The Ten Worst VNs of 2017

9) The Monster Inside (Random Seed Games)

SPOILER ALERT: this list is going to contain another game operating in a genre it doesn’t understands. It seems one of the biggest challenges for many developers will be learning the ropes of new genres and applying their own unique touch to them. Random Seed does seem to understand the overall tone of film noir and the minimalist backgrounds are very good. However, the game itself? Yeah, they’re going to have to take this L.

I had to double-check the clock on this one because I was sure it was wrong. However, I managed to 100% complete the game in eleven minutes. In that very rushed time, what we get is a fairly straightforward story that has zero tension and no interesting in developing its characters beyond the bare bones stereotypes of film noir: the grizzled detective and the femme fatale. There really isn’t even a story here to critique: it moves too fast for it. Just a series of moments to confirm that yes, we are dealing with a grizzled detective and a femme fatale.

It causes the twist at the end, which would have worked fairly well given more time and development, to fall completely flat. I wish I could say more about The Monster Inside other than its a blink-and-you’ll-forget it experience, but that is also the reason its on this list. You forget that you’ve played this thing so fast, it begs the question why so much clear time and enjoy was made putting it together. Maybe it’s just to get the team’s collective feet wet, maybe this really is the extent of their narrative creativity: I don’t know. Hopefully, Random Seed will actually give us a strong narrative next time around along with a solid presentation or they risk becoming as forgettable as this title.

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