Tales From Off-Peak City Vol. 1 Review for Steam

Tales from Off-Peak City Vol. 1 is an indie-adventure game developed and published by Cosmo D Studios. The first volume of the game is set to be released on the Steam platform on May 15^th of this year. As described by Cosmo D Studios, the game uniquely features seemingly incompatible forms of game play, with players being able to “explore the streets and its surroundings, make pizzas, take photos, push buttons, open drawers they’re not supposed to, and lose themselves inside the atmospheric musical score that integrates itself directly into the game world.” According to the developers, each volume will act as its own mini-story, but will add to the larger story being told about the mysterious “off-peak” city.

The unique design of the game’s setting is a combination of gothic, urban, and fantasy elements. The city is kept permanently dark and is decorated with tall, harrowing buildings that either curve or stand tall. The faces of some of the buildings (yes, faces) help both to characterize them and add to their peculiarity of this very strange city. It is definitely a fun game to look at that will keep you interested with all of the wacky and unusual details in the design, such as a river that runs through the middle of the city and various forms of secret passageways that help you get around easier.

The style of the graphics has its own appeal that I found to be perfectly in the middle of realistic and bizarre. Major characters are more detailed than I would have expected in terms of facial features, and some have specific and abnormal physical features that make them easy to identify and add to their threatening or comforting presence. Furthermore, if the city’s design and graphics weren’t enough, the atmospheric music and sounds were perfectly placed to give each location the feel it is meant to give.

Music is highlighted in Tales from Off-Peak City Vol. 1, with characters even speaking in rhythms and tones. Walking through the main streets of the city, players hear up-beat music and the usual unidentifiable, sometimes alarming sounds that accompany the hustle-and-bustle of city-life. However, when players enter alleyways or other unsettling areas or situations, the music and sounds change drastically, assisting the uneasiness and curious fear of the player.

The storyline of Tales from Off-Peak City Vol. 1 is one that offers mystery, emotion, and an enhanced version of combined familiar themes (corporate control and corruption, chemically-modified foods and mental health concerns, humanness, living happily versus living stabily, etc.). As we were given a mission from our comrades of a mysterious organization that we are trying to prove ourselves to, our main goal of the game is to steal a valuable saxophone from a man named Caetano, who used to be a musician, but currently owns a pizza shop in the city.

You begin to work for Caetano, and adopt his questionable methods for making pizzas as you plan to steal his prized possession. During this time, you learn of the infamous Human Resource Horizons (HRH), the large business that owns and employs most of this city. While playing, players will uncover the secrets of the city, the organization, and Caetano; all of which should keep players engaged and guessing about the story up until the end. Dialogue between characters flowed naturally and helped to showcase character personalities and the themes of the game. I really enjoyed how much character interaction added to understanding the game.

Most of the game play is simply making and delivering pizzas, buying objects that you need to advance, talking to people to learn more about the society and other characters, and sneaking around. Really, you are just a normal person trying to find your way to a pizza shop owner’s saxophone, but it requires you to become involved with way more than you likely expected. Nothing in Tales from Off-Peak City Vol. 1 is really difficult because its main focuses are atmosphere and story. There is in-game help offered at a certain point in the game for when players may get stuck, offered in the form of a band working in your pizza shop. Aside from making pizza, you can also take pictures and document your journey freely for fun.

Tales from Off-Peak City Vol. 1 captivated me and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for volume 2!

9/10

Check Out the Tales From Off Peak City Vol. 1 Trailer:

Tales From Off Peak City Vol. 1 releases for Windows PC, Mac, and Linux via Steam and Itch.io. tomorrow, May 15, 2020.

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