Narrative adventure game
As Dusk Falls is an adventure game that takes players to a small town in Arizona. It is an interactive drama focusing on two families brought together during the town motel siege. The story spans thirty years and is told across two intense books.
As far as gameplay goes, As Dusk Falls feels like a motion comic. There’s almost no full animation present. Moreover, the game runs on dialogue trees and quick-time events. Like interactive games, your choices decide how the story goes. Although, it features multiplayer gameplay, meaning every player’s decision affects the outcome.
What is As Dusk Falls?
As Dusk Falls is an original interactive drama narrating the entangled lives of two families in a small town in Arizona. The game starts with a robbery gone wrong and tells the narrative of how it affected the lives of families. As mentioned, there is not much to it in terms of gameplay. Like a visual novel, 90% of what you do is all about choosing what dialogue to say.
Although, unlike similar games, this one features multiplayer. With this, the outcome of the story does not depend only on your decisions. You will also play some quick-time events (QTEs) during cutscenes. These events mostly consist of scanning a room with a cursor to find and examine objects. However, during this time, you will find that the game focused on the writing as the controls are pretty awful.
More than the gripping story, As Dusk Falls also boasts a unique visual style. As noted, it is more of a motion comic with the story playing out in stuttering, storyboard-style animation. Each character also comes with striking art. However, while the story is well-written, some chapters tell it in a haphazard way. Some parts have slow tension, while some have superfluous twists.
Is the game good?
In all, As Dusk Falls is an easy recommendation to anyone who likes TV drama. The game features a gripping story told in a unique visual style. Moreover, the characters have branching paths that make each playthrough personal. There are some storytelling issues in the latter half. But the intriguing plot at the beginning will leave you wanting to know how the story ends for you.
