Just Like Real Life, but Even More Boring...
Preface:
I picked Indigo Prophecy up for $3 on Steam the other day, and honestly still feel a bit ripped-off, despite having heard so many good things about the game. Words like "revolutionary" and "ingenious" were frequently used while talking about the gamepla .... but personally, I had quite a different experience...
Review:
Indigo Prophecy takes the standard adventure game formula and makes it infuriating by adding nonsensical, overlong quick-time sequences which serve only to distract and annoy. Actions are performed by making "gestures" with your gamepad's analogue stick or your mouse.
The game tries very hard to be "immersive," but this generally translates into performing a load of terrifically mundane tasks in a specific order. Example: Walk over to the chest > Gesture to squat down > Gesture to open drawer > It's empty > Gesture to close drawer > Gesture to open OTHER drawer > Gesture to pick up what's inside drawer > Gesture to close drawer > Gesture to stand > And so on, ad nauseum. In most adventure games, opening a drawer and taking what's inside would be accomplished by a couple mouse-clicks, but Indigo Prophecy turns even the most simple actions into a tedious chore. However, if all the banal tasks and annoying quick-time events were removed there really wouldn't be much left to the game.
Indigo Prophecy is nearly a constant sequence of trial-and-error. Often times there won't be even the slightest indication that performing a certain action will end the game, and many times you'll be forced to replay sequences over and over again (all with the inability to skip the dialogue-filled cutscenes). This is neither fun nor entertaining.
To further the aggravation, the controls are awful. When using a dual-analogue controller, which is what the game was designed for, your character will often suddenly change directions for no apparent reason. Characters generally control like a dump-truck on ice. Other times, due to awkward camera switches, you'll find yourself suddenly walking back in the direction you just came. Objects in the world also have huge, invisible bounding boxes around them, making even small objects annoying to navigate around.
Another point of frustration is the absolutely nonsensical world the characters live in. The murderer leaves his blood ALL OVER the crime scene, but apparently the NYPD doesn't have a blood lab?! In another sequence, a police officer recognizes the murderer, but lets him go because he thinks he "needed a break," and no one has a problem with this reasoning? These incidents require more than a little suspension of disbelief. The "New York" atmosphere also seems to be presented from a perspective of someone who's never actually been to NYC, and only has Hollywood as a reference point.
The highlight of the game is definitely its cinematic presentation and generally great voice-acting. These aspects are done very well, and often come together to really draw you in. It is unfortunate that the other aspects of the game serve mainly to do the opposite. The story, while starting out strong, lamentably falls apart in the last act, essentially making the whole affair seem a bit futile.
Summary:
Overall, I find it very difficult to recommend Indigo Prophecy to anyone. It's not a very good adventure game, since there really aren't any puzzles to solve (aside from, "hey I wonder what order the developers want me to do these boring tasks in?"), nor is it a good action game, since all the action is accomplished through bland quick-time events. Essentially, you'd be better off renting a movie and buying a Simon to play while watching it – you'll get nearly the same experience, and won't have to worry about re-watching segments over and over again.
