Blacksad: Under the Skin in the Test
According to Telltale Games unrühmlichem and the associated setting of the video game series to Bigby Wolf – based on the comic cycle of Fables – has now Péndulo Studios – known for the point-and-click Adventure of the Runaway series, another Comic Detective made his way to the home consoles, and the Computer opened up: John Blacksad, a black cat, and brooding private investigator in befitting a beige trench coat, with affinity for the wrong women, poorly paid cases and genus-specific aversion to rats.
Since the year 2000, the Spanish author Duo consisting of Juan Díaz Canales (writer) and Juanjo Guranido (signatory) writes in her eponymous Film noir Detective Comic. Up to this point, you’ve taken it to five volumes. Originally for the French market, it did not take long, and Translations in the various languages were published. Now, therefore, the animal private managed private detective to make the leap into a completely new Medium. In the Adventure Blacksad: Under the Skin we slide in the role of the name-giving coat-wearing cat, a young damsel in distress to assist, whose father hanged himself has. But, as so often in the Film noir Genre, is not even in the latest investigation used Blacksads everything as it seems at the beginning! A metaphor for the ambiguous impression that the game leaves behind.
Pet Film noir
John Blacksad is determined as a private detective in one of anthropomorphic animals inhabited New York in the 1950s, in which racism, sexism, and puzzling murder cases on the agenda. Blacksad: Under the Skin is temporally after the first Comic based. The black cat has to be the first documented Trauma already behind: the elucidation of the murder of his former client and subsequent Lover Natalia Wilford, a famous actress, directed by a shot in the head in her own bed. The elucidation of this Case gives Blacksad is not only abundant emotional wounds, but also the one or the other associated with spanking, the appearance of him in his first Adventure always bloom again – despite the animal protagonists, the Adventure is definitely not a children’s game, but keeps largely to the gloomy atmosphere of the original. Under the skin Blacksad goes in his game, made the determination to use Sonia Dunn. The same is the daughter of Joe Dunn, the owner and Manager of a local Boxing Clubs, in which the same is called, among other things, the aspiring Boxer, Robert – continuous Bobby – Yale coaches. Yale is shortly before his most important battle, to help him to break through in the sport of Boxing. But then fate strikes mercilessly: Joe Dunn is found dead, he hanged himself with a rope in the midst of his own Boxringes and his protege Yale, each track is missing. Now it is to rescue the daughter of the financially ailing Boxing Club from closing. Since the cancellation of the long-awaited Boxing match to Yale’s would mean certain Ruin for the Dunn’s Boxing Club, commissioned Sonia Dunn John Blacksad make in order for Yale to find the long-awaited and meticulously prepared to fight but be can. John’s investigations make, however, from the beginning, more than just difficult: Sonia Dunn proves to be put it politely, extremely uncooperative, and unmoved by the death of her father, a local gangster boss, with Irish roots, it has to track also set a goal of Yale and tries to John for his own machinations clamp and something seems to be lazy on the suicide of Dunn’s, but what? Blacksad: Under the Skin takes for the exposure of the characters and the development of the arc Voltage time. The Film noir want to be some well-kept secrets will be revealed, before Blacksad is able to the core of the Evil vorzuschnüffeln Genre herein to be very accurate.
Of detective work and Ikea cabinets
As for an Adventure – especially one with a criminological Subject – we are busy the majority of the game in order to examine different locations in-depth to learn more about the animal New York, Blacksads past, and, above all, the us professional primary umtreibende Disappearance of Bobby Yale. To control for this purpose, we Blacksad directly and not via the point and click Mechanics – by a variety of detail-designed scenes, which seem to be one-to-one the Comic is taken, and the same thing can actually bring to life in love. This Blacksad controls, contrary to its animal model, but more like a wounded Ikea is a graceful house cat closet since. Not only our samtpfotener Snoop responds delayed at the input, which I always awkwardly against the various items of furniture, also Blacksad tends to be just in a narrower screen, cutouts to wedge himself in corners or objects.
The unbearable Heaviness of Being?
We are engaged not just with the crime scene inspection and Track, so we run one of the many conversations with the characters of the game, in order to obtain new information. A Multiple Choice dialog system available to us, in which us, the game gives the freedom for the different question – or to choose answer choices that steer the conversation in different directions and also to decide how good or bad our conversation partners are talking to us or will be. We have made a decision with a range, so the game tells us this reliable via the Insert at the top of the screen: So, we have, for example, at the outset, the opportunity to convict the husband of one of our Clients in the Cheating or not to preserve but for a small fee on the part of the unfaithful husband’s silence, in order not to endanger the marriage. We decide for our honor as a private detective, and, accordingly, against the clumsy bribery attempt, so the indication is displayed that we had decided just to accept the marriage compromise, instead of the bribe. This is well-known custom of the Telltale games, and currently we encounter these Mechanics, even in the Horror Adventure of Medan. The frequent Repetition of this Mechanism for the mediation of decisions that supposedly have far-reaching consequences of the same from the point of view of Immersion, however, only partially sympathetic. A dialogue decision actually has a significant impact on later scenes, so the previously inserted Insert is merely a prospectively redundant Element; or, in other words: it will have been unnecessary, because the game will lead to the consequences, without this in mind. Exactly herein, however, the basic hook of this Mechanism, already in the case of Telltales The Walking Dead series, obviously-a-days occurred, and in the case of Blacksad: Under the Skin is clear: for the most part it remains in the Inserts, which us an almost unbearable Heaviness of our virtual Existence (Nietzsche) convey to, in fact, in an almost unbearable lightness of the same (Kundera) – in the sense of the lack of Follow-up our decisions for the course of the story – flow. The story arc itself, our decisions rarely have significant impact. Unless we fumble one of the many Quick Time Events. Then the game for ourselves – in the case of a premature pixel death, due to, e.g., a charge we must repeat the QTE simply shot in the stomach and head, or to be but just before the end, someone else quickly at the end. Actual noticeable changes in term of our decisions in dialogues in John Blacksads personality profile, which we can view the option menu at any time. There is stated by a percentage indicator of whether we play Blacksad, rather than silent, individual courses, sensitive brooder, or clumsy klutz who can screw up the simplest of QTEs,.
The senses of a cat
The numerous interview situations, also not only with various options on it to forfeit us of our belonging, Blacksad has enhanced senses that allow him, in a dialogue situation, sometimes to listen to the specific Details, see, or smell. A pressure on the corresponding button freezes the Situation. By means of a circle, we can cover the now black-and-white colored image to the Gamepad starts to vibrate and the diameter of the circle starts to rejuvenate. From a certain reduction degree to a smaller arrow pointing us in addition, on the edge of the circle in the right direction. In this way, we will activate sometimes new, our To compromising dialogue options, their productions come to break through, and thus the truth bit by bit closer or provide us with important clues that allow us to draw valuable conclusions.
On the paths of Sherlock Holmes
After all, some of us collected information entries in Blacksads Mind Palace, in which we can draw by connecting the same synthetic circuits left, through the combination of known information that there is new evidence to de -, in -, or even abduzieren. In fact, however, this means that we use only certain statements in relation to each other, the pullable circuit Blacksad takes us always. Once we have discovered two linkable information the game tells us this is new, using the Insert. So we can find approximately when you Browse to the locker room with a racist message, which was smeared with red paint on Yale’s Spindtür. When you Browse to the lockers we find in that of any other boxer on a towel which is stained with red color. The combination of these two instructions allows for Blacksad to the conclusion that the owner of the Locker with the stained towel and a Confederate flag defaced Yale’s Spindtür and Yale itself has denigrated. These conclusions are usually little challenging, and as often as one wishes, we should combine attempts to have the false evidence with each other. As a rule, only a few references to the link are ready, these puzzles mostly by bare Rates successfully. The complexity of the Sherlock Holmes Adventure from Frogwares , with the possibility of a case, in fact, wrong solve – able Blacksad: Under the Skin , accordingly, are not matching.
Lights and shadows of New York
Péndulo Studios , however, it is managed with the graphical charm of the Comic series faithful to the Original implement. Besides Blacksad, we also meet the one or other old Acquaintances, we have read the first and second comic strip. The locations – such as Blacksads office at the beginning of the game seem like the Panels of the Comics cut and digitized. This is just for Fans of the template is a nice thing! The game is fully voiced, and in an exemplary number of languages. And especially the German synchronization can listen to – at least the speaker Blacksads. That the German subtitles don’t have a “ß”, but the same as the Smiley is spent can be safely ignored as a small curiosity.
It is striking, however, is that the Writing, especially where the game the issues of racism and sexism, accept, device a bit to the Jerkiness. After all, the authors do not shy away from a hot iron, but a tie in the Narration. Because to have a black coat is also a walk in the Park in the anthropomorphic animal beings inhabited New York no honey, and drives so many of the animals from the southern province to the big city. So tell us some of the characters at least, because the game shows us the racist foothills of the animal society, only very rarely. While we play a black cat, but never a victim of any, even latent mock – exclusion would be of our self, due to the coat color. Since the game takes up, albeit with good intentions – something.
CONCLUSION
Blacksad: Under the Skin , such as its cartoon template, a lot of charm. If I’m going to talk to me now when John Blacksad, anthropomorphic cat and private detective, with a rhinoceros – Bodyguard by profession, what else – fighting, the cheating with his client, the wife, the fatherly friend and police officers Smirnov or meticulous detective work and conclusions pull, until the bar of my Mind groans Palace and crashing. The story is beautifully told and Blacksads partly melancholic, partly explanatory and transfer the monologues of the Film-noir Flair of American films of the 40s and 50s, a catch to be harmonious. Also the German Synchronisation is able to convince thanks to a excellent bearing in awarded Blacksads,. All the ingredients for a great Adventure-fun, therefore, are gathered on the screen.
And the lights not always. The Mind Palace offers hardly any challenges, as I link often obvious pictures/ sentences to each other without knowing exactly why I’m doing this. The conclusions takes me anyway Blacksad. The control of the detectives, with black fur and trench coat is very stubborn and somewhat reminiscent of the tank controls of old Resident Evil parts. Also in terms of the narrative and staging comes Blacksad: Under the Skin overall, not quite to The Wolf Among Us – about what the socially critical undertone in dealing with minorities is concerned – or Life is Strange approach. And yet, it creates Péndulo Studios an atmospheric implementation of the Comic material to make, just for friends of the template, in any case, worth a look.
What’s Blacksad: Under the Skin is? A Film noir Detective Adventure based on a comic book template.Platforms: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Tested: on PC Intel Core i5-6600K, 4x 3.5 GHz, 16 GB RAM, AMD Radeon R9 Fury
Developer / Publisher: Péndulo Studios, Ys Interactive/ Microids
Release: 14. November 2019
Link: Official Website
