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G’day. I’m Adam Collings. Welcome to Stories.
Today I’m talking about the Double-Fine adventure game - Broken Age by Tim Schafer
Back in the Nineties, I was a big fan of some of Tim’s games
such as Day of the Tentacle, and Full throttle,
so I was excited when I heard he was wanting to fund a new adventure through Kickstarter.
As a backer I’ve been following the development of this project, which has been a lot of fun.
Broken Age is a coming of age story in a sci-fi / fantasy setting.
he game features two protagonists,
Vella, played by Masasa Moyo,
and Shay, played by Elijah Wood from Lord of the Rings.
The game also features cameos by Jack Black and Star Trek’s Wil Wheaton
Shay lives alone on a spaceship, raised by the ship’s computer, which presents itself as a mother figure.
Everything about the ship seems to be designed to keep a child amused,
from the toy controls in the ship’s fake bridge, to the robotic soft toys that keep him company.
His days are filled with pretend missions.
As a teenager, Shay no longer finds this life fulfilling.
He longs for an escape from the routine, and the over-controlling thumb of a computer that doesn't seem to understand that he’s growing up.
Vella lives in a small village in a world that is terrorised by a monster called Mog Chothra.
In exchange for leaving the villages along, the citizens occasionally offer a selection of maidens to the creature to eat.
Vella has been chosen for his prestigious honor and her family are very excited.
There’s just one problem - she doesn't want to die. Can’t they find a way to fight the creature rather than feeding it?
Both these stories plunge us into colourful worlds full of fun characters to interact with.
Each has a very linear beginning which eases us into the gameplay,
but also gives a very cinematic feeling to the game.
after you overcome your initial obstacles, you find yourself in more of a traditional open adventure game environment
which gives you plenty of scope for exploration.
The story has some cool twists and turns along the way.
This is the best type of twist, the one you don’t see coming, but when you does hit you hear yourself saying “Oh, of course.”
Act 1 finishes on a fantastic cliffhanger.
The story elements get resolved to a degree that you feel like you've finished something, and some questions are answered,
but those answers give rise to a whole bunch of new questions.
I had great fun discussing the implications and possibilities with a few work mates after we’d all played the game.
The voice acting in this game was very well done,
and the lesser known actors stand up well beside their Hollywood counterparts.
Broken Age has a very distinct art style, and I think it’s looks very cool.
It all has a beautiful hand-painted look. It’s as if a story book has come to life.
The music in this game, composed by Peter McConnell, and performed by the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra
was beautiful, and set the mood very nicely.
I especially liked the space walk music. Very epic.
Double Fine have put the soundtrack album out for sale if you’re interested.
The controls of this game are very easy to pick up.
Coming from an old-school adventure game perspective I prefer a few verbs to click on,
but Broken Age has followed the later trend in doing away with them all, so all you have to do is click on things.
he context determines the action.
This control scheme makes the game highly accessible to new players.
The puzzles in Act 1 are not too difficult, so if you’re not an adventure gamer, or in fact any type of gamer, Broken Age is a great place to start.
One of the cool things about adventure games is that they naturally promote problem solving through intellect and creativity,
rather than through violence.
If you’re a parent this could be a great game to get for your kids.
I grew up playing stuff like this and I loved it.
Act 1 of Broken Age is already out and ready to play.
Act 2 will be released later this year, but if you buy Act 1, you get Act 2 for free when it comes out.
I loved this game and I can’t wait to find out what happens in the second half.
If you’re looking to experience a fun interactive story,
or you want to re-live the glory days of adventure games,
then you must check out Broken Age by Tim Schafer.
I’m sure you’ll have as much fun as I did.
Thanks for watching. If you'd like to connect with me
you can find a whole bunch of ways
on the about page of my blog
at collingszone.wordpress.com
Catch ya next time.