Every once in a while, there comes a unique indie game that even though lacking in gameplay, provides for a very touching story experience, one that you are bound to remember for a good while. When I first heard of Richard and Alice, I thought it would be another perfect experience. Fortunately, it definitely is some experience, but perfect? No.
The game is a point and click adventure that deals with the story of Richard & Alice, who are both, for the crimes they committed, locked behind bars. These aren’t ordinary bars though, and in fact both of them have a cutting edge computer and a couch, save for Richard, whose cell includes a TV as well. The world outside is pretty much dead as they know it, engulfed in an everlasting snowstorm, people doing anything they can to survive and try not to get on others bad-side, especially the gang!
The game’s story is mainly told through dialogue, either through flashback or face to face conversation that Richard and Alice have. The dialogue, even though a page turner at times, has a lot left to be desired as it feels awkward and absolutely unauthentic at times. The best dialogue though, belongs to Barney, Alice’s kid. The way he pronounces some words and enthusiastically asks questions, really brings out that authenticity and innocent sense of curiosity that you’d expect from a vibrant young child.
In fact, the flashbacks, where you see the interaction between a mother and her son are the best parts of this game. You can really feel the tension that the mom carries for her child, hoping to shield him from the evil that is has corrupted the new world. You will even see small details like her going into some rooms on her own first, in order to see if it would be safe for Barney. These little writing details really gave life to these scenes.
Unfortunately though, same couldn’t be said for Richard, as his story is really underdeveloped. It is not that his history isn’t good; in fact, I really wanted to know more about him. I understand the developers will remind you to read through all the notes and dialogue you come across, in order to get a better understanding, but for some reason unfortunately, it isn’t enough. Still, the twists for both parties are pretty cool, and will probably catch you by surprise.
Gameplay wise, it is very bare-bones, but I have no quarrel with it, as the price is self-explanatory. What I do mind however, is some of the unpolished mechanics that just make your game more frustrating than it needs to be. For example, rather than having this wonky point and click control, they could’ve gotten you to control your character directly. As it stands now, the movement speed is too slow when compared with the game’s huge environments, that when mixed with the tediously accurate point and click controls, they really do make you want to rush through, even though you can’t.
Also, the puzzles are very simple, so simple that it seems like they just wanted to tell you a story and not much more. Even the options system is messy, with you having to select whether you want to go full-screen in a launcher, but that may just be the dated nature of the game’s engine, “Adventure Game Studio”. One thing I did wonder at times however was whether this story could’ve been told in a better medium than a videogame. Firstly, sometimes you’ll see these really emotional dialogues, but they don’t get conveyed well at all as there is no voice work whatsoever. Secondly there is the bland art style, which I understand some people are calling artistic, but unfortunately to me it seems rushed and lacking at times.
Still though, there will be some points where the graphics stand out, like in the church, but most of the time it doesn’t evoke much emotion. I actually think this would’ve been better suited as a novel or anything else that would describe the scene with vigor. Lastly, there are various endings which are unlocked depending on how you initiate dialogues during the prison sequence, and there’s one that relies on you performing a specific action during the flashback.
Overall, bearing the price in mind, this is definitely an experience worth your time, with Alice’s flashbacks that lead off to a very grim end. However, the experience would’ve been more brisk if the movement controls and the art style were further polished, and more memorable if Richard was given more focus. But hey, for £4.79 (£2.39 during Steam sale), you don’t want to miss out.