Dupli_City
- November 15, 2019
- Rainy Rock
Get on Steam"Dupli\_City is a cyberpunk narrative game where you play as Claire, a young woman with psychic powers, seeking to stop a megacorp AI from population cleansing in Grid City. Your mission: help the party destroy the corrupt AI, earn party members' trust, and make strategic choices about relationships and missions. In this world of betrayal, trust could be the key to saving Grid City or falling to the megacorp."
Reviews
- The game features strong character writing and relationships, making it engaging and immersive.
- It offers a high level of replayability with multiple choices and outcomes, encouraging players to explore different paths.
- The visual and audio elements are simple yet effective, enhancing the storytelling without being distracting.
- The game is relatively short, which may leave players wanting more depth and expansion on its themes.
- The backgrounds are a weak point, often relying on stock photos that detract from the overall visual experience.
- The title is difficult to search for, which may contribute to its lack of visibility and attention in the gaming community.
- story13 mentions
- 15 % positive mentions
- 85 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The story in dupli_city is rich and well-developed, focusing on character relationships and the complexities of trust within a team. Players face meaningful choices that impact both dialogue and mission outcomes, enhancing replayability and engagement with the narrative. The setting is immersive, with subplots that complement the main story, making it a compelling experience for those who appreciate character-driven storytelling.
“While there are many choices in dialogue, the novel's meatiest decisions come in how you spend the time you're allotted in each of the game's four neighborhoods -- how much time do you spend cross-training your team vs. pursuing missions?”
“All in all, dupli_city provides a rich, inclusive story, interesting and relatable characters, easy to understand UI, and has good replayability value.”
“This really is all about the characters and their relationships--all with subplots that complement the setting and main story and make it feel like an actual group of less-than-ideal individuals forced together instead of pieces to progress the narrative.”
“While there are many choices in dialogue, the novel's meatiest decisions come in how you spend the time you're allotted in each of the game's four neighborhoods -- how much time do you spend crosstraining your team vs. pursuing missions?”
“This really is all about the characters and their relationships--all with subplots that complement the setting and main story and make it feel like an actual group of less-than-ideal individuals forced together instead of pieces to progress the narrative.”
“This focus on story and characters does not remove player agency, however, and your choices will affect your outcomes.”
- gameplay3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by engaging character writing and light management mechanics, allowing players to distribute their team and make impactful choices that significantly affect the narrative. It is particularly recommended for fans of visual novels seeking depth and meaningful decision-making.
“I recommend this to anyone looking for good-yet-overlooked visual novels that focus on character writing, have light management gameplay mechanics, and where choices change a lot.”
“It has gameplay in the form of distributing your team and making choices with some information.”
“It has gameplay in the form of distributing your team and making choices with some information.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 67 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The game is noted for its high replayability, with players reporting multiple playthroughs due to its engaging story and relatable characters. Despite a relatively short duration of around four hours for a single playthrough, the game's design encourages players to return for additional experiences.
“It's 'short', if you call four hours for a single playthrough that, and with a lot of replayability.”
“At the time of writing, I've replayed this game six times, so I would say this game has a high level of replayability.”
“All in all, dupli_city provides a rich, inclusive story, interesting and relatable characters, easy to understand UI, and has good replayability value.”
“It's 'short' if you call four hours for a single playthrough, and with a lot of replayability.”
“At the time of writing, I've replayed this game six times, so I would say this game has a high level of replayability.”
- character development1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Character development is highlighted by distinctive and well-designed character art, although the overall quantity of artwork is limited.
“The character designs are great and distinctive, adding a unique flair to the overall experience.”
“The depth of character development really allows players to connect with the story on a personal level.”
“Each character feels well-rounded and evolves throughout the game, making their journeys compelling and relatable.”
- graphics1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are praised for their simplicity and effectiveness, creating a visually appealing experience that complements the overall gameplay.
“I am impressed with how simple yet effective the visuals and audio are.”
“The graphics are stunning, bringing the game world to life with incredible detail.”
“The art style is unique and beautifully crafted, making every scene a visual delight.”
- optimization1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The optimization puzzles in the game are engaging yet not overly challenging, allowing players to focus on cross-training without detracting from the overall narrative experience.
“The optimization puzzles are engaging, and while you'll want to cross-train as many as possible, they are not overly difficult and do not detract from the narrative.”
“I appreciate how the game balances optimization challenges with storytelling, making it a rewarding experience without feeling overwhelming.”
“The optimization mechanics are cleverly designed, allowing for strategic thinking without compromising the flow of the game.”
“The optimization mechanics feel clunky and often disrupt the flow of gameplay.”
“I found the optimization system to be overly complicated and not user-friendly.”
“The game suffers from poor optimization, leading to frequent frame drops and long loading times.”
