PataNoir

Text-based adventures probably won't be making a come-back soon but a well-made one will always delight. Unfortunately, this game isn't one of those unless you love similes. Most of the game is spent trying to figure out how to use which similes in the descriptions of the locations and action. "A cigarette burns in an ashtray like an ember in the campfire. Take the ember, give it to the mysterious man to melt his demeanor." I know noir loves similes and metaphors but while it's a novel concept to make them a part of the gameplay, it just isn't well-executed enough to have a game full of them. Now there is a walkthrough that takes you through the game that's accessible from the main menu but I feel that is the developers admitting that the gameplay is confusing at best. In short, this game feels like something schoolkids in the 90's would play in the computer lab to help them understand similes but would turn them off to both PC games and word play.

Patanoir is a text-based adventure where you make use of the similes in your surroundings to find the missing daughter of a baron. The tutorial was straightforward in explaining the system of the game as it covered text interactions, the use of similes, and navigation. The similes are easy to find as the sentences contain the word "like" for the most part. Using them is a different story. Progressing through the game can be described as requiring to think out of box or to make use of obscure item interactions. This aspect of the game is what players would most likely find frustrating. There are two options implemented that can help guide you through the game. One is your trusty servant which you meet at the start of the game (a hint system) and the second is a walkthrough which can be accessed in the main menu. The game is fairly linear though you can make use of different solutions in some instances. The art fits the noir feel of the game and illustrates the locations the protagonists visits. I wish that the images would automatically change when I moved between locations, but the page only shows the drawings of newly visited locations. The image can be manually changed with the "picture" text command though. There is no audio as far as I can tell other than the music video on the page beyond the drawings. Text options such as font and size can be adjusted under settings in the main menu. There is an option to switch between full screen and windowed mode as well. If you are playing in windowed, starting a new game may force it back to full screen (you can switch back in the menu). Loading a save or restoring a save (after a game over) takes a while since all record of your gameplay such as dialogue and text commands are loaded (you can view all previous events and actions by clicking on the bottom corner of the page to flip through pages). The game is bit short so I wouldn't exactly recommend it at full price, but feel free to pick it up on sale if you're interested in an interactive story kind of game. Achievements were easy since most followed the progression of the story while others indicated what needed to be done. It was my first venture into this type of game and overall, I enjoyed what I played.

I played PataNoir back in 2016 and reviewed it for Just Adventure. Recently, I decided to revisit it and pick up some missing achievements. Once again, I am so impressed by this game. It is not going to appeal to everyone. For text adventurers who love language, it is quite brilliant. The game makes extensive use of the simile ("It's raining like a cow pissing on a flat rock") and the metaphor ("you are the sunshine of my life"). PataNoir takes its name from the pataphor which extends the metaphor concept to create a new reality. In PataNoir, the previously referenced cow, flat rock, and sunshine become objects that can be interacted with. The game has all the hallmarks of the classic noir style: A detective past his prime, a smoky office filled with case files, a client who knocks on the door, and (of course) a beautiful woman. To solve the case, you must travel through multiple locations and interact with interesting characters, using only typed text commands. Illustrations are provided for each scene and the original sound track is very nice. There is a manual save system with multiple slots that comes in handy if you are an achievement hunter. The game starts with a tutorial that is quite helpful. But, as with most text adventures, PataNoir will require that you do battle with the parser to learn its limitations. The complexity is increased as you manage literal and figurative objects. For example: A literal knife found in a drawer can be used to hurt someone. A figurative knife ("the coin had edges sharp as a knife") can be used to clear smoke that is "so thick you can cut it with a knife." Yep... pretty cerebral stuff! PataNoir is definitely a niche game. If you don't mind typing and visualizing AND if you love to play with words, then you should not miss this experience. Although the story is somewhat linear, it has multiple endings and leaves quite a bit of room for playing with language and watching for what happens next.

I'm not a big fan of interactive fiction, but this one really catched my eyes. In this game you play with the words, literally. If you see a description, you will most likely find some items useful in it that will help you progressing in the story, so you'll have to experiment using your vocabulary. Patanoir is a text-based adventure, more exactly, a detective interactive book where you make use of the surroundings you're in to find the missing daughter of a baron. The gameplay is unique as I've never saw this kind of game before and trust me, I've played a lot of games. Progressing through the game can be described as requiring to think out of box. This aspect of the game is what players would most likely find a bit frustrating, because you'll have to find some magic words to get you out of the problem you're in. Good thing that there are two options implemented which will help guide you through the game. One of them is your trusty servant which you'll meet at the start of the game, becoming like a hint system for you, and the second is a walkthrough which can be accessed easily in the main menu. [h1]Pros[/h1] - The game includes Steam Achievements. - Achievements are easy to complete since most follow the progression of the story while others indicate what is needed to be done, making the work a lot easier. - Text options such as font, color and size can be adjusted under settings tab of the main menu. You'll also find color option for the background. And there is an option to switch between fullscreen and windowed mode as well (you'll find this one in the main menu page itself). - You can view all previous events and actions of yours by clicking on the bottom corner of the page to flip through the pages that continue to create while playing. In short, you're creating the story. - You can save at any time in the game without problems. - The art fits the noir feeling of the game and illustrates the locations the protagonists finds in. - The illustrations really help the immerse of the game. You feel like you're really in the story. - The tutorial was straightforward in explaining the system of the game as it covered text interactions, the use of metaphors and the navigation. - The game posses different endings, you'll find yourself playing the game a few times before you'll completely know all of them. - A lot of places to explore in this fictive world. [h1]Cons[/h1] - The really bad thing about this game is that it doesn't really have any sound assets in it other than the music video on the page beyond the drawings. Even if it has an music video (that I really love listening to!), it's a shame that you can't play it while reading, not having at least one sound while playing makes you get bored quickly if you're not used to reading a lot. - If you are playing in windowed mode, starting a new game it will most likely force it back to fullscreen but you can switch back to windowed in the main menu. - Loading a save takes a while since all record of your gameplay such as dialogue and text commands are analysed. - Images won't automatically change when you move between locations, the page only shows the drawings of newly visited locations. The image can only be manually changed with the "picture" text command. - A couple of typos here and there. [h1]Conclusion[/h1] Overall, is a really good game that needs a bit more attention that it really has. But if you don't like reading, you'll probably won't like this game either, so I suggest buying it only if you're a classic adventure fan. In PataNoir you'll find a cool noir detective story that will act on you exactly like a book, after you start reading, it will be hard to put down till you'll find out the ending. The game is bit short so I wouldn't exactly recommend it at full price, but feel free to pick it up on sale if you're interested in an interactive detective story. [h1]This review is a part of Steamified's Community Reviews program and the credit goes to both Steamified and Simon Christiansen for providing the key for review purposes.[/h1] For similar Steamified Reviews and Giveaways, please visit http://www.steamified.com/. You're also welcome to join in the fun in our [url=http://steamcommunity.com/groups/Steamified]Steamified[/url] group.

This is a classic text adventure but with the twist that most everything in the description of an object, you can then also use as an object. An example could be "Her eyes were like glittering lakes in moonlight". You can then examine the lakes and dive into them. Or "he looked tough as nails", then grab those nails because they could probebly help solve another puzzle. This also makes the game quite hard, but for classic adventure fans, it's definitely worth checking out this noir detective story. If you get stuck, there is both built in help and a full walkthrough. Be aware that it can be a bit tricky with its syntax. "Wesson kill man" won't work, while "Wesson, kill man" will. Disclaimer: I got this for free as I helped iron out some bugs. It wouldn't really have changed my recommendation though. It was fun, but at times also a bit frustrating to play.

It's an interesting game. I enjoyed what I played of it.

It's funny, you can pick locks in people's eyes with the wiriness of their hair. You do have to save before the scene where you can die, and remember to grab the (figurative) record before it's too late though.

Pretty fun game where you explore similes and analogies! I probably would like it more if the things had hyperlinks but that would probably ruin the entire "explore concepts" things. Pretty neat adventure, and this works better than the phone/tablet version.

I'm a big fan of interactive fiction and there's really nothing else out there like PataNoir. Read closely and you're in for a very rewarding experience.

This is an extremely playable modern day text adventure with an extremely slick UI. The book metaphor works great for the presentation and I've had a lot of fun with the game itself. If you are looking for the successor to games like Zork or The Pawn on Steam, this is one of the best examples there is. Recommended.