Indigo Prophecy

"Short and sweet!"

Indigo Prophecy is equivalent to a movie where the user decides what the outcome can be. Through carefully made choices, you can either make a good ending or a very bad ending based on what you do.

It is no doubt that Indigo Prophecy is probably one of the most unique games out there right now. It has an awesome story that the user is able to decide what actions can be taken. Although the entire mechanism of interaction of the world is very limited, it does, however, allow you to make vast decisions that could make the game better or worst. The entire game can be played in a very short amount of time, but the replay value is high as various scenes can have different outcomes.

Indigo Prophecy starts off with a man named Lucas Kane murdering a complete stranger in a restaurant. After the murder, Lucas goes home wondering about the murder and Carla Valenti and Tyler Miles get on the case. The story starts off with this idea and the time of the game seems to be modern time in New York and it is January.

Game play
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Game play is very simplified. The main mode of interaction is by walking around and using the right thumbstick to select actions based on what is available. For example, if you were walking and you wanted to open a door, an icon will appear on the top showing the direction you must move the thumbstick to do that action. This is very simplified and easy to do. There is no inventory action to do. Also, conversations are handled in the same way and sometimes there will be a time limit to what you can choose with the thumbstick. For example, in one such conversation you have icons showing the direction you must move the right thumbstick to ask questions or answer questions and there is a “fuse-like” timer going showing the amount of time you have left before you can't choose anymore.

There are two other ways of interacting with the world. First one is a simple “Simon says” type deal. Basically, two circles appear on the screen and you just have to move the left or right thumbsticks in that direction. The idea here is to do actions like dodging things or hearing “thoughts” done inside someone's head who is talking to you. This is really cool way to do this and at first it is confusing how to do this, but as you progress you will find it really easy to do and sometimes it gets challenging. The second form of interacting with the world is known as a strength gauge. There is a progressive icon showing at the middle of the screen. The idea here is to rapidly press Left and Right triggers to bring the gauge up in the blue area in order to successfully do something like holding on something for dear life.

You have limited chances of doing something until you must restart. There is no way of saving in the game as it is all done automatically. Also, there are lives in this game but they mean nothing as each time you mess up a conversation, “Simon says,” or strength thing, you can restart at the beginning of that sequence. Only benefit of lives is the fact that you don't have to restart an entire scene, only at the area you messed up. Even at that much, the game is really easy and you can make progress with limited effort.

Story and Characters
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Indigo Prophecy has a very unique storyline that is viewed from multiple main characters. In reality there is one main character: Lucas Kane. However, you can view characters from all standpoints that will lead up to the ultimate conclusion. Although your adventure will be very different from anyone else's, you will still have a blast in playing the game.

Only complaint here is that the game is very, very short. I am unsure of the average playtime, nor my playtime, but I got this game over the weekend and completed it by the conclusion of the weekend. I am thinking that the game is roughly 6-8 hours long.

The overall story is really good and there are some plot holes that might make you ask more questions than answer. The story itself is fairly average, but what makes it so great is how it is presented. You are able to make various choices and you can view the game from multiple conclusions as well as characters.

Another cool feature of the game is that each character has an emotional level. For example, each time you hear good things like music, you will add to your emotional level. However, if you hear bad things you will subtract to your emotional level. If your emotional level is very low, you can commit suicide or something else.

Graphics
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The graphics in Indigo Prophecy is average compared to what other games delivers. The main thing that I find good is that the game offers real time facial expressions as well as fairly good lighting quality. The overall graphic quality is very good and it suits the atmosphere the game is trying to offer.

Overall
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Overall Indigo Prophecy is one of the best adventure games released in the 05 year. Although short, it is a very nice game. The story is somewhat average, but how it is presented is very good and well defined. The game is very thought-out and can be replayed multiple times with different outcomes each time. Overall, I give this game a 9/10 because there are problems with some things, but they are so minor that you will be more into the story rather than the flaws.

Pros/Cons
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Pros:
+ Vast interaction system
+ Multiple options for outcome of situations
+ Great story
+ High replay value
+ Multiple characters and viewpoints

Cons:
- Short game that can be completed in 6-8 hours
- No defined way to save
- Too simplified game play

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/26/05