(Disclaimer – this is a review I wrote for VGChartz originally, hence the difference in formatting. I’m moving it to my own site for archiving sake. If I replay the game one day, I may re-write this for consistency reasons)
| Developer |
Jesse Makkonen; Ratalaika Games
|
| Publisher | |
| Franchise | DISTRAINT |
| Genre | |
| PSTV | Yes |
| Physical English | No |
As videogames have evolved as a medium, we’ve seen more and more cases of developers attempting to tackle deeper and more serious subject matter than “save the princess” (not that there’s anything wrong with this as a design choice, of course). DISTRAINT is such a title – a psychological adventure by a single indie developer about greed and morality that is slightly heavy-handed in its approach, but is still thought-provoking with a positive message all the same.
You play as a young man named Price who works as a sort of bailiff for a nebulous company run by three profit-driven moustached men. Upon the promise of being made a partner if he carries out some of their least desirable evictions, he takes up his first job throwing an old lady named Mrs Goodwin out of the flat in which she and her husband spent his final days, an event which slowly unravels Price’s sanity as he tries to balance his desire to achieve a good life for himself against the immoral acts he is committing.
See, at his core Price comes across as a good person – his desires aren’t obscene (buying a working coffee maker being one of his first goals) and DISTRAINT ensures it plays on both sides of his personality namely the empathy (he visits Mrs Goodwin in the care home once she’s been evicted) and greed. This is important to portray him as a fully-fledged person in his own right and help the player relate to him – its just a shame the rest of the cast is particularly two-dimensional with the fat cat bosses of his employer being especially one note.
As Price wrestles with his conflicting feelings they manifest as various unsettling nightmares – some simply involve his deceased parents talking to him from beyond the grave, while others mean the walls and ceiling start bleeding or he has to outrun a literal bloody elephant in the room. This is where the horror elements come in, although I wouldn’t describe this as a scary game (and I have a particularly low tolerance for this kinda stuff), instead going for a deep message which definitely made me think long after I’d finished playing (in particular its ending, which caught me off guard but in a very good way).
In terms of gameplay, this is a simplistic 2D adventure where you’ll walk through various environments talking to people, collecting items and occasionally solving puzzles (think traditional point ‘n’ click style where you’ll need to find a fuse in the environment to fix a generator, which is used to turn on a washing machine to get the glove inside which is then used to distract a dog etc.). That’s not to say it’s a simple game as some of the areas required a little lateral thinking and layout memorisation to progress between the various interconnected rooms (especially in a very trippy but brilliant drug-fuelled section), but otherwise things are quite straightforward and linear (think along the lines of Planet RIX-13 but a bit more involved).
Graphically, DISTRAINT is presented in letterboxed view which is an interesting cinematic choice which works quite well for it, while characters have big heads and small bodies (almost like Funko Pops) which is another unusual stylistic choice pulled off with gusto. While undoubtedly a dark and dreary title at times which is fitting with its serious themes, I was actually impressed with the amount of colour used here – sections like a drug trip turn the game into a psychedelic tapestry and in general there’s a solid use of light and shades of orange and pink.
Yet what is really nailed here is atmosphere – whether it be the disturbing sights you’ll walk past in a cemetery or hospital ward or the flickers of jump scares every now and again, exploring through DISTRAINT’s world is equal parts intriguing and horrifying and I never quite knew what to expect next. It’s all helped by a minimalistic but effective soundtrack that really highlights the scarier moments but just fits the general tone well too – it’s perfectly judged for this type of game.
It’ll only take you a couple of hours to see everything on offer here (although there are some amusing trophies for doing things like filling up your coffee maker with toilet water or trying to get a dog to sniff gasoline) which feels on the short side but is just about sufficient. It’s not the length or even the gameplay that you’ll really be staying here for though, it’s the thought-provoking message – and even though DISTRAINT really isn’t my type of game, it’s a triumph in this regard.
Conclusion
A slick 2D psychological adventure with a lot to say, DISTRAINT may offer a simple gameplay experience that isn’t exactly new or memorable, but its stylish graphics and interesting narrative make it a journey that’s worth taking.
7.0/10
kresnik258gaming 