Escape from Ever After Review
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Every single day, we are being advertised to, with or without our consent. What makes it harder is that these corporations exist to keep us consuming without conscious thought, and trying to escape corporate oppression is even more difficult. What if corporations began to steal our stories? That is the premise of Sleepy Castle Studio's Escape from Ever After , a game that looks at how a corporate entity begins to overtake fairy tales as a means to make them last forever, only to, of course, have sinister motives.
Players take on the role of Flynt Buckler, a storybook hero whose sole purpose is to defeat the dreaded dragon known as Tinder. Storming into his castle, Flynt is graced with the surprise that Tinder's Castle has been turned into a corporate office. With random fairy-tale characters now in cubicles and Tinder nowhere to be found, Flynt begins investigating the castle and manages to find his nemesis locked up and unable to use her powers. Teaming up, Flynt and Tinder plan to take down Ever After Corp, to ensure that their storybook and everyone else's can revert to normal. Throughout their adventure, they will meet Unicorn unions, questionable relationships, and even search for buried treasure, all while working up the corporate ladder.
The enemy-turned-comrades' narrative, presented in Escape from Ever After, is an absolute highlight, as both Flynt and Tinder's relationship is highly entertaining. Their joint plan of coming together, joining Ever After Corp, and then working together to destroy it from the inside is genius storytelling, as the game sets clear motives for the characters to follow and never strays from the goal, even though the characters can't stand each other. Even the NPCs' delight, from Mr. Moon's sinister optimism to "Big Bad Wolf" Wolfgang's more questionable optimism, something is unnerving, which undermines the idea of corporate culture being a big happy family. The writing is genuinely clever and funny, playing with each of the fairy tale worlds, making them both super inviting, but also showing that these characters have drunk the corporate Kool-Aid and behave as though they work at the best cult place ever.
[caption id="attachment_180124" align="aligncenter" width="640"] All hail, Cthulhu![/caption]
Part of Escape from Ever After 's charm comes in the form of the storybook worlds that Flynt and friends get to explore. For example, the Three Little Pigs gentrify their neighbourhood and build condominiums to push out the happy-go-lucky wolves of Happy Howl Hollow. It's a complete twist on the story, and a clever shout-out to The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith. There are numerous hidden Easter Eggs to be discovered for those knowledgeable in the realm of children's literature, but even if one isn't, the transformations of many of the stories are both creative and highly entertaining. The characters and the world do an amazing job of highlighting the absurdity of children's stories, which is with a lot of care and humour.
There is another homage at play, and it comes from the game's battle system, which is heavily influenced by Paper Mario . Battles begin with two characters on screen, with the ability to swap during battle, each with their own gimmick. Flynt can throw his buckler around and, with perfectly timed button presses, can do double damage, while characters like Tinder and Patches require players to hold the button down and release at the perfect moment. Getting the rhythm of each character takes a bit of trial and error, but once mastered, performing the actions becomes fairly easy. Syngergy also plays a major role: when button presses are performed correctly, it fills the gauge and allows characters to perform a special ability depending on how much Syngergy has been gathered. These abilities absolutely help turn the tide of battle, as they are often the best way to hit multiple enemies at once. Characters will work together to support the character in the attack, whether it's throwing fire at Tinder to create a flame tornado or having the group sing with Wolfgang for a shield boost.
That said, enemies in the game, despite their low HP, often take a bit to defeat due to their sponginess or because there is a gimmick at play. Shield enemies require the player to swap to someone who can either burn it or destroy it, depending on the type, or consider using jumping abilities to deter the situation entirely. There are lots of small nuances in the enemies that need to be paid attention to, or the characters end up taking unnecessary damage. Even timing one's dodges requires a bit of trial and error. Even with timing issues, the game also offers accessibility options to help those who may struggle with timed button presses, as well as the ability to adjust the game's overall difficulty.
[caption id="attachment_180127" align="aligncenter" width="640"] He is never going to move up the corporate ladder.[/caption]
While the battle system and story are excellent, the game does have a few glaring flaws, particularly in its exploration. A lot of the puzzles will require Flynt and friends to use their specific abilities outside of battle, such as throwing Flynt's shield to hit levers, breathing Tinder's fire to light basins, or using one of Wolfgang's many songs to progress. While some elements are labelled and obvious, the majority of the game's puzzles are fiddly and obtuse, not often giving clear enough instructions to the player on what the expectation is. There's too much guesswork, and even upon solving the puzzles, it never feels satisfying, and the rewards are next to nothing other than the ability to move forward.
The same can also be said about the game's 3D platforming sections, where it is difficult to gauge a jump's distance or landing position. It also doesn't help that, while the environments are well-detailed, some platforms get obscured, so there are many instances where players may jump blindly into the abyss because the platform is difficult to see. These issues do hinder the fun of exploration, and patience is absolutely required during these sections.
There are numerous very funny and campy side quests. From assisting Mother Goose's various dramas to everyone forgetting and screwing up Pinocchio's birthday, every single quest offers a glimpse into the "family dynamics" of Ever After Corp. There is also tons of collectiable such as ink bottles to help boost skill levels, as well as outfits for Flynt that can assist in quests, such as his detective outfit which will allow him to see footprints. There are even collectible trinkets that can be wonderful boons in combat, including increased post-battle money and more MP gained with a successful block. There are tons to mix and match with each character, and all of them have their perks. The sidequests are fun, and collectibles offer a nice distraction throughout the game's twenty-hour run time.
[caption id="attachment_180134" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Welcome to the library![/caption]
Escape from Ever After has a fantastic visual design that, unfortunately, is marred by some noticeable graphical issues on PS5. During the review process, Flynt fell and became stuck in the environment multiple times, forcing a hard reset. Characters were also frequently stuck in the environments. These issues were annoying, but they didn't render the game unplayable. Graphics are a combination of 2D and 3D, with every storybook having its own distinct design that makes the story instantly recognizable. Character designs are charming and full of character, and the worlds are vibrant, giving a slight nod in each world that there is something slightly off about it. The game's soundtrack, composed by Daniel Whitworth, is a fantastic mixture of upbeat, jazzy tunes that are a complete bop. The music is fun, energetic, and contributes to the absurdity of everything happening in the story in a truly magical and twisted way.
Escape From Ever After is a gem of a game, offering clever layers that are engaging throughout its playtime, as the narrative and the game's combat truly carry the experience. While I wish the puzzles and platforming were more refined, I can also see the follow-through and how others may not have had the same issues as I did. What I won't deny is that Sleep Castle Studio has created a genuinely fun game that has brought new life into fairy-tale properties and given them an original spin. Escape from Ever After offers so much joy in such a small package, and those who love stories will find much to adore here.
Disclosure: This review is based on a free copy of the game provided by the publisher.
The post Escape from Ever After Review appeared first on RPGamer .
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