Preview: Demetrios (PC)

demetrioscoverDemetrios
Publisher: Cowcat
Developer: Cowcat
Genre: Adventure
Release Date: Early 2016

Kickstarter Page: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/983902887/demetrios
Steam Greenlight Page: http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=502785332

Demetrios is an upcoming point-and-click adventure game for PC by french developer Cowcat. The game prides itself on hand-drawn art and its sense of humor. I took a look at the demo (which you can get by following either of the above links), and am here to tell you a bit about it.

The main character is a man by the name of Bjorn Thonen, a Parisian antique dealer. That might not sound all that interesting, but let’s just say the dude is anything but a stuffy old dude surrounded by dusty objects nobody wants. Anyway, the game starts out with him returning home from a bender only to be attacked and burglarized. Not content to sit around while the inept coconut loving police force pretends to care, Bjorn sets out to find out who robbed him and why.

1To call this game irreverent would be an understatement. Nothing is taken seriously. This holds true both for the plot and the gameplay itself. For example, in order to get that coconut lover to finally make an appointment for you, you need to give him some coconut flavored ice cream. How do you do that? Simple. You mix a bit of ice and some of your coconut scented deodorant. It leaves a bit of an aftertaste, but all’s well that ends well. You can also make use of assorted appliances and furnishings in ways that most games simply wouldn’t allow. After all, that sign on that plant that says “please don’t pee on the plant” is just too damned tempting.

As you might imagine, there are ways to fail this game. You can’t just go poking your fingers in electrical sockets and expect no recourse (well, apart from that fancy outlet in the bathroom). Whenever something like this happens, you’re treated to an amusing scene of Bjorn being summarily arrested and/prepared for the afterlife with a list of his failings posted for all to see. The game lets you continue on afterwards without a problem if you’re worried about that. So it’s safe to find all of the “bad endings”!

The game uses simple point-and-click controls from the first-person perspective. Clicking on things lets you interact with them, you can use items from your inventory, and there’s even a hint system. The hint system is very similar to something like in Professor Layton. You find hidden cookies on each screen, and you can eat them in order to get a hint. If you eat too much, Bjorn will start complaining and might even vomit. Like I said, the game takes nothing seriously.

2As for the art, the game looks pretty good. The character models may or may not be your thing, but there has definitely been some attention to detail here. Each location is chock full of things to explore and interact with. The faces are a little odd, but that’s more subjective taste than anything else.

You can currently back the game on Kickstarter or vote for it on Steam’s Greenlight page (links above if you somehow missed them). Honestly, I’d recommend doing so if you’re a fan of the genre. The game is hysterical, the gameplay is where it needs to be, and the puzzles are amusing without being too obtuse. If you don’t believe me, feel free to try the demo yourself. Either way, this will be a game to watch in 2016!


Posted

in

, , ,

by

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *