Blacksad: Under the Skin

Far from purr-fect, but still a paw-sitive experience

If you’re a fan of point-and-click adventure games and have a penchant for gritty murder mysteries, there’s a lot to like in Blacksad: Under the Skin. Excellent characterisation and acting brings this quirky yet dark world to life with gusto, and the game’s narrative moves at a steady enough pace that you’re always kept interested. It’s a shame the graphics don’t look as sharp as they should on Xbox One X, but it’s a small issue in an otherwise unique game.

Blacksad is a surprisingly charming interactive tale. John Blacksad is an intriguing character, but open enough that you can shape him. While other characters don't stand out as much, the ensemble brings the story to life. The game suffers from cumbersome movement and a deduction system that's not that interesting to engage with, but, if you love a bit of noir, Blacksad: Under The Skin is well worth the 10-hour playthrough.

The cat is on the case.

Blacksad: Under the Skin has a wonderful story, setting, and set of characters, and it clearly loves its source material. I just wish it also loved my time, as I often found it wasted by pixel hunting, pointless choices, and tons of glitches.

Personally, I’m willing to put up with a lot of jank, meaning Under the Skin was mostly worth it for me. However, I fully recognize I’m likely in the minority. Blacksad: Under the Skin will probably only appeal to fans of the comic or anyone looking to jump into them. This is too bad because the developers had a chance to bring a whole new audience to Juan Diz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido’s excellent series about a street-tough cat detective and his universe of interesting animal pals.

A solid lead and decent detective work are let down by a lack of style.

Blacksad: Under the Skin is an adventure game set in 1950s New York where all the characters are anthropomorphic animals. It’s based on a gritty comic book series created by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido, but you don’t need to be familiar with the source material to enjoy the game.

I have been very excited for Blacksad: Under the Skin for a little while now. It has so many different aspects about it that appeal to me. It’s based off the Spanish gritty crime drama comic Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido. It features anthropomorphic characters in a 1950’s setting and plays like a Telltale game (RIP). In fact, I figured this was probably the closest thing we were going to get to The Wolf Among Us 2 since Telltale went under. My hopes soared as high as ...

There are some games that drain you, that leave you feeling like you’ve run a marathon by the end; Blacksad: Under the Skin is one of those games. They sit with you and settle long after you’ve completed them. They occupy your thoughts and make you doubt your choices. It’s an experience I’ve been having with a few games this year; Life is Strange 2, The Outer Worlds, Knife Sisters. But Blacksad is the first one that’s made me take a long hard look at it – and I’m not sure I like...