Book Smugglers

Game is at least not NFT, story is very lackluster, gameplay is barely existant and the price is very steep. Throughout my whole experience it felt like a product intended to replace a history lesson and still it does not manage to provide more than you get from reading a single article. Historical parts of the game seem like a crop from an encyclopedia and atmosphere does not manage to resemble the true struggle of the time. For such a short game grammatical mistakes are inexcusable, same with the price. I lost all hope in this studio and Lithuanian game makers in general. This piece of Unity code somehow got delayed and still ended up looking like a gamejam submission.

So far - VERY nice! Interesting narrative and engaging story. At the same time it is slow paced, let's you think and make well weighted decisions. If you like story based, book-like games, this is a real indie hidden gem with a truly unique story! 10/10

法律で禁止された書物を密輸して国を救うらしい作品。 禁じられた事で神通力を得た書物を運んで 国家の犬を避けながら無事に密輸しましょう。 全実績解除済みでのレビューです。 [h1][b]- 作品の特徴 -[/b][/h1] [b]・進行方向を選んで数々のイベントに対処するゲーム性 ・禁書を運んだ数によって報酬アップ ・体力が0になるか禁書が0になるかで敗北 ・買い物をしてアイテムの持ち込み有り ・取った行動で評判が変わる ・難易度は低め[/b] ゲームオーバーになっても拠点に戻されるだけなのと リソース管理は緩めなので、カジュアルなゲーム性です。 [h1]- 個人的な短所 -[/h1] [b]・定価が高め[/b] わりとのんびりやっていても2時間ちょいで 全実績を解除できるボリュームなので 2000円は高いかな･･･と感じます。 [h1][b]- 総評 -[/b][/h1] 無料で頂いたものなので評価は甘めになっていますが カジュアルに遊ぶゲームとしては悪くないので 禁書題材の作品に興味があれば 試してみるのはありだと思います。

Very cool and interesting game, it’s really nice to finally see important and unique historical events, that don’t get talked about much, being made into a game.

Awesome! I’m really happy to see a game from Lithuania! :) Great game, I really liked it! I already played the demo, and now I’ve decided to buy it when it releases - will be something nice to spend those cold evenings with :3

This game really surprised me. It takes an unheard of piece of history that is smuggling banned books to protect language and culture and turns it into a tense journey. The art style is simple but pleasing. Everything has this hand-crafted, almost storybook feel, with moody environments that pull you into the time period. It doesn’t try to overwhelm you visually, it just creates the right atmosphere, and it does that really well. The story is the real highlight of the game. Every decision feels meaningful, and there’s a constant sense of risk behind what you’re doing. The game isn’t loud or flashy and that’s exactly why it works so well. It tells a smaller, more personal story set during the time when books and language were banned under the Tsarist rule, and you play as someone risking everything to secretly transport them. It’s based on real history, which makes everything feel that much more meaningful. All in all, anyone who loves history or story driven games should definitely give this game a try.

A good game for those, who likes a lot of reading and choice making. Not too difficult. And aww - grandma's favorite.

As Lithuanian, I love it that the setting is 19th century Lithuania. It is a fascinating setting and I don't think there are any other games that would showcase it. What I liked: • Setting • Lithuanian localization • Small mini games and cutscenes that adds variety to the game. What I didn't like: • Some art is a bit janky • UI could be better. It is not bad, but there are some easy wins that I wish developers would have implemented.

If you like adventures type of games this game is for YOU! It has some resource management and little RPG elements and quite easy to play. The graphics are nice, very nostalgic and warm. It has quite fun event mechanics which is randomised and sometimes you dont know what you will get. Besides that the main story is interested, telling me for the first time about Book Smugglers, people who saved language of all nation. Highly recomend if you liked Pentiment, Citizen Sleeper, Through the Darkest Times, Pale Beyond and similar type of games. Enjoy and have fun!

Not long ago on February 16 the game Booksmugglers – Knygnešiai was released, and it tells the story of the press ban years. After the 1863 uprising the Tsarist authorities tried to wipe out Lithuanian culture for 40 years, from 1864 to 1904. They failed thanks to the brave book smugglers, whose work was illegal and dangerous. Fluxo Games turned that history into a game about freedom of speech and resistance. The Steam review key was provided by the developers. Sure, a big Lithuanian first person survival horror on this topic would be swell, sneaking from gendarmes and their dogs and later fighting back with muskets or the Lithuanian word itself. But we do not have that kind of budget. Booksmugglers is an adventure game. Main missions are carrying books from point A to B while events and choices shape your reputation. You can sneak through forests, avoid patrols, and use cover. If you buy a gun from a bandit you can fight gendarmes or defend against wild animals. There are random events too, maybe moonshiners help you or maybe they punch you, and you can lose books to weather or robbers. Side missions are visual novel style and let you learn about real figures like Jurgis Bielinis, Motiejus Valančius, and Jonas Basanavičius, while earning reputation and karma. The start is harder with no money, but mid game gets easier when you have rubles for gear and food. After missions you return to an inn to restock and read coded messages that unlock side content. Failure comes from losing all books or going negative karma. Bad endings take effort. Karma shifts outcomes by about 5 percent either way. The game is short, about one hour for main story or around 1.5 with side missions. I finished in about 93 minutes and spent another 50 minutes getting the bad ending. Main downsides are no controller support and limited variety in situations and random events. The format would work well on mobile phone. Some Lithuanian dialogue feels wooden. A bigger missing piece is a boss type encounter. You fight regular gendarmes and officers but there is no memorable final clash with a high ranking Tsarist figure, which could have given a stronger ending. Achievements are easy and most unlock in the first hour. Overall the game is simple, not demanding, and unique in theme since Lithuanian history is rarely explored in games.