Update Two Hundred and Fifty-Three: 23 November 2018
The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories
8.3 hours playtime, 20 of 20 achievements
7/10
☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆☆
I hold a deep fondness for SWERY, so I was thrilled when all of the sudden he announced he was releasing another game—doubly so when that game starred a female protagonist, triply so when it was about her chasing after and trying to find her female friend. Then I learned that the main mechanic of the game was going to be the protagonist getting dismembered, electrocuted, decapitated, and set on fire, screaming in agony all the while, to solve puzzles.
To say I had BIG reservations would be an understatement, but I took a chance and found that my mans SWERY was able to not just A. make that mechanic palatable, but B. have something to say about that mechanic and C. say it well. This story is queer as hell, from the very opening screen—reading ‘this game is made with the belief that nobody is wrong for being what they are’— to having Emily and J.J. share a sweet, heartfelt kiss within the first couple of minutes of the game, to the entire storyline revolving around identity and what you choose for yourself. It’s handled INCREDIBLY well, especially since Deadly Premonition, though beloved, was absolutely abysmal in portraying queer characters as grotesque and therefore malevolent. SWERY has clearly done a lot of work since then and that aspect of the game is heartwarming and important.
No, the reservations I have about this game is all gameplay. Oh my stars is it clunky. After you beat the game once, you unlock cheat codes to help your second runthrough go faster, one of which is a movement speed increase. That’s what should have been the movement speed, period. The controls lagged sometimes, and J.J. is a little unwieldy to maneuver around. It was frustrating to play when what to do next is poorly telegraphed, especially under tight timed deadlines—that’s what made the climax, interesting as it was, lose all tension.
Here’s what Madison had to say:
“Okay I’m not gonna lie, I spoiled myself about The Missing’s big reveal before Tsuper and I started to play. I don’t mind spoilers! In fact, I like them. I really dislike the anxiety of waiting to figure out what happens most of the time, and for me the journey is more important than the destination. (Tsuper note: We disagree a lot on this! I’ve had to beat her away from Yakuza spoilers with a stick.)
So I’m really glad I spoiled myself when it comes to The Missing! It allowed me to really see the clues SWERY laid out for players, pick up the pieces and hints and themes. (Tsuper note: And smile enigmatically at me when I asked about it.)
The Missing is a dark, affecting game about tearing yourself apart to reach your goals. About the anxieties of mutilation and being yourself. About your body not being your own. And about the expectations others have for you and what you must give up to achieve them.
It’s got trigger warnings out the wazzoo, as well as direct depictions of suicide. So like. Watch out for that. But I really enjoyed it!
The only problem is that the gameplay got in the way of the story, I think. A lot of parts were really annoying and aggravating. The game moved too slow, J.J. was kind of clunky to control, and the animations took up too much time.
Still. I liked the game, and I liked the story, and I liked the ending. All around positive! Definitely pick it up.”
She’s a doll!
Next up: It’s… Yakuza 0 again! I’m replaying it with Madison because I cannot be stopped. At a party last night I must have said, “can I say one more thing about Yakuza?” at least four times. I can’t wait for the steam releases, so I downloaded Kiwami on PS4 for free. Madison’s already promised to buy me Kiwami 2 for Christmas, and I’m going to gank my man of honors’ PS3 to play 3, 4. 5, and Dead Souls. Then 6 back on PS4. I’ll be playing them all with Madison… so our joint gaming journey is looking to be straight up Yakuza for, oh, probably the next year.
Yay!
See you soon!
If I may suggest, find something to play that is not Yakuza between them. As fun as it may sound, I found out the hard way that playing this many games from the same franchise in a row isn’t a good idea. (and I know how good Yakuza is.) I tried to do that with Ys (It’s a jrpg series with 8 games, iirc) and I got so bored after the 3rd game that I still can’t even look at them anymore.
Video game burnout isn’t fun. T_T
…. Mmm. you know, you’re really right. I wasn’t planning on 100% clearing them (just doing the main plotlines and most of the substories) but… yeha. Gosh. Palette cleansers.
On the converse side, I’ll be playing them with Madison, so we’ll only be playing a couple of hours a week. I’ll talk to her about it and break them up.
Thank you for looking out for us, M c:
Gotta agree with the advice. I played Dark Souls 1-3 earlier this year and I don’t wanna look at any Souls games for a while lol.
Too much of the same thing makes it feel bland, the longer the time you spend with it.
Thank you for the great review! I saw Zero Punctuation’s video about this game and was intrigued, glad to hear it’s good on the queer front. Definitely pumping it up on my wishlist. I have heard of SWERY’s reputation and his The Good Life kickstarter sounded good, I have yet to play any of his games even though I have Deadly Premonition. Are any of his other games worth playing?
SWERY’s only made a couple - Deadly Premonition, D4: Dark Dreams Don’t Die, and this (with the Good Life coming out in the future).
I myself didn’t care and liked it a lot anyway, but D4 is hard to recommend because it’s literally half finished, and most likely will never be complete. It was supposed to release in installments, but SWERY left the developer and doesn’t have the rights to that project. I don’t know, exactly, how long the game was supposed to be overall, but it definitely feels like you’re only getting the first third of something. It’s a fascinating, well-made third (I myself need to replay it now I have a computer that can handle it well) but it’s still just the third. It’s up to you whether you want to give it a chance knowing that.
Thank you for your nice compliment c: I’m glad, too - it’s really good and refreshing to see people, like, actually learning and growing in their viewpoints.
I love me some SWERY (okay I only played Deadly Premonition). It is a shame to hear that the actual gameplay and general clunkiness got in the way itself. Deadly Premonition had a little bit of the same issue and I absolutely loved it, so both with your (in the end) positive review and my past SWERY experience, I think I will still look into this. To be honest, I didn’t even know this game was coming out until a friend had witnessed the beauty of Deadly Premonitions(well they called it a flaming garbage dumpster, disagreement slightly but at least its an enjoyable fire… for me) and told me about SWERY’s latest release. However, I am most certainly aware and looking forward to Good Life and its compilation of genre type and otherwise bizarre plot/gameplay.
On a final note, loving the two of you both sharing your reviews on this (and future?) games! It creates a little bit of a duality while still heading in the same direction. Also a little entertaining to read, thanks again for another great review! ^_^
P.S. I see the Yakuza break was short lived. :3
Clunky gameplay is kind of a SWERY staple, and it could also be me not being THE BEST at puzzle platformers. On the whole I wasn’t, you know, really mad about it… except when it destroyed the tension of the finale.
You definitely should still look into it! I think it’s a worthwhile game to play, even though I didn’t get sucked into it. I think it was certainly ambitious and that I’m proud of him for doing it!
The Good Life seems more relaxed and life-sim like, which is going to be VERY interesting coming from him. I’m excited, too!
Awww, thank you! I’ve been having Madison joint review the games we play together for a while now (I think since the first one?). I’m glad you like her adding her take!
P.S. ……. yeah C: As a bonus, when we finish 0 SHE is going to write a review and I’ll guest review on her post (just as a short aside on the value I got from playing it a second time).
I find it funny I found out about this game from the zero punctuation review then found out about swery and suddenly found his cult following of people vontinoually mentioning the name swerry
Things happen like that! You never notice something until you learn about it, and then it was suddenly there the whole time!
He’s a weird guy, but god I can’t help but like him. Deadly Premonition was an amazingly unique game. … I’m realizing I really love things that can strike a good balance between serious and bizarre.