Alternativa

About Alternativa

Alternativa is a single player puzzle game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Centauri Production and was released on November 5, 2010. It received neutral reviews from players.

Alternativa is a story that will take you to a world much different to what you'd expect in 2045. To a world destroyed by war and revolutions, a world led by an oppressive and cruel dictatorship. Classic point & click adventure game based on the original sci-fi/cyber-punk script which is composed of a number of shorter stories that lead us through the lives of individual characters as well as the …

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Play Modes

Single-Player

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Reviews

42%Audience ScoreBased on 139 reviews

story37 positive mentions

stability6 negative mentions

Atmosphere and setting: The game's dystopian cyberpunk world with detailed pre-rendered backgrounds creates a believable, immersive environment.
Story and narrative depth: The game offers a mature, thought-provoking story with complex political and social themes told through multiple character perspectives.
Classic point-and-click gameplay: Traditional adventure mechanics with inventory puzzles, dialogue choices, and multiple difficulty settings appeal to fans of the genre.

Technical issues and bugs: Frequent crashes, freezes, and glitches significantly disrupt the gameplay experience, requiring frequent manual saving.
Pacing and design flaws: Excessive backtracking, slow character movement, pixel hunting, and obscure puzzle logic lead to frustration and disrupt flow.
Unsatisfying and abrupt ending: The story concludes on an unresolved cliffhanger with many plot threads left hanging, likely due to cancelled sequels, disappointing many players.

story
117 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
32% positive mentions, 59% neutral mentions, 9% negative mentions
The story of Alternativa is set in a dark, dystopian near-future with a strong focus on atmosphere and world-building, featuring themes of violence, corruption, and oppression. While some praise its intriguing premise and immersive setting, many criticize its uneven pacing, illogical plot points, weak character development, and an abrupt, unresolved ending that leaves major threads dangling. Overall, the narrative shows potential but feels incomplete and rushed, often failing to deliver a satisfying or coherent conclusion.
- “The story took me in from the beginning: the game creates an atmosphere of hopelessness but at the same time there is the spark of revolt, personified in our protagonist.”
- “Its commitment to world-building, thoughtful storytelling, and atmospheric presentation helps it stand apart from many genre counterparts.”
- “Plenty of good voice acting, tons of excellent art, an interesting story, an immersive world and characters you can relate to.”
- “The main problem with this game is that it stumbles around for about 7 hours trying to build something gripping and engaging, and when it finally succeeds at immersing you into the story it simply ends; there's no closure to any of the main plot points and everything is left on a cliffhanger.”
- “Unfortunately, the writing of the story itself isn't on the same level, in my opinion: the story leaves very little room to actually explore the interesting world of Alternativa, the plot points sometimes feel a little bit forced (if not to say in some cases: random).”
- “It feels as if the company ran out of budget and couldn't flesh out the story any more, because after you are really getting into the story and uncovering lots of stuff, the ending basically tells you, 'well, that's all we can do for now, we better disappear before the bad guys discover us.' That's it.”
graphics
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28% positive mentions, 62% neutral mentions, 10% negative mentions
The graphics are generally seen as decent to good, with particular praise for the art style, pre-rendered backgrounds, and atmospheric visuals, especially given the game's genre and engine limitations. However, some users note dated visuals, blurry elements, and restrictive resolution/aspect ratio support that detract from the experience. Overall, graphics are viewed as a strong point but limited by technical constraints and occasional minor annoyances.
- “From derelict slums to high class modern facilities, the artwork is convincing and draws one in.”
- “Backgrounds are nicely pre-rendered/drawn, locations feel different yet appropriate, and both backgrounds and characters share the same art style.”
- “The best part of the game is undoubtedly its art style.”
- “The few pre-rendered cutscenes this game has do work in widescreen format, but for some strange reason, mysterious black letterboxes appear on the top and bottom without going all the way from left to right, only cutting off some of the visuals, which I also found annoying.”
- “Graphics leave a lot to be desired, the movement is slow, and the story is boring; if you mess something up and save over a previous game file, you have to restart which is super frustrating.”
- “Not to mention that the graphics look like they are from 2002 because of the limitations from the engine the game uses.”
gameplay
22 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14% positive mentions, 72% neutral mentions, 14% negative mentions
The gameplay in Alternativa is a traditional point-and-click adventure with a strong focus on narrative and investigative elements rather than action or excitement. However, it is often criticized for frustrating mechanics such as excessive backtracking, clumsy item use, and a lack of flow, which can detract from the overall experience. While the story and setting receive some praise, the gameplay is generally viewed as dated, flawed, and less engaging.
- “Rather than relying on spectacle or action-heavy sequences, Alternativa focuses on narrative depth, investigative gameplay, and the gradual unraveling of a complex conspiracy.”
- “While some of its mechanics may feel dated, the strength of its narrative and the richness of its setting continue to make it a memorable experience.”
- “Gameplay is simple and has a user-friendly interface.”
- “The gameplay was so pointless that at the middle of the game I started to use a walkthrough just to play the game instead of wandering aimlessly everywhere trying to find a piece of paper or a piece of grass.”
- “Unfortunately, alternativa drops the ball gameplay-wise, with clumsy mechanics that force a lot of back-and-forth between scenes, causing frustration.”
- “Players seeking constant excitement or action-oriented gameplay may struggle with the game's deliberate and methodical approach, which involves a lot of pointless backtracking.”
atmosphere
13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
54% positive mentions, 23% neutral mentions, 23% negative mentions
The game is widely praised for its strong and immersive atmosphere, characterized by thoughtful world-building, a dark yet engaging mood, and a compelling, cerebral sci-fi theme. While some find the story contrived or unfinished in places, the atmospheric presentation, music, and overall tone consistently stand out as the game’s key strengths.
- “The game's greatest achievement is its atmosphere.”
- “Its commitment to world-building, thoughtful storytelling, and atmospheric presentation helps it stand apart from many genre counterparts.”
- “The story took me in from the beginning: the game creates an atmosphere of hopelessness but at the same time there is the spark of revolt, personified in our protagonist.”
- “Fans of cerebral sci-fi and classic adventure games may find it worth a playthrough for the atmosphere and themes, but flaws like technical issues, pacing problems, and an unsatisfying conclusion hamper its overall quality.”
- “Half-decent atmosphere.”
- “None of the other quotes provide negative feedback on the atmosphere.”
music
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33% positive mentions, 34% neutral mentions, 33% negative mentions
The music generally enhances immersion with fitting atmospheric and surround sound elements early on, but it becomes sparse or absent in the final stages, detracting from the experience. While some find the soundtrack enjoyable and well-integrated, others note it as unremarkable and inconsistent alongside variable voice acting quality.
- “Combined with cinematic sequences and a fitting soundtrack, these shifting viewpoints contribute to a stronger sense of immersion and narrative scope.”
- “Interestingly, the game supports surround sound, as I could hear the ambient music in my rear speakers and the dialogue was played from the center speaker.”
- “I enjoyed the music and the atmospheric touches.”
- “The final leg of the game isn't even cyberpunkish, but turns into some Tropico or Far Cry 6 type of point-and-click where some locations that felt rushed didn't even have ambient sounds, and all you could hear was your character's voice lines amidst silence (could have been another bug, as in someone else's walkthrough on YouTube I could hear the ambient music playing).”
- “The voice acting quality is inconsistent and the music unremarkable.”
- “Non-essential elements vanish, background music disappears, puzzles simplify.”
stability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
The game suffers from frequent technical issues, including long loading times, freezes, crashes, and glitches, resulting in a choppy and unstable experience. These stability problems significantly impact gameplay enjoyment and may not justify the full price.
- “However, because of constant technical issues (long loading times, freezes) I stopped playing.”
- “Clunky, sluggish, freezes and crashes.”
- “The game played a bit choppy for me (though that could have been due to the glitches... I had to keep rebooting the game).”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 100% negative mentions
Grinding in the game is often described as tedious and boring, with repetitive backtracking that detracts from enjoyment. While the detailed environments and logical puzzles add some appeal, the overall pace and repetitive nature make the experience feel dull and tiresome.
- “The interface is straightforward point-and-click with simple puzzles that are logical but sometimes require tedious backtracking.”
- “It became tedious and boring.”
- “I'd give it a D- at best, because while it has the makings of a decent story, it quickly becomes too tedious to play and enjoy.”
humor
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The humor in the game is a mix of lighthearted moments that provide a welcome contrast to darker themes, including clever references like the Sam & Max nod. While some jokes land well and elicit laughs, others are more hit-or-miss, contributing to an overall sporadic but appreciated comedic tone.
- “I appreciated the bits of humor that were thrown in to offset the tragic elements, like the brilliant Sam & Max reference.”
- “The ending is really bad as well XD, but it made me laugh.”
- “There are some dialogues and comments that are kinda funny.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 50% negative mentions
Users feel that the game lacks character development, with characters remaining static and minimal background stories, which some find disappointing but understandable for simplicity.
- “There is no character development whatsoever, with all of the characters being static.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
0% positive mentions, 100% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game’s optimization is commendable, as enabling antialiasing significantly improves character visuals with only a minimal impact on performance. Without it, low resolution causes noticeable aliasing, but overall, the settings strike a good balance between quality and efficiency.
emotional
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions
The game's emotional impact is characterized by a sense of incompleteness, leaving players feeling as if they've only experienced the beginning of a larger story rather than a full, satisfying conclusion.