Since the embargo's dropped - Here is my review

[Blackened Halo]

Beyond a Steel Sky is the best game of Revolution Software since Broken Sword II: The Smoking Mirror.

It is a fantastic adventure with an exciting story and superb characters! Joey and Foster are back and their verbal interaction between them is funnier than ever. There are also many other characters who are also briliantly written (and played) like, for example, a Wellbeing mantor called Alonso.

Union City has changed a lot since the previous game. Forget its omnipresent dirt and rust, Union City is now shiny, clean and sterile! Though Joey had not been its saviour for a long time now as the Council with 5 departments took control of everything. It controls everything, everybody and it does not accept anything excep SMILE! So smile, you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥s!

This is not a point/click adventure but a 3D adventure with the WSAD system. But hold on, this ain't also any Telltale-style graphics (pseudo)adventure with a weak gameplay. There are puzzles, there are interesting situations to solve, there is a point/click gameplay in a non-point/click game. This is how a true modern adventure should look like! Though I would not mind adding the point/click system in an update.

Gameplay-wise, overall it is not that difficult game (Beneath a Steel Sky was neither), though with the coming ending things will get much trickier, but thankfully you will not find here any weird combinations of items. Your inventory is not as important as your hacked scanner. With it you will be able to hack almost all objects connected to a new AI called MINOS and with an easy drag-drop system change their code and thus their functionality, which can result in funny situations. For example, in a bathroom you can mess around and achieve that by turning on the water tap you activate a bidet.

The graphics are not bad but the textures should have had more details and overal things far away from you tend to look a bit blurry. The music is OK, but it lacks of the humorous mood of Beneath a Steel Sky's OST. Not that it is bad at all, it just completely different compared to the previous game. The OST is fully orchestral and it's too serious.

There is a lot of bugs, which, I believe, will be fixed in a day one patch (or a patch in general). The buggiest thing in the game is the AI of NPC characters standing or walking around. They just walk and in case they hit something, they just still walk. Sometimes they walk so long that they will walk over the barrier in front of them - think of the horse behaviour in Oblivion or Skyrim.

Playing Beneath a Steel Sky before Beyond a Steel Sky is mandatory, as this is a direct sequel and there is a lot of references!

....and yes, you can die here!

8/10

[Frostburg]

I disagree about needing to play the original. My eight year-old never touched the 1994 game, and he’s fine. It will make some puzzles easier, and you will get in-game references, but it is not required by any means.

[bullet in ur f. face]

how long is the game ?

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by bullet in ur f. face:

how long is the game ?

Steam shows more than 20 hours.

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by N328KF:

I disagree about needing to play the original. My eight year-old never touched the 1994 game, and he’s fine. It will make some puzzles easier, and you will get in-game references, but it is not required by any means.

If he has ever touched Beneath, he would enjoy Beyond much more.

[farinelli1800]

Originally posted by Blackened Halo:

Originally posted by bullet in ur f. face:

how long is the game ?

Steam shows more than 20 hours.

THAT would be really great....

[robcram]

Originally posted by bullet in ur f. face:

how long is the game ?

My Steam playtime says 10 hours in-game counter even less. I never played the previous game but found the story here easy to follow.

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by robcram:

Originally posted by bullet in ur f. face:

how long is the game ?

My Steam playtime says 10 hours in-game counter even less. I never played the previous game but found the story here easy to follow.

of course but the characters and referencies dont have as great impact for you as they have for me because i played beneath

[bullet in ur f. face]

10 hours or 20 hours long ?

[robcram]

My final time says 12.4 hours I in no way "rushed" the game.

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by bullet in ur f. face:

10 hours or 20 hours long ?

My Steam says over 20 hours. But it is known that Steam's counter is a bit broken.

[Thorba]

Hope it will not be too easy, most of the buyers are sure old point&click veterans and could become bored fast if there are not enough clever puzzles.

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by Thorba:

Hope it will not be too easy, most of the buyers are sure old point&click veterans and could become bored fast if there are not enough clever puzzles.

well with the coming ending puzzles are getting trickier, but there are no goat puzzles-like like in Broken Sword, every situation here has a logical explanation ..a very clever game

on the other hand Beneath a Steel Sky was not a difficult game so do not expect something extraordinary from Beyond when it comes to hard puzzles

I love the gameplay (no stupid combinations of items, hints can be turned off), the story (very entertaining and chamber), the characters (Joey is still the best even after all those 26 years since Beneath). It is an unique 3D adventure and I totally love it! There is, reportedly, more than just 1 ending.

But there is a lot of bugs, really, which bothers me. The devs know about them so I suppose there will be a day one patch.

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by Thorba:

Hope it will not be too easy, most of the buyers are sure old point&click veterans and could become bored fast if there are not enough clever puzzles.

but do you know what?? the ending itself was really easy ...when I am thinking about it, yeah, definitely...i should took 0,5 from the final score because of it

[Thorba]

Originally posted by Blackened Halo:

Originally posted by Thorba:

Hope it will not be too easy, most of the buyers are sure old point&click veterans and could become bored fast if there are not enough clever puzzles.

well with the coming ending puzzles are getting trickier, but there are no goat puzzles-like like in Broken Sword, every situation here has a logical explanation ..a very clever game

on the other hand Beneath a Steel Sky was not a difficult game so do not expect something extraordinary from Beyond when it comes to hard puzzles

I love the gameplay (no stupid combinations of items, hints can be turned off), the story (very entertaining and chamber), the characters (Joey is still the best even after all those 26 years since Beneath). It is an unique 3D adventure and I totally love it! There is, reportedly, more than just 1 ending.

But there is a lot of bugs, really, which bothers me. The devs know about them so I suppose there will be a day one patch.

Yes the goat "puzzle" was really horrible:), but i love to pick up items and and combine them with everything (thats basically the heart of old adventure games)

[Blackened Halo]

Originally posted by Thorba:

Originally posted by Blackened Halo:

well with the coming ending puzzles are getting trickier, but there are no goat puzzles-like like in Broken Sword, every situation here has a logical explanation ..a very clever game

on the other hand Beneath a Steel Sky was not a difficult game so do not expect something extraordinary from Beyond when it comes to hard puzzles

I love the gameplay (no stupid combinations of items, hints can be turned off), the story (very entertaining and chamber), the characters (Joey is still the best even after all those 26 years since Beneath). It is an unique 3D adventure and I totally love it! There is, reportedly, more than just 1 ending.

But there is a lot of bugs, really, which bothers me. The devs know about them so I suppose there will be a day one patch.

Yes the goat "puzzle" was really horrible:), but i love to pick up items and and combine them with everything (thats basically the heart of old adventure games)

yes it is, but i do not think it is too funny, more less frustrating :) i prefer a more logical approach to solve problems