Revolution followed up on the heels of underrated fantasy adventure Lure of The Temptress with this excellent cyberpunk adventure that to this day ranks among the best cyberpunk games ever made. Beneath a Steel Sky begins with a simple premise that gradually unfolds to include a lot of subtle threads and interesting plot twists: you play Robert Foster, a down-trodden citizen of the oppressive futuristic city that any fan of Orwell's 1984 will immediately recognize. In a quest to find your long-lost father, you will encounter many colorful characters and solve many gadget-oriented puzzles. Revolution's "virtual theatre" engine introduced in Lure of The Temptress has been significantly improved this time around -- characters follow their own agenda, and the solutions to many puzzles require astute observation and timing skills to disrupt their routine. One of the game's best features is Joey, your talkative droid sidekick whose wry remarks and wacky sarcasm will bring a smile to any Infocom fan who misses Floyd the Robot in Planetfall, and help lighten the game's atmosphere. Puzzles are generally logical if a bit on the easy side, with the exception of very clever puzzles in the game's cyberspace world. The game is replete with well-written dialogues and excellent artwork by the famed British comic book artist Dave Gibbons (whose work is one of the best introduction sequences seen in a computer game). A must-play for all cyberpunk fans and everyone in general. Note: In July 2003, Revolution not only released both the CD-ROM version and the floppy version into the public domain - they also gave the ScummVM team the source code to run with their wonderful interpreter. Thanks to both ScummVM team and Revolution for this incredible news :) Reviewed by: Underdogs |