Is A Plague Tale: Requiem Good?
A Plague Tale: Requiem was my Game of the Year for 2022. Granted I haven’t played a lot of the major titles from that year yet, but that doesn’t diminish the quality of this game. It's rare when I find a game that doesn’t really have much of a weak point, but this is one of those times. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it flawless, but from my experience, this is one of the closest games have come to a perfect execution of what it is trying to do. At once an enjoyable experience and a masterful narrative, this is a game that truly deserves to be remembered.
10. Graphics
Requiem is very beautiful, makes it easier to see the rats
For technically an AA game (a rare thing in the modern gaming landscape), Requiem looks very impressive. As a proper next-gen (or I guess current-gen now) title, it doesn’t have to be held back by aging hardware and can look as impressive as it wants to. As such, it is a jump into modern gaming, and quite an impressive one at that.
9. Music
Don’t let the rats scratch the music
In terms of music, it's about the same as in Innocence for the most part. Just with the addition of lyrics to a fair number of songs, often in French as expected for a game set in France. Once again, pretty good and some are better than expected. Just not a standout in the world of video game music.
A Plague Tale Requiem - Lyrics - Main Title
A plague Tale Requiem Lyrics - Up There (FR, EN)
8. Puzzles
Oh joy, a massive puzzle
Yeah, even for someone who doesn’t mind puzzles in games, some were a bit intrusive here. Like those windmills up there…. The puzzles here were not a dealbreaker by any means, and some were even pretty clever.
It's just that some kind of did kill the pace of the rest of the game, which was often very fast (but in a good way). So not really a bad thing on their own, just something that could have been implemented better with a little more effort.
7. Stealth
Hmm, it would be a shame if someone put out that fire….
Thankfully the rest of the core gameplay in its stealth and “combat” faces little issues here. Rather the more open areas of this sequel allow for much more opportunities when it comes to sneaking past the many guards who want you dead.
I say “combat”, but there is a bit more actual fighting here than in Innocence, particularly one notable sequence I won’t spoil but felt very horror-game-esque. Amicia still is a normal girl dealing with armed soldiers, so don’t expect to be able to go head-to-head with many.
But she is crafty and has more options than before. The amount of creative kills you can pull off if you’re smart is impressive and a sight to behold. Especially in the more infected areas.
6. The Grim World
Don’t even try to count the rats in this game
According to numbers from the developers, Innocence could show around 5,000 rats at once. In Requiem, this is increased to an astounding 300,000. And in some scenes of the game, it definitely looks like that many rats are around, tearing into people both dead and alive.
This should give you a good idea of how dark this world is. The plague is spreading and with it, the rats are growing in number. People struggle to hold back the hordes with what little light they have left, and before long even that is gone. And the rats claim more lives, continuing the cycle of death.
5. Fun Factor
Amicia and Hugo enjoying the sights
But despite all this grim tone to the world, actually playing the game is rather enjoyable. Assuming you like stealth action games of course. It's a very living world, even when the rats are killing everyone.
This is due in large part to the game simply controlling very well and sleekly, having little to no issues from what I encountered (but your mileage may vary). It's simple fun, regardless of it is a bustling town or a dying patch of land surrounded by rats.
4. Replayability
A town burning, again, how new
In terms of reasons for going back, Requiem has a bit more than Innocence. The returning to old areas from before is still here and largely serves the same purpose of finding missed things or just revisiting.
New Game Plus was added though, and it allows you to start anew with a number of things carrying over from before. This isn’t something everyone will use of course, but in a sizable adventure like this with methods of progression, NGP is always appreciated. And that’s not even accounting for revisiting the story with knowledge of how it ends.
3. Difficulty
Arrr, this game has pirates
The difficulty is another thing that’s fairly similar to Innocence, meaning not too rough most of the time. The more open areas do complicate things at times, such as in the larger areas controlled by enemies that require very careful stealth to get through.
But that’s about it, it's just more Innocence. A much better Innocence yes, but if you had little issues there, expect about the same here.
2. Characters
Amicia and Hugo are back, plus some fun new faces
As a direct sequel to Innocence, you’ll be seeing largely familiar faces here. Once again you’ll step into the shoes of Amicia De Rune as she struggles to save her brother and herself from the horrifying world they live in. Hugo is once again a bright spot amongst the death, remaining optimistic as long as he can.
Of the new characters, the most notable is easily Sophia. This former pirate becomes a reliable ally to the siblings and brings a fair bit of humor with her. Aside from the siblings I found her to be the best character in these games, as her moments of humor were much appreciated in a game as dark as this.
1. Story
Hugo just wants to live, why don’t you let him live?
Discussing the story here is difficult without spoiling it, but I will say this. A bit into this game, I had a suspicion about how it might end but never expected it to actually go that far and commit…. it commits.
But to be more general, the story still focuses on trying to cure Hugo of whatever ails him. Only now it is clearly getting worse, and his time runs out malicious forces try to capture him for their own purposes. The stakes soon rise to levels you wouldn’t expect, and this personal tale becomes both personal and universal by the end. Ending in a moment I don’t see myself forgetting anytime soon.
In conclusion, A Plague Tale: Requiem is a fantastic sequel that took a game with promise and turned out a sequel that deserves to be remembered as one of the greats. If the likes of The Last of Us are remembered for their story despite having serviceable gameplay at best, then this game should be too. It is much like that game after all: an exceptional story contained within a solid package. And look at that, both even have an infestation trying to kill the stragglers of humanity! Rats, fungal zombies, not a lot of difference when they kill just the same.
Score: 10/10
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