Jay Castello
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Writing For
Rock Paper ShotgunLatest Reviews
The only thing this does for the game is add a veneer of corporate soullessness to the whole thing. Alongside the terrifyingly flawless faces and bodies of every Zoi, their obsession with being influencers, and the meaningless achievement grinding as a replacement for opportunities to find real stories to tell, it seems that the only thing I’m simulating is an endless “9-5 in the life of a corporate girlboss” TikTok trend. And, honestly, I find that an insult to every weird teenage girl who’s ever spent the weekend in the Sims burning their family lot to the ground so that they can seduce the grim reaper.
A meticulous exploration of the cozy game genre that weaves its story of burnout and trauma into every aspect, but might have just a little bit too much to do.
A satisfying daily loop turns into a speedy momentum in this open world farming game, but its early access release raises questions that need answers.
Beyond: Two Souls feels like a Frankenstein creature; a television show with interactivity jammed in for the sake of it. It’s an interminable cutscene that demands your input at every moment, constantly disrupting the flow of the story to do so, but doesn’t reward your actions with any kind of meaning. And being held hostage to every second only means you have a whole lot of time to think about how Ellen Page deserved better.
Moreover, despite being a largely frantic experience, the game also brings plenty of levity to the table. It’s forgiving enough that falling off a ledge is more slapstick than frustrating, for example. And its cartoony characters show that there’s room in the kitchen for everyone from grannies to racoons who use wheelchairs. And a couple of bugs (mostly crashes in loading screens) couldn’t undermine the overall feel-good sense of satisfying customers with a good meal. It’s easy, in our calorie-obsessed society, to forget that food is supposed to be something wholesome and nourishing. This game doesn’t make that mistake. Every aspect is celebratory, from the light-hearted chaos of its preparation to its ability to calm the zombie bread at the gates.