Catalyst

In this immersive visual (or better say audio) novel style game you play a psychiatrist exploring the mind of one devious patient to find out, that you have explored your own mind as well. Thought provoking experience! #casual For more quick reviews please [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/6972871]follow my curator[/url].

Good game. Interesting narrative, good story, good voice acting, good pace. I wish it got a bit more attention. 7.5/10

하나도 잘 풀리는 일이 없는 심리치료사가 한 환자의 녹음된 치료 세션을 분석하면서 점점 미쳐가는 이야기 주인공 Novak 박사는 저명한 심리치료사의 제자로 일하면서 그가 사망한 뒤 스승이 치료에 쓰던 장소를 이어받아 자신의 명성을 키워보려고 하지만, 아무도 그가 실력을 갖추고 있지 않다고 생각하여 비난과 조롱의 메일만 계속 받게 된다. 그러던 도중, 한 환자의 치로 세션 녹음파일들이 그의 병원으로 잘못 배송되고, 원래는 돌려주려고 하나 Novak 박사에게 온 메일 중 "자네같은 무능한 학자는 진단할 수 없을 걸세" 라는 문장을 보고 빡쳐서 녹음물들을 돌려주지 않고 본인이 직접 환자를 분석 및 치료하기 위해 녹음 파일들을 일일히 들으면서 자신의 생각을 선택지를 통해 결정하고 기록하는 게 이 게임의 진행 방식 및 초기 스토리이다. 게임의 전체적 스토리가 깔끔하다고 말하기에는 2% 부족하지만, 분위기 하나는 정말 마음에 들었던 게임이다. 환자의 녹음된 치료 세션들은 모두 더빙이 되어 있어서 환자의 침착한 목소리를 듣자면 정적인 분위기가 느껴지고, 밤이 되어 주인공 Novak 박사가 악몽을 꾸면서 공포스러운 음악이 들리는데 이때는 또 기괴한 분위기를 잘 살렸다. 특히 후반부로 갈수록 주인공이 점점 미쳐가면서 일기장에도 편집증에 삼켜지는 과정이 묘사되는 게 마음에 들었다. 이렇게 긴장감과 감각적인 느낌을 잘 살린 게임이지만, 영어 + 엄청난 양의 텍스트가 기다리고 있기 때문에 이런 장르에 익숙하지 않고 영어에 취약하면 해보는 걸 권장하지 않는다. 그래도 만약 독특한 시뮬레이션 / 텍스트 기반 게임을 해보고 싶으면, 한 번쯤은 이 게임도 도전해 보는 걸 추천한다. 여담) 의외로 멀티 엔딩인데, 모든 엔딩을 볼 만큼 시간이 남아돌지는 않아서, 그리고 게임이 워낙 마이너한지라 공략 같은 것도 없어서 그냥 1개의 엔딩만 본 뒤 리뷰를 작성하였다.

Not a game I thought Id play. But I found myself more and more wanting to hear what the voice on the tapes was going to say.

I played it all in one sitting fresh after installing it, kind of forgetting that I had bought this and just looking for something to play one Sunday evening with everything else taken care of, not knowing what to expect after simply rolling a die. At the very blind circumstances that I had that would be very hard to replicate, my experience was... interesting. I thought at first it would be drama or mystery, then, it became clear as the game progressed and I wanted to be right to badly that I kept playing. Well; I was right, but it was also a nice implementation of a good story. Stellar voice acting! Really sells the whole thing. One thing that I gotta say is that, despite the game being intriguing and drawing; it's not scary. Not in the slightest. Also, the protagonist could have been better. It was hard to relate to such a... guy; and without relating the diary becomes less meaningful. At horror, you sometimes root for the monster and it's fun to do so, but the protagonist should also be 'root-able' if it makes any sense. Maybe it would have worked to make him less of an irredeemable loser?

The human mind is a mystery and this game helps you feel like you can solve it! Lots of fun and an interactive narrative that can't be missed! https://youtu.be/2pa7HJBld5Q

A fantastic little interactive story with a bad and confusing ending (I think...?). I mean it's not even clear to me whether the game even ended because the days seem to just continue on indefinitely with nothing happening. No credits, no return to the main menu, absolutely nothing that would normally indicate the end of the game other than the voice on the tape saying, "This is the end," which is not sufficient to signal the end of the game because it's a completely normal phrase that fits the context of the tapes. I just let the game continue through several more days, unsure as to whether continuing to play for several more days would make me an idiot or whether quitting because nothing was happening would make me impatient. If that's the intention, well, "clever meta" doesn't necessarily mean good game design. But if we disregard the terrible non-ending, the game was great. Well written, with fantastic visual and audio design. The waits in between tape sessions, notes, etc. help with the pacing and add to the overall experience. It gets better as it goes on, particularly by the third tape. Other than the ending, it was a great game and I really enjoyed it. And it seems like there are three endings, so maybe you'll get an ending that actually acts like an ending (???). No idea. Anyway, it's still a worthwhile experience.