Beneath a Steel Sky has such an awesome name. Ever since I heard the name I felt like I was missing something by not having played it. That’s quite a powerful effect considering I really knew nothing about the game. After finishing the game I wanted to play another point and click adventure game right away, and that basically summarizes what makes a game good. When you’re finished with it you want more of it. It’s only three dollars on the iTunes store so if you’ve got an iPhone or iPod Touch and a few bucks left in your iTunes account it’s more than worth your time.
If you’ve not played the game, my following paragraphs might have some spoilers, so beware. But I think all you really need to know is that it is a good Point and Click with a great story that is more than worth your time. Spoilers from here on out.
Okay, so now that everyone with me has finished the game, what the hell was the ending? That was kind of a bummer, right? I mean that was Robert Foster taken by a clone army of himself to have him run LINC, right? Where the hell did that come from? And it looked like he was walking in the city, but I thought there was a note saying time had passed. Or was I seeing things?
Anyway.
While I loved the story, the puzzles were pretty confusing at times. Thank goodness for the hint system which gave a good amount of a push with the title of the hint section. The worst one for me was after you convinced Mrs. Piermont to sponsor you for the club. Going to the club did nothing at all, and I wandered around trying to find out what the hell to do before I had to rely on the hint. Finally giving in, the hint is “How do I get the dog biscuits?” which confused me even more. I just got made the member of a club, why do I need dog biscuits?
There were a few too many moments like this which made the game a bit irksome. I felt like I had to rely on the hint system and this made me feel dumb. But I was enjoying the story enough to let myself feel a bit stupider than usual. There are a few times where going into the hint system is no help at all, although, because for some reason at these times the game assumes you need no push whatsoever. Annoying, but I made do.
The story is a good cyberpunk stroll through a surprisingly colorful world. The name and box art may fool you, but the inhabitants and decor of Union City are surprisingly warm. Robert Foster and his robot pal Joey prove to be an entertaining pair sprinkling humor throughout the grim story line. A shame about the puzzles being a bit weird or unclear at times but in the end I made my way through and had an awesome time with the game.
Now to find another point and click to scratch the itch.
