Publisher: Atari

Developer: Quantic Dream

Release Date: 9/26/2005

Available On

Games these days lack much of a story, and thankfully Indigo Prophecy takes up some of that slack. About 80% of Indigo Prophecy is just storytelling with excellent voice acting. The majority of the game has you walking around places looking for clues to solve simple puzzles. This is done with the thumbstick moving, so it makes you feel like you’re “really picking objects up.” A good example is when you have to sit down: you just push the right thumbstick down (an icon will appear on the top of the screen to show what you are going to do and what move to make). The other half of the game is made up of mini-games with the timed thumb stick moving (think of Simon Says) and L+R alternations. Yeah, it doesn’t sound exciting, but it really works, and these ideas are implemented well with the ideas attached to them.

On the story side, it’s very complex and well-executed. You play Lucas Kane, who is convicted of a murder he didn’t commit. You play as the two cops investigating the crime as well. The whole purpose of the game is the idea of playing chess against yourself. You can decide how the game is played out, and actions you take early on will affect things later on. You really notice this too, because later on, you’ll say, “Oh man, I shouldn’t have done that earlier!” The game’s pace flows smoothly, and everything eventually comes together.

Between each scene in the game, you can choose which character you’ll play next, and this also determines the outcome. Some parts are also timed, so you have a certain amount of time to hide, collect, and hide evidence. If you miss one piece of evidence and someone comes to ask you questions, they’ll see it and get suspicious. This, in turn, raises their suspicion meter, and you must make the right choices so you don’t get busted. You also have a mental health gauge that lets you know how your character is feeling. Your choices will determine whether or not they become happier or more and more depressed, leaning toward suicide. You can do things like go to the bathroom, drink something, or even just make the right choice in a conversation to raise or lower this gauge. This plays a key role in certain scenes because some choices will completely drain your meter, so you end up turning yourself in. The game is constantly changing from Lucas’ childhood flashbacks, and the three separate characters keep things interesting.

Thankfully, you can beat the game in about 6–8 hours, so you won’t get too bored with these concepts. For a short time, they work well and will keep you hooked until the very end. The great storytelling and excellent voice acting keep you hooked. Now, a huge downside is that the game is hideous. The animations are stiff, and the textures are flat, dull, muddy, and just downright ugly. The game looks like a PS2 launch title; that’s how bad it looks. I played the PS2 version back when it came out, and that version had some slowdown, but the Xbox version is just as ugly. There are some extras here, such as making videos, galleries, and a soundtrack (which is really good). You can unlock these by finding bonus cards in the game, but don’t worry—one playthrough and you’ll get more points than you need to unlock everything. I highly suggest IP if you really want a good story. I also suggest picking this up at a game store because you can get it for less than $10 now!!! Xbox Originals charges you $15, so be warned!!

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