The Forgotten City is a mystery adventure game of exploration and deduction, and a re-imagining of the critically acclaimed mod of the same name. Combat is an option, but violence will only get you so far. Only by questioning an intertwined community of colorful characters, cleverly exploiting the time loop, and making difficult moral choices can you hope to solve this epic mystery. Here, your decisions matter. The fate of the city is in your hands.
Released on
Genres
Reviews View More
Very short but very dense. Everything interconnects and so it's easy to make progress even when you hit a dead end.
One of the best written stories in a game and it knows how to present a mystery utilising the format of a game super well. Hooked me super quick and had a blast discovering all the twists and turns. Only complaint is the combat which is very clunky and only comes up in two sections of the game, not really sure why it was there. Highly recommend though, and go in as blind as possible.
Time loops can often be messy and convoluted, but The Forgotten City tackled such a concept with fantastic writing that delved into philosophy and history. The visuals depicted a Roman city with a curse bearing over its people, and the goal was to get to the bottom of said curse that would inevitably kill the population if one person sinned. With each loop it became possible to stave it off for longer, but never forever, since humans love being naughty. It was a great setup and I loved its focus on narrative—there was a lot of talking, and that was okay with me.
It didn’t give step by step directions on how to progress, which is in stark contrast to how the majority of "detective" games do the work for you. It was trial and error until all the pieces fit, certain moral decisions required to get by. Combat was optional and even then, it was bare-bones and probably didn’t even need to be there. I really enjoyed it; I'll always be on the lookout for titles like this.
It didn’t give step by step directions on how to progress, which is in stark contrast to how the majority of "detective" games do the work for you. It was trial and error until all the pieces fit, certain moral decisions required to get by. Combat was optional and even then, it was bare-bones and probably didn’t even need to be there. I really enjoyed it; I'll always be on the lookout for titles like this.
It's a bunch of dialogue-heavy side quests in a trench coat, but damn that's a fine trench coat. Kinda feels like Outer Wilds or Majora's Mask with romans, so pretty fucking raw.
Some of the funniest facial animations any game has ever had and the ending is so beyond cheesy you can't make it up. Great game.
What a marvelous game! This definitely hits the same sweet spot as Outer Wilds, although it doesn't quite evoke as many "magic moments" and is a bit more streamlined. Characters are also slightly more one-dimensional and often just there to have specific "function". But don't let that hold you back: It's still incredibly well done, very engaging, with a beatiful and interesting setting, voicework and music. I inhaled this over the course of two days. Big recommendation, if this kind of game interests you even in the slightest!