauren (July 2, 2021). "Cyberpunk detective RPG Gamedec shows off branch-y investigations". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  4. ^ Daro, Catherine (November 17, 2020). "Gamedec Dev Diary Shows off Character Creation". GameSpace.com. Archived from the original on September 20, 2021. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  5. ^ a b c Brown, Fraser (September 16, 2021). "Gamedec review". PC Gamer. Future plc. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Macgregor, Jody (September 10, 2020). "Gamedec aims to be cyberpunk Disco Elysium". PC Gamer. Future plc. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Erskine, Donovan (September 16, 2021). "Gamedec review: Cyberpunk P.I." Shacknews. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Gamedec for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Gamedec for Switch Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
  10. ^ Vogel, Mitch (June 30, 2022). "Gamedec Review (Switch eShop)". Nintendo Life. Archived from the original on July 4, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  11. ^ Tekaia, Pascal (November 4, 2021). "Gamedec Review". RPGamer. Archived from the original on November 13, 2021. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  12. ^ Bowling, Audra (September 25, 2021). "Gamedec". RPGFan. Archived from the original on May 10, 2022. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  13. ^ Musgrave, Shaun (July 5, 2022). "SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring 'Gamedec' and 'Freshly Frosted', Plus Today's New Releases and Sales". TouchArcade. Archived from the original on July 14, 2022. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
  14. ^ a b Palmer, Jordan (September 16, 2021). "Gamedec review". Tom's Guide. Archived from the original on May 11, 2022. Retrieved September 20, 2021.
  15. ^ Chan, Khee Hoon (September 16, 2021). "Gamedec review: a great cyberpunk concept undone by a bloated script". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on October 29, 2021. Retrieved July 14, 2022.