Probably the only other serious review I'll write here. This review won’t contain spoilers for the story, project moon’s setting, or the Abnormalities. That being said I truly do think Lobotomy Corp is a game that’s best experienced knowing basically nothing when going in. Much of this game centers around experimentation and repetition, and I'd hate to compromise that even a little bit. That being said, LoboCorp is a harsh game. It will get easier as you begin to make more and more permanent milestones, but soft resets and day 1 reset will happen. It has that XCOM quality where it feels like every decision you make early on is the wrong one, but amped up to 11. There’s something to be said about negative experiences in games, and if that isn’t for you I can’t blame you in the slightest. What I can say though is unlike games like Spec-Ops The Line, the point isn’t to be preachy but to empower you by the end.
I mention all this now because unlike some of my other favorite games this is not a game I can so easily recommend. And I want to get all of this out of the way now because LoboCorp is a game I think is at least worth trying. It and Outer Wilds sorta encompass everything that makes games as an art form special. It’s one of the most unique experiences I've had with a game that I can forgive a lot of its unapproachability and technical hiccups. Sometimes you can tell this game was put together with duct tape and the dev’s hopes and dreams, and I may have cursed myself and the game every now and then. But the experience as a whole is something I only have fond memories of.
As stated previously, a lot of what LoboCorp comes down to is experimentation. As only an SCP management game can do, the first facility you run will be full of eldritch monstrosities that are thoroughly incompatible with each other. Every day will feel like diffusing a bomb that gets more and more complex as more Abnormalities get added to the facility. Maybe handling individual containment cells is simple, but managing many at once can get incredibly stressful. Very few finished playthroughs go through the game in a single run. However each successive run and facility will become easier and easier to manage. Not only will your repository of information expand, but so too will your ability to respond to threats as they come. No other game captures that same disparity between your position at the start and your position towards the end as well, in my opinion.
You start to develop strategies for putting down Abnormalities as they breach containment. You have specific work protocols for high threat levels. You start to realize that maybe intentionally allowing a few to escape for a few minutes actually makes your workflow easier. If a couple clerks or agents die then it’s no big deal. Sometimes that’s even the intent. Now you’re no longer responding, now you’re exploiting. Instead of being held at the whim of a monster that can tear the facility down on its own, you’re stringing it along with a carrot and stick to doing as it pleases until it’s no longer helpful. Instead of preserving the lives of your employees, you overwork or sometimes sacrifice them because it is convenient.
As you continue along the game you begin to form relationships with your colleagues. Some wish for your success, some wish for steady progress, and some have more insidious motives. You get in touch with the company gossip, and you learn the secrets that lie just out of sight. A narrative begins to form of humble days, past mistakes, a disease of the mind.
Sometimes it feels like moving forward with feet held firmly in place. Not to the point of feeling bad about all the employees that die under your watch, but wondering if this was sustainable to begin with. What’s even the point of going through these days until things don’t work out to your favor anymore. But as the weeks pass, something clicks. Not just with you, but with your colleagues. You’re not sure what it is, but you both learn something to keep moving without looking back. The end becomes just a bit clearer each time, and with it a sense of certainty that you’ll make it.
And that’s about all I'm willing to talk about when it comes to the experience as a whole. LoboCorp is a game whose story can only really be told as a game anyways. The plot and story itself accompanies that feeling of accomplishment you get through the gameplay almost perfectly. I get that going artsy fartsy with the review comes off as especially corny, but it felt like the most sincere way I could get across how much I love the experience. By the end when the credits rolled, I didn’t really think about all the frustration and stress that came with certain sections of the game. I just felt happy that I got to play it and something I hope people at least give a fair chance.
I mention all this now because unlike some of my other favorite games this is not a game I can so easily recommend. And I want to get all of this out of the way now because LoboCorp is a game I think is at least worth trying. It and Outer Wilds sorta encompass everything that makes games as an art form special. It’s one of the most unique experiences I've had with a game that I can forgive a lot of its unapproachability and technical hiccups. Sometimes you can tell this game was put together with duct tape and the dev’s hopes and dreams, and I may have cursed myself and the game every now and then. But the experience as a whole is something I only have fond memories of.
As stated previously, a lot of what LoboCorp comes down to is experimentation. As only an SCP management game can do, the first facility you run will be full of eldritch monstrosities that are thoroughly incompatible with each other. Every day will feel like diffusing a bomb that gets more and more complex as more Abnormalities get added to the facility. Maybe handling individual containment cells is simple, but managing many at once can get incredibly stressful. Very few finished playthroughs go through the game in a single run. However each successive run and facility will become easier and easier to manage. Not only will your repository of information expand, but so too will your ability to respond to threats as they come. No other game captures that same disparity between your position at the start and your position towards the end as well, in my opinion.
You start to develop strategies for putting down Abnormalities as they breach containment. You have specific work protocols for high threat levels. You start to realize that maybe intentionally allowing a few to escape for a few minutes actually makes your workflow easier. If a couple clerks or agents die then it’s no big deal. Sometimes that’s even the intent. Now you’re no longer responding, now you’re exploiting. Instead of being held at the whim of a monster that can tear the facility down on its own, you’re stringing it along with a carrot and stick to doing as it pleases until it’s no longer helpful. Instead of preserving the lives of your employees, you overwork or sometimes sacrifice them because it is convenient.
As you continue along the game you begin to form relationships with your colleagues. Some wish for your success, some wish for steady progress, and some have more insidious motives. You get in touch with the company gossip, and you learn the secrets that lie just out of sight. A narrative begins to form of humble days, past mistakes, a disease of the mind.
Sometimes it feels like moving forward with feet held firmly in place. Not to the point of feeling bad about all the employees that die under your watch, but wondering if this was sustainable to begin with. What’s even the point of going through these days until things don’t work out to your favor anymore. But as the weeks pass, something clicks. Not just with you, but with your colleagues. You’re not sure what it is, but you both learn something to keep moving without looking back. The end becomes just a bit clearer each time, and with it a sense of certainty that you’ll make it.
And that’s about all I'm willing to talk about when it comes to the experience as a whole. LoboCorp is a game whose story can only really be told as a game anyways. The plot and story itself accompanies that feeling of accomplishment you get through the gameplay almost perfectly. I get that going artsy fartsy with the review comes off as especially corny, but it felt like the most sincere way I could get across how much I love the experience. By the end when the credits rolled, I didn’t really think about all the frustration and stress that came with certain sections of the game. I just felt happy that I got to play it and something I hope people at least give a fair chance.