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A PLAGUE TALE: INNOCENCE (XONE)
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Publisher: Focus Home Interactive.
Developer: Asobo Studio. Released: May 2019. Genre: Action/Adventure; Stealth. Other versions: PS4; PC. Posted 27th October 2020. By Shane Battams © 2020 |
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It seems a rarity now, but every once in a while, a title comes along with quiet fanfare and seemingly little hype, only to surprise both critics and gamers. A Plague Tale: Innocence is one of those games, coming from a developer known predominantly for assisting on Ubisoft games and porting licensed fare. But don’t let that repel you. This single-player, story-driven adventure is rather captivating, mixing a compelling narrative with decent gameplay mechanics, beautiful presentation and a terrifying sense of threat. The only crime it commits is leaving you wanting a little more.
Amicia de Rune, a young descendent of nobility, partakes in a hunt with her father when a mysterious force kills their dog. As the family prepare an evacuation, a poorly timed visit from the Inquisition, part of an English invasion of France in 1348, results in the death of both of Amicia’s parents, leaving her to care for her estranged younger brother Hugo, who is blighted with illness. The story follows their perilous journey across the French countryside, as they seek aid, meeting new acquaintances along the way and struggling through traumatic times. The narrative is fantastic, with Amicia making for a likeable lead, compelling characters who you grow to like and some interesting twists revolving around the plague. Admittedly, the villains are pretty lacklustre, but the sheer palpable sense of danger around the duo serves as motivation enough.
Amicia de Rune, a young descendent of nobility, partakes in a hunt with her father when a mysterious force kills their dog. As the family prepare an evacuation, a poorly timed visit from the Inquisition, part of an English invasion of France in 1348, results in the death of both of Amicia’s parents, leaving her to care for her estranged younger brother Hugo, who is blighted with illness. The story follows their perilous journey across the French countryside, as they seek aid, meeting new acquaintances along the way and struggling through traumatic times. The narrative is fantastic, with Amicia making for a likeable lead, compelling characters who you grow to like and some interesting twists revolving around the plague. Admittedly, the villains are pretty lacklustre, but the sheer palpable sense of danger around the duo serves as motivation enough.
Stay alight, stay alive. Fire is your friend, and your only defence against the rats.
Innocence is a third-person action game, which at a cursory glance will seem derivative of other games. But there’s a slew of interesting ideas at play here. Amicia is armed with a sling, which allows her to throw rocks to progress through puzzles, or deliver blunt force trauma to guards. However, you also gain chemical concoctions as you progress, allowing you to light up braziers, burn guards helmets off to enable a headshot and sleeping powder which leaves foes unconscious. As you can tell, stealth is a primary element of Innocence, and while it’s not perfect – often suffering from inconsistent A.I. and uneasy line of sights – the experimental nature of the stealth keeps things interesting, with sections often offering up alternate approaches.
FOCAL POINT: RAT ATTACK
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Perhaps one of the strongest, and scariest, features of A Plague Tale is the vermin. The rats are a major problem. Kudos is deserved simply for how many are featured on screen at any one time. They’ll send a shiver down your spine, especially as they can instantly devour you and your companions. Puzzle solving is often ingenious when dealing with these creatures, forcing you to think outside the box to get around swarms of rats and even use them to take out guards of the Inquisition. From their glowing red eyes to their frightening numerousness, the rats leave you on edge constantly. The fantastic lighting often leaves you suffocating under a blanket of darkness, with light being the only repellent against rats, and there’s a genuine panic as short-lived branches start to burn out, with players being caught out and killed instantly. They make for a genuinely intense, often frightening experience.
There’s a bevvy of gameplay styles, typically swinging between stealth and puzzle-solving. This keeps Innocence fresh as you progress, though not every idea sticks. Infrequent boss fights can feel cheap, relying on narrow timing and often lacking checkpoints. Some mechanics integrate naturally into the experience, while others feel awkward and cumbersome. Crafting also plays a big role, as you not only can craft ammo but also upgrades for your weapon and inventory. While they make sense in the context of a survival game, resources are so plentiful that it doesn’t factor in much at all. But despite less consistent gameplay elements, the stronger parts of Innocence keep things afloat.
The only shame with A Plague Tale is that it lacks replay value. The main portion of the game is lengthy, in fairness, lasting over 12 hours. The problem is a lack of extras. There are no difficulty options whatsoever, which is odd. There are a lot of collectables throughout the game, including flowers which Hugo places in Amecia’s hair and Curiosities, though you don’t earn much for seeking them out. The only other thing left to do is upgrade your gear, but without a New Game + option and replaying chapters resetting your already-discovered gear each time, it can be quite finicky to achieve. It’s just a shame there isn’t more.
The only shame with A Plague Tale is that it lacks replay value. The main portion of the game is lengthy, in fairness, lasting over 12 hours. The problem is a lack of extras. There are no difficulty options whatsoever, which is odd. There are a lot of collectables throughout the game, including flowers which Hugo places in Amecia’s hair and Curiosities, though you don’t earn much for seeking them out. The only other thing left to do is upgrade your gear, but without a New Game + option and replaying chapters resetting your already-discovered gear each time, it can be quite finicky to achieve. It’s just a shame there isn’t more.
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A Plague Tale does benefit from an excellent presentation. Visually crisp with detail and fantastic lighting, sequences which cloak the environment in darkness with a small light source stand out as ominous, especially when circling with rats. Speaking of which, the sheer density of vermin without affecting performance is quite impressive too. Characters look detailed, though sometimes animate poorly during gameplay, though cut-scenes do not suffer from this issue. The sound is even better, with fantastic voice acting that brings a great script to life and features a lot of depth. The soundtrack is superb, an orchestral tour de force which punctuates danger, sadness and grief perfectly. The effects sound spot-on, whether it’s the rats’ squeals, the thumping impact of rock headshots or gruesome deaths.
A Plague Tale: Innocence is not a flawless game, with some noticeable issues. Whether it’s some uneven mechanics or a lack of replay value, these missteps do stand out. But for Asobo Studio's misses, their hits land with greater force. The narrative is outstanding, the presentation is top-notch and the masterful threat of the rats help it stand out ahead many titles of this generation. If you’re looking for a game that’s different, involving and emotionally resonant, A Plague Tale is well worth a go.
A Plague Tale: Innocence is not a flawless game, with some noticeable issues. Whether it’s some uneven mechanics or a lack of replay value, these missteps do stand out. But for Asobo Studio's misses, their hits land with greater force. The narrative is outstanding, the presentation is top-notch and the masterful threat of the rats help it stand out ahead many titles of this generation. If you’re looking for a game that’s different, involving and emotionally resonant, A Plague Tale is well worth a go.
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VERDICT
“An outstanding narrative, top-notch presentation and the masterful threat of the rats help elevate A Plague Tale: Innocence above many titles of this generation” OVERALL: 8/10 |