Developer: Fictiorama Studios
Publisher: Daedalic Entertainment
Release Date: October 4, 2016
Platforms: PS4 (reviewed), Windows PC, Mac, iOS
Imagine a world where you wake up to find everything you remember has been destroyed, and you have no memory of who you are. This is the situation Dead Synchronicity’s Michael finds himself in after waking in an old trailer, to find a world which is quickly falling apart. This point and click adventure, originally released for iOS and PC, pits players in a dystopian environment, where the new rule to live by is you have to do whatever you can to survive. This darker, more mature entry to the genre has promise, but it isn’t without its issues.
A Bleak Reality
Our protagonist is named Michael, who is unfortunately yet another amnesiac in a video game. Once you get past this particular trope however, you can lead Michael into a world where the human race is starting to perish due to an epidemic which turns them into creatures called the Dissolved. This illness heightens their mental prowess to incredible levels, but also starts them down a path towards imminent death which leads to them essentially melting away into nothingness.
This disease stems from the Great Wave, which is discussed in the story as an event which essentially wiped out all electronics. In the wake of this disaster, the world is a place ruled now by military might. This is a topic which has been explored before in movies, television and books, but thankfully here the focus is a little different to the narrative path those games typically take. Michael is among others in what amounts to a refugee facility and his conversations with others help him piece together not only the general events but also the missing fragments of his own memory.
Trying To Stay Alive
The dark story and world is a major appeal to the game. When it explores situations where there is no right or wrong answer, Dead Synchronicity creates an engaging experience the likes of which most other adventure games won’t even think about touching due to the subject matter. Of course, this is when the game finishes and completes the character storylines/plot threads it unravels throughout the game. Oftentimes the tasks given to you by characters will be impossible to finish, even if you know what the answer for the task is and are actively trying to complete said task. If you need to talk to a man in the camp to finish a quest, you will be unable to interact with him at all. The absence of closure for many character arcs creates a hollow feeling, as you are unable to finish the investment made when you started to care about the characters.
What’s worse is the main plot of the game ends rather abruptly. Not just in an ending or in a “To Be Continued” screen, but ends with little resolution to the main story and seems to come completely out of nowhere. Unfortunately, this is the first half of a two-part series, and as such the game ends with many cliffhangers and unresolved situations. It is unclear when the second part will be out, whether it will be released as a free part, or if the second part will cost more.
It’s a shame it ends this way, because the style of the world is very attractive and eye-catching. The thick drawn lines coupled with the varying shades of red used in the background evoke dread and despair, showing the world has not finished its death throes. You will be reminded of minimalistic comic book art as you play the game, and the animation detail deserves praise for how kinetic and emotional it makes the action sequences feel.
The voice acting is fantastic overall with the weakest link being a character called Hunter. He is supposed to be an imposing character who rules the refugee camp with an iron fist, but instead comes off sounding childish. The fact Hunter says the word dude over and over makes his implied threats seem laughable instead of menacing. Michael sounds like a man struggling to come to terms with the new world, and his emotional outbursts sound like that of a man in anguish.
Puzzling Conundrum
Just walking around and interacting with people would not be enough to make Dead Synchronicity engaging, so puzzles were added to the mix. Most of them are clever, though there are handfuls which can prove pretty frustrating. It’s safe to say, the puzzles in this game fall on the harder side of the fence compared to most games, largely because the game doesn’t hold your hand to the puzzle solutions.
The problem is the puzzles border on frustrating however, almost to the point where so much time is spent on them instead of the narrative in which they can start behave like padding. There is very little feedback from the game during these puzzle segments. Even when you have the feeling you are on the right track, there were times where you simply cannot figure out how to get there. Anyone looking for a faster paced title will be sorely disappointed. The main draw of the gameplay is comprised of conversations, puzzles and a ponderous walk. Not unusual for the adventure genre, perhaps, but even these type of games are starting to modernize to remove the dead weight which often occurs as the main character wanders from one location to the next.
The voice acting is fantastic overall with the weakest link being a character called Hunter. He is supposed to be an imposing character who rules the refugee camp with an iron fist, but sounds like Jeremy from Peep Show trying to sound tough. The fact Hunter says the word dude over and over makes his implied threats seem laughable instead of menacing. Michael sounds like a man struggling to come to terms with the new world, and his emotional outbursts sound like that of a man in anguish.
Dead Synchronicity: Tomorrow Comes Today is a game which is quite hard to judge. On the one hand the art style, atmosphere, and interesting story premise are concepts which are worth experiencing. However, the pacing of the puzzles can be frustrating, especially when what would seem to be the obvious solutions don’t work in a world where regular logic usually applies. Which is a shame, because Dead Synchronicity: Tomorrow Comes Today has good ideas and the effort of the team can be seen; the ideas just don’t sync today.
