OFF

TL;DR - 8/10 There is something obviously special, but I feel like I am missing something. I want there to be no mistake; I enjoyed this game quite a bit. It was definitely an above-average experience. I would absolutely recommend it to anybody looking for a short RPG video game with a little something to it. The puzzles were fun and right about perfect for what I wanted from them (there was one I did end up brute forcing, and I did break down and look up walkthroughs to get me through the end sequence and to get pointers on the 'true ending'). The combat balance was also quite good; I never felt like I was obviously overpowered and steamrolling everything with one-command screen wipes. But most importantly, this game is an obvious RPG Maker game that does the best thing an RPG Maker game can do: jam pack itself to bursting with STYLE. From every direction and every angle. The eclectic collage of different artistic design aesthetics, the naming and word-choice schemes for characters and their abilities, the soundscapes (for which I have seen a lot of crosstalk about the original vs. this version, where I have not played the original), the whole nine yards. Every moment I spent with this game, I spent thoroughly engrossed with its style; the surreal creativity and allusionary inclusions kept the gears in my head turning, thinking and imagining my own ideas of what was and what could be both internal to the game's world and beyond. I can easily and immediately see how it was an inspiration point for many people out in the indie game dev space and elsewhere. But I think that leads to my biggest letdown. I feel like I am missing something. I had read much buzz about this title, and who it influenced and inspired and that set a certain level of expectation; expectation which was not met. Yes, that is fully a me problem. I surely could not have been let down if I did not have expectations going in. But at the same time, I would not have gone in to begin with had I not run across the things that gave me those expectation. And regardless of what I should or should not have expected, I was let down by the big 'story' aspect that reviews and publicity had pushed only amounted to a very basic and shallow trope-standard affair. Don't get me wrong, the presentation and the style still chef's kiss. But the underlying meat of the story itself, quite lacking to me. And I feel like the rift that exists between my assessment and the praise that has been heaped on it means there is something I am missing. But every angle I look at, I don't find anything to latch onto and instead think that what I am missing is that I didn't first play OFF when I was thirteen. It is all style, and no (or very little) substance. And again, because I feel this bears repeating, that's FINE. There is SO MUCH style here, that it doesn't *need* substance for me to be eating well. What I am trying to get at is I think my recommendation is best served with a side of "don't go in expecting anything super deep or profound from the story; you're here for a VERY stylistic experience". Temper that expectation and I think you'll be in for quite a good time. :)