WadjetEye are not new to the classic point & click adventure games and their latest release of Primordia might be one of their best adventure games. Personally I am a great fan of the old school adventure games and I greatly appreciate these guys for the work they are doing to preserve this game genre. Adventure games seem retro, but no. After playing Primordia, I can safely say that it’s a great adventure experience in the sci-fi world and it’s worth the time to play through it and enjoy the work and dedication of the people who work in it.
Being in development by Wormwood Studios for the past three years, the story takes us in this desolated planet where mankind have long perished leaving behind the robots to maintain the planet for mankind’s return. The story starts in the outskirts of the city, Metropol, a city of lights and power for everyone where we find the android Horatio having a peaceful and simple life where he lives by the teaching of the Book of Man illustrating the purpose of the robots on the planet. Horatio is a simple, serious and solitaire android with the only purpose to go through piles of junk and try to maintain and repair machinery and robots for when mankind returns. The cliché to this is that his robot companion Crispin, is a robot whose wish is to leave the outskirts and head to the city of Metropol with all its lights and glamour, and of course being the opposite of Horatio. Yep, Crispin thou a small floating robot with no arms, is the comic relief to the story and is all the time replying to Horatio with his sense of humour.
Anyway, Horatio is repairing the crashed ship called the UNNIIC when suddenly his simple life is going to take turn-over. A robot breaks into the airship to steal the power core which is essential for Hortio and Crispin to survive being the only energy source. Horatio gets shot and after he gets back online, the robot has long gone with their power source. The only power in the vicinity is the corrupt city of Metropol and this is where your adventure begins. Discover who stole your power source, about the dark origins of Horatio and his purpose and of course the mysteries the game has in its sleeve.
The game is art in the sense that all environments and in-game graphics are all hand-drawn. Each robot has a unique design and character. Thou the resolution isn’t much for this-age game expectations, the game is superb in its kind. It’s like you’re playing a never-seen aspect of Blade Runner. The idea and the story-line are perfect and the sarcastic fights between Horatio and Crispin, give that touch of comedy to the game. The story is solid and so is the music behind it; it’s like listening to a mix of Star Wars and Blade Runner.
The difficulty and puzzle of the game are quite balanced and constructive. The story is one of a kind with a deep philosophical meaning and mixing it with a cyberpunked scenario, it’s a fantastic experience. The game challenges the player when making a decision leaving a dilemma to make you think if you did the right thing or not. No, you will not be able to die during the game. Too bad it’s not a movie; it would have made a great screenplay.
The game is relatively long and the fascinating part is that it has various ways to end the game, so make sure you save from time to time. The ending is not affected during your progression, just the ending decision. The only thing is that the game lacked a good hint system.
Conclusion
I really enjoyed playing Primordia, not just for the fact of being a fan of the genre but for the mind-twisting challenges that make the game interesting; especially with its fantastic sci-fi cyberpunked story. The game has a lot to it since it’s all hand-drawn and with its rich dialogue and compelling soundtrack will surely catch your eye.
