3/17/2023 0 Comments Cloudpunk character creation![]() The simulation-lite features-occasional refueling and vehicle repairs-are a slight nuisance, but not enough to warrant any significant outrage, and the handful of vehicle upgrades (literally three, I think) make little noticeable difference to how the driving feels. There are fast lanes that boost a player’s speed slightly, and weaving through traffic in those quickly became the only source of entertainment I could derive from the actual gameplay. Outside of a few timed objectives, it’s a straightforward “go from A to B” affair, time and time again. It’s not that the dialogue is bad or the story is dull, but the delivery jobs that bookend them are devoid of challenge, fun or engaging mechanics. Cloudpunk plays like a decent book that won’t let its reader turn the page until they’ve walked a few laps of the room. Was that tedious to read? It was certainly tedious to write. Pick up a package, listen to a conversation drive the package, listen to a conversation walk with the package, listen to a conversation deliver the package, listen to a conversation. If all of that sounds just terribly exciting, then you’re being misled: Cloudpunk’s interesting story beats are constantly let down by its mind-numbing pace and lack of engaging gameplay (or any much gameplay at all for that matter). Over the single night in which the game takes place, Rania (along with her endearing AI dog companion, Camus) will take countless delivery jobs interact with people and androids from every layer of Nivalis’ class system get mixed up in crime, conspiracy and corrupt corporations and come face-to-face with a rogue AI. Being an outsider, she shares a lot of the player’s unfamiliarity with the customs, beliefs and norms that Nivalis’ residents take for granted. And while it’s true that the dystopian Blade Runner- esque setting of Cloudpunk is nothing new-maybe even a little over-familiar to some-no game that I’m aware of has set out to capture a world for players to exist in quite like Cloudpunk.Īs established, Nivalis is the star of the show, but who’s the official protagonist? Well, the narrative plays out through the eyes of Rania, an outsider to the city on her first night working for the illicit delivery service Cloudpunk as a hover car driver. The game will often adjust the camera angle during on-foot sections to show parts of Nivalis at ‘just the right’ angle. With a voxel graphical style, the game is aesthetically pleasing in its own, interpretive way. There’s a main storyline, even gameplay of sorts, but the game’s lasting impression comes with how it constructs and immerses the player within its world. The open city of Nivalis, packed tight with floating buildings, aggressive neon lights and industrial grime is the player’s to explore-mainly by car, but occasionally on foot too. More than anything else, Cloudpunk wants to paint a picture-create an impression-of its world. Does it fill the boots left empty by CD Projekt Red’s absence? No, of course not, but it does offer a unique and memorable-if flawed-little narrative experience. Fortunately for ION LANDS, Cyberpunk 2077 was delayed, leaving Cloudpunk to take to the stage as the futuristic, dystopian star of April 2020’s release lineup. I mean… only one of the games has Keanu Reeves, and therefore only one of them could have ever possibly come out on top. Not because ION LANDS has any particular rivalry or feeling of ill-will towards the folks at CD Projekt Red, but because, had they released at the same time, the studio’s own cyberpunk-themed game, Cloudpunk, would have certainly been overshadowed by Cyberpunk’s immense hype. When the team at ION LANDS learnt of Cyberpunk 2077’s delay from April of 2020 all the way to September, there’s no doubt that any passer-by to their offices would have heard the sound of thunderous cheers and champagne corks popping. Reviews // 28th May 2020 - 3 years ago // By Jamie Davies Cloudpunk Review
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