As per my tradition, I make a point every weekend to show off something new and interesting that you might see someone play for Extra Life during the big 24 hour marathon. However, this weekend it would play out a little different. Rather then let the dice decide, my buddy Max Powers convinced me to give this game a go... and I am glad he did!
Story: Sometimes fandoms last long after the event or place from which it spawned... and so is the case with Indigo Park, an amusement park everyone's inner child remembers, both as a magical place and the cartoons they watched growing up. But that was years ago now. The cartoons may or may not be a thing for the company that runs them, but it's been about a decade since a mysterious event shut down the park... apparently for good.
But you can't let that slide. Needing to see what became of the place, you decided to do some urban exploring and break in one night only for the place to have it's own breed of surprises. For starters, there is an AI system still VERY active in the park. Taking the voice and image of the character Rambley the Racoon, this thing seems fully dedicated to showing you a good time at park, despite the condition of the place. Now if only that was all that was wrong...
There really isn't much more I can say for the story without ruining what it offers, which unfortunatley is not a lot. As noted in the title, this is really a chapter 1 to a much bigger story, and while what is here is a solid foundation, it really isn't much more then an introduction to the world you are about to enter.
5/10
Graphics: Simply put, Indigo Park is an absolutely gorgeous game. You will explore the park in all it's shambles from a first person perspective and wow this game, despite being the passion project of a small team who never developed a game before, absolutely blows the doors off of just about any game I have played in just how good it looks!
Every inch of this park is just loving detailed in all it's decrepit glory right from the second you actually start to play at the front gate as you look around a dirty and graffiti strewn outer wall surrounded by what looks like discarded meals of whoever might have been taking the place down and just gave up, leaving the garbage they had cleared in plastic bags just strewn about... and inside is no better as you start to see the actual buildings in various states of decay, even as you can still see a distinct impression of the themed amusement parks it's inspired by.
Not that you are here alone. As you explore the lands you will be accompanied by others who, like you, couldn't leave this collapsed landmark in their, past, but sadly they do not share the same level of detail as the world. They don't look bad, but they strattle that uncanny valley a bit. Thankfully when it matters, they are brilliant in motion, so unless you stop to think about it, you probably won't notice.
But while you may be the player, that leaves the star Rambley. This little guy will show up on monitors throughout your journey as his cartoon self, full of character and energy. If he showed up in a kid's cartoon, he would probably fit in without a second thought, yet somehow fits the world as it is now as it's lovable misfit.
8/10
Sound: When you notice the music in this game you NOTICE it, and I mean this in the absolute best way possible. For example, when you first start the game, the opening video will feature a very energetic mix as it bounces between your relics of the park at your desk and video of your drive up to the place you will start playing at which will pull you right in with an undertone of chaotic goodness. Let this set the tone for a lot of the music you will hear as you play. This is an amusement park, afterall, and it you can expect a lot of the music to be upbeat and made to have fun to!
Not that it will be all you hear, for there is plenty of time where you will hear only a stretched note or the wind in the background, letting the world paint the audio work and do so masterfully. As I noted above, this is an amusement park, but it is one that has been abandoned for damn close to a decade, and everything oozes that things have gone wrong in that time.
There is even a descent amount of voice acting in this one, alhtough it's almost all Rambley.... but then again his voice actor did brilliantly and by the time you are done, you just may feel sorry for the AI that's been stuck here watching things go to hell with no real way to stop it... just... watch...
Simply put this part of the game is superb.
9/10
Gameplay: So far Indigo park can be best described as a horror walking simulator. You will explore the grounds of the theme-park guided by Rambley as he tries to show you, the first guest he has even seen in many many years, a good time... well the best time he possibly can considering the condition of the place, but even he is not aware of how bad things have gotten, and just how bad it will get for anyone stuck here. There is not a lot of actual play in this particular episode, though. Much like I said in the story section, this game feels more like an introduction to a game then a major one. But even so, what is here is remarkably well done, and you will enjoy your brief time at Indigo Park (it took me about an hour or so to finish up and I take my time and sometimes try to do things I KNOW it shouldn't let me just to see if it works). But I can't say much since it's clearly just a taste of what is to come.
And yet the variety on display for a taste is already pretty impressive. From puzzles, to minigames, and even some chases before you are done, it's clear the developer wanted to show off the different gametype they want to do with this... and they succeeded. Where I can't say there is a lot to this, knowing there is more coming only makes me hungrier for it after this sliver.
7/10
Bugs: I honestly can think of no bug that occurred when playing this title. It was a short title, but it ran flawlessly from start to finish.
Digital Rights Management: Unfortunately I was unable to find anything to say if there was DRM in this title outside of maybe using Steam itself, but I didn't see any signs of it while playing. Take this with a grain of salt, but I think it's fairly DRM free.
Score: I can not tell you there is a lot here. But what is here is well thought out, and clearly made with a passion for the project. It's gorgeous in sight and sound, it feels creepy and will put you on edge, and it might even offer a thrill or two before it's short runtime is over. It kinda feels like a demo for this reason, but it's free and as I write this, the team is already planning out chapter 2, which I can only hope is as good. Absolutely great first outing, and I personally can't wait for more.
8/10
System Requirements:
- Unfortunately, Indigo Park does not list any system requirements on the Steam Page other then "Windows" but based on the performance I got, I would assume a modern PC should be used. The specs below got me fairly performance on the highest settings, hitting 50-60 FPS in the first room with everything maxed out and pushing my GPU to it's max at 1080p. However, turning down the global illumination setting and reflection settings (guessing raytracing based) cut the GPU stress to about around half use and locked at 60. (I could go higher, but my own monitor tops off there, so I don't see the point.)
System Specs:
- Ryzen 7 (5700X) 3.4 Ghz
- 32 GB RAM
- AMD Radeon RX 6650 XT (8 GB VRAM)
- Windows 11 (64 Bit)
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