(Disclosure: I was given a "special thanks" credit.)
This is one of those games that, if you're receptive to the kinds of characters and stories it's striving to present, it's going to stick with you. I had been following this game since it had been revealed in the PS5 showcase stream back in June 2020. I thought it looked okay at the time, but I didn't think it'd so thoroughly root itself as one of my top five games of all time.
Visually, it looks like no other game out there. It looks like a 2D animated television series, with the kind of lighting and detail you'd expect from an anime. The character animation is 2D as well; the characters are both emotive and fun to look at, bolstered by some truly superb voice acting. Many of these characters are some flavor of LGBT+, and each of them feels like they were made with love from people who have lived their experiences. Complementing all this is wonderful, catchy music, whether it be instrumental tracks playing through a scene, or beautiful songs played during the rhythm sections. There are a handful of visual hiccups and sometimes stiff animation, but none of it so damning that they break the game or the immersion.
The choice-making mechanic takes the genre in a great direction by giving visual cues on the emotions behind every choice, so it's always clear where the character's headspace is. This is coupled with additional mechanics of "Resistance" (you need to hold extra buttons to confirm an emotionally difficult choice) and "Hesitation" (if you don't fully commit to a choice, you might lose the opportunity to make it). They work so great at integrating the narrative into the gameplay that I'm shocked that other narrative games haven't tried them before. There are also rhythm game performances sprinkled throughout the story, with a simple but engaging gameplay format that always makes me look forward to them. There are also photos and flashbacks you can unlock as you play, but not every photo can be earned in one session; you WILL need to play through a few times to see everything this game has to offer.
But narrative games live and die by their story, and that's where this game truly shines. There's a real emotional weight to the struggles the characters face: trying to plan for their futures when they might not have one, while also figure out who they are to each other as their lives slowly fall apart. In a genre that typically makes all your choices so powerful that they write out multiple endings based on what you do, this game paints the illusion of player control over the narrative, and then rips it away over the course of the story. This game could ONLY have one ending -- they're dinosaurs and there's an asteroid, after all -- but your choices influence everything leading up to the end. Certain scenes can play out differently based on your actions, or you might unlock special scenes based on who you befriend. Through all this, you get a compelling story that leaves an impact on you. It's quite hard to do a rhythm game at the end of the world with tears in your eyes.
Goodbye Volcano High is a beautiful, thoughtful, memorable game that strives to show what this genre of games can really accomplish. I wholeheartedly recommend it.
This is one of those games that, if you're receptive to the kinds of characters and stories it's striving to present, it's going to stick with you. I had been following this game since it had been revealed in the PS5 showcase stream back in June 2020. I thought it looked okay at the time, but I didn't think it'd so thoroughly root itself as one of my top five games of all time.
Visually, it looks like no other game out there. It looks like a 2D animated television series, with the kind of lighting and detail you'd expect from an anime. The character animation is 2D as well; the characters are both emotive and fun to look at, bolstered by some truly superb voice acting. Many of these characters are some flavor of LGBT+, and each of them feels like they were made with love from people who have lived their experiences. Complementing all this is wonderful, catchy music, whether it be instrumental tracks playing through a scene, or beautiful songs played during the rhythm sections. There are a handful of visual hiccups and sometimes stiff animation, but none of it so damning that they break the game or the immersion.
The choice-making mechanic takes the genre in a great direction by giving visual cues on the emotions behind every choice, so it's always clear where the character's headspace is. This is coupled with additional mechanics of "Resistance" (you need to hold extra buttons to confirm an emotionally difficult choice) and "Hesitation" (if you don't fully commit to a choice, you might lose the opportunity to make it). They work so great at integrating the narrative into the gameplay that I'm shocked that other narrative games haven't tried them before. There are also rhythm game performances sprinkled throughout the story, with a simple but engaging gameplay format that always makes me look forward to them. There are also photos and flashbacks you can unlock as you play, but not every photo can be earned in one session; you WILL need to play through a few times to see everything this game has to offer.
But narrative games live and die by their story, and that's where this game truly shines. There's a real emotional weight to the struggles the characters face: trying to plan for their futures when they might not have one, while also figure out who they are to each other as their lives slowly fall apart. In a genre that typically makes all your choices so powerful that they write out multiple endings based on what you do, this game paints the illusion of player control over the narrative, and then rips it away over the course of the story. This game could ONLY have one ending -- they're dinosaurs and there's an asteroid, after all -- but your choices influence everything leading up to the end. Certain scenes can play out differently based on your actions, or you might unlock special scenes based on who you befriend. Through all this, you get a compelling story that leaves an impact on you. It's quite hard to do a rhythm game at the end of the world with tears in your eyes.
Goodbye Volcano High is a beautiful, thoughtful, memorable game that strives to show what this genre of games can really accomplish. I wholeheartedly recommend it.