As someone that played the series all the way back when it started as a flash game on newgrounds, I was thrilled to see it make a return once more. (especially when I noticed it had been on my wishlist for several years, there were times I feared it had been forgotten.)
And what a triumphant return it is, the voice work is immaculate, the music manages to recapture the enchanting feel from the previous title while adding in new elements that perfectly get you into the mood and understanding of this new cast of characters. Character dialogue is serious and forboding, but also just silly and incredulous enough to keep the tension and pressure from mounting to great to early.
Speaking of the cast, without being spoilery, everyone is SO compelling, even with the brief snippets we get of some, SYM is a little angel bless her soul, and Cornelius is a gentleman and a scholar. The writers and the artists and the modellers, EVERYONE did such a good job of telling such a rich story about these people on this ship, the history of the place and how they all came to be where they are.
The story is kept rather tight, with a mostly sandbox approach where you freely look into what you wish in any order. The plot progresses pretty logically and there are only 1 or 2 nagging plot points that bug me, with many others side tangents being gratefully welcomed as world building. Espeically grateful are the several moments where the player is allowed to input their interpetation of the meaning or intent of an event or symbol.
Indeed, while I'm sure many people would praise a game for keeping such tight focus, as a longtime fan I am left wishing there had been a little more, especially in regard to the dual protaganists of Grimoire and Sally, while they comment on things throughout the game, and even make references to past installments and characters, I can't help but feel frustrated with how little they have to say to each other, ABOUT each other. We are given such comprehensive looks into the childhoods, past lives, and motivations of the suspects yet the player is given disquieting little information about the characters they play as, what are their motivations? How did they get here? What is their living arangements like? Is is becoming a long running issue as Tangle tower had a simlar issue of just dropping the protaganists into the mystery with little fanfare or explanation of who these protaganists are.
This game is wonderful and cannot be recommended and praised enough, but as a series I find it disconcerting how little a glimpse we get into the titular Grimoire outside of offhanded remarks and easter egg callbacks.
