This is a review of Shadows on the Vatican Acts I and II, as I find them inseparable. This series has quickly become my game of the year, even playing it after so long, and right on time before the release of Act III.
What does such a late release mean? This is not an indication of laziness. Quite the contrary: that can mean only one thing. This is a work of love, of passion, of huge investment in time and resources because this story WANTS to be told, and HAS to be experienced. This is a story beloved to the producers and storytellers, so much so that they have battled many an obstacle in these years to make it happen. This is a game that wants ITS VOICE to be heard.
As you load the game and the title screen appears, you are treated to one of most sublime game soundtracks I have ever heard. I mean Lara Croft’s theme in the original Tomb Raider level of epic. The music in Shadows is simply jaw dropping. I have the full OST in my playlist and I often listen to it, alongside Hans Zimmer, Dan Gibson, Carmina, Bach. You can find the full OST on Youtube as well (and I recommend listening to the track "To Silvia").
Let’s talk about the story and dialogues.
Inspired by the essay "In nome di Dio", Shadows on the Vatican is a thrill-filled story full of intrigue, mystery and some of the most deep and memorable characters I have ever met in a video game. James Murphy and Silvia are well rounded and beautifully designed — seriously, the comics-style, hand drawn characters are heart-stopping beautiful — and they have a deep personality. The plot will capture you and drag you through the two acts, leaving you wanting for more. There are tons of historical facts, trivia about Rome, the Vatican… there is so much to learn!
One of the best parts of this game are the dialogues, the thoughts of the characters, their motivations, their shady past and uncertain future. Every character evolves through the story and I can’t wait to see where the next two acts will take us.
Puzzles and gameplay are classic, as one can expect from a point and click adventure game. There are inventory based puzzles, riddles, as well as some more difficult puzzles based on reading, numbers and deep thought. Some of them may be a tad too difficult, so don’t feel too bad if you have to check a walkthrough once or twice. It’s worth it! However, I also found some of the most fun, original and quirky puzzles as well, winking and giving a nod to typical cliches of point and click games and turning them around for the fun of it.
In this respect, there are TONS of easter eggs, funny achievements, references to the world of gaming, and to other games developed by other software houses.
In my opinion, the only reason why we don’t see a flood of overwhelmingly positive reviews is the fact that some players are reluctant to give it a chance before the four episodes come out.
That is exactly the opposite of what we should do, as it is with our support NOW that can make a new act possible, that energies and budget can be allocated to the telling of this story.
Last but not least, let’s talk about the elephant in the room: the graphics. Not the comics-style drawings of the characters, but the 3D backgrounds and character models. Yes, the graphics is a bit rigid, and can feel outdated, even though it NEVER for a second bothered me or distracted me, and I actually find the backgrounds quite well detailed and well designed.
But we must keep this in mind: They were other times, there was no Kickstarter to bump up the budget of an indie company, there was no Steam to advertise, there was no indie trend, and the engines available were quite different.
I don’t want to hear it. Of course the graphics is a bit outdated. However, it shouldn’t affect or distract us too much, considering that we live in the era of masterpieces like Undertale and The Return of the Obra Dinn, purposefully reduced to bare bone graphics, for one reason or another. Whatever the case, we should be open-minded and accepting enough to give it a fair chance.
If you do it, you will be rewarded with amazing character designs, a jaw dropping soundtrack, memorable character, and a beautifully told story.
My Curator page:
https://store.steampowered.com/curator/43938467/
