Broken Age
An adventure game that’s weird, wonderful and newcomer-friendly
Shay lives a coddled life, alone on a spaceship, watched over by some exceedingly parental computer programs. His days consist of saving his adorable toy-like shipmates from equally cutesy ‘disasters’. Vella lives in a sweet (literally) baking village, with a supportive family. Her days, however, are numbered – she’s due to be sacrificed to a great beast, to keep her village safe from its wrath.
Broken Age is the story of these two breaking away from their respective destinies and fighting back against their oppressor, whether it’s a huge monster or a restricting environment. You play as them both in this point-and-tap adventure, switching between their stories as you see fit until you reach the cliffhanger at the end of the first act – the second is coming later this year, and will be an additional IAP.
It’s traditional as far as adventure games go – tap to walk around the areas, tap to interact with things. The different areas you visit are largely interesting and fun, and the puzzles’ solutions make a lot of sense. We found it easy for this kind of game (not a bad thing), but a little light – no puzzle-solving made us feel like a genius, even if some are inventive. If you like your point-and-clicks to be brain-teasers, this won’t really satisfy.
However, we loved Broken Age anyway. It has some brilliant jokes in its clever script, with superb art and top voice acting bringing it all together – and, in the end a wonderful allegorical statement wrapped in its witty, frivolous candy shell. It’s fun and welcoming, even if you’ve not played an adventure game before. Matt Bolton
Veterans may find its puzzling a bit slight, but Broken Age’s wit, inventiveness and polish make it a must-play.