Escape from Pleasure Planet
- December 15, 2016
- Up Multimedia
"Escape from Pleasure Planet" is a comedic action-adventure game set in a vibrant, retro-futuristic world. As the charming but clueless space janitor, Jeff, players must navigate through a series of absurd challenges and puzzles to escape the titular Pleasure Planet. With its unique humor and colorful cast of characters, this game offers a lighthearted and entertaining experience.
Reviews
- The game features a charming art style and colorful character designs that enhance the overall experience.
- It offers a fun and humorous narrative with plenty of campy elements, appealing to fans of LGBT themes.
- The puzzles, while challenging, provide a sense of accomplishment when solved, and the game has moments of surprising humor.
- Many puzzles are overly complex or tedious, leading to frustration, and some require external guides to complete.
- The game suffers from technical issues, including bugs and glitches that can hinder gameplay and progress.
- The story's resolution is disappointing, lacking the romantic payoff that players may expect based on the game's premise.
- story32 mentions
- 31 % positive mentions
- 59 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The story has received mixed reviews, with some players finding it quirky and engaging, while others describe it as bland and disappointing despite its creative elements and LGBT themes. Many appreciate the camp humor and character design, but feel that the narrative lacks depth and leaves a negative impression. Overall, it is seen as a decent point-and-click experience that could benefit from a stronger storyline.
“I still recommend it though for the quirky story and to signal to game devs that we need more gay-inclusive games.”
“Overall, I liked the structure of the story--of needing to find each founder to access a new pod to shut off other pods and sniff out Brutus.”
“The story kept me engaged, and even caught me off guard at some points.”
“The story certainly had some very creative elements to it, but honestly at the end I'm just left feeling disappointed and a little depressed by it.”
“It has some great elements, fun character design, great background art, simple controls, and great moments like the space oxygen-jet minigame, but if the story's not there, it's just not enough to pull it back.”
“The art is great and the characters are fun, but the story leaves you with a bad taste in your mouth.”
- graphics16 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are praised for their charming art style and lively animations, which effectively enhance the overall experience. Reviewers note that the artwork is excellent for the genre, contributing to a vibrant atmosphere, although some express frustration with the limited animation in certain puzzles. Overall, the visuals are considered a strong point, aligning well with successful 2D point-and-click games.
“Fortunately, the art style is on point.”
“Artwork is excellent for the genre and doesn't disappoint.”
“Not only are they full of life and personality, but the art style works really well for this game.”
“When you look at other successful point-and-click games with a 2D art style, you'll see all of them have more lively animations for every character.”
“I mentioned this briefly in the visuals section, but many puzzles take place in 1 or 2 rooms.”
“Graphics and visuals:”
- music16 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 44 % neutral mentions
- 19 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews, with some players praising it as a fun and well-chosen soundtrack that enhances the experience, while others find it annoying and loud. Despite some criticisms regarding its simplicity and potential budget constraints, many consider the soundtrack a hidden gem worth seeking out. Overall, the music contributes positively to the game's charm, though opinions on its execution vary.
“I love this soundtrack and would call it a hidden gem.”
“The music in the game is very well chosen too.”
“Music is great, I want a soundtrack.”
“The music is annoying and loud.”
“Some issues with this game arise from (presumably) a very tight budget and limited resources; bugginess, very basic music, simple plot, no voice acting, small environments, flimsy supporting characters, very little actual animation, overall shortness of gameplay.”
“There's a part of my brain that's telling me some of the soundtracks overlapped at points, but I might be remembering things strangely.”
- gameplay12 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 25 % negative mentions
The gameplay of "Escape from Pleasure Planet" is generally considered passable, with notable issues stemming from budget constraints, such as bugginess, simplistic music, and a lack of voice acting. Players have expressed frustration with the limited environments and the inability to skip or expedite certain sections, which can disrupt the flow of the game. However, some users have noted improvements in gameplay that enhance their overall enjoyment.
“Great improvement in the gameplay, enjoying every moment of it.”
“As a whole, the gameplay of Escape from Pleasure Planet is passable.”
“Some issues with this game arise from (presumably) a very tight budget and limited resources; bugginess, very basic music, simple plot, no voice acting, small environments, flimsy supporting characters, very little actual animation, overall shortness of gameplay.”
“That section took up almost a fifth of the gameplay, too, and you couldn't hurry it up or skip it, and if you did anything out of order, you'd have to do it all over again.”
- humor10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised for being punny, funny, and hilarious, with solid writing and colorful characters that contribute to a positive atmosphere. Players appreciate the clever jokes and numerous pop culture references, particularly to Star Trek, while enjoying the overall fun and engaging experience. The game successfully caters to a diverse audience, blending humor with adventure elements.
“Punny, funny, and hilarious.”
“Solid, funny writing, colorful characters, positive, bright atmosphere, plenty of Star Trek references, very gay, classy execution of said gayness.”
“Awesome, fun, and funny.”
- atmosphere6 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The atmosphere is characterized by solid, humorous writing and vibrant characters, creating a positive and bright environment enriched with Star Trek references. It is noted for its classy representation of LGBTQ+ themes, contributing to a unique queer subculture that feels perfectly integrated into the game's overall experience.
“Perfect atmospheres, very fitting.”
“Solid, funny writing, colorful characters, positive, bright atmosphere, plenty of Star Trek references, very gay, classy execution of said gayness.”
“I really feel the atmosphere has turned into its own queer subculture.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players generally find the grinding aspect of the game to be a mixed bag; while many puzzles are enjoyable, some are criticized for being tedious and frustrating, which seems to be a common feature in the genre.
“Others (like frustrating, non-intuitive puzzles and tedious tasks) are just a staple of the genre.”
“The puzzles were largely fine, but a few were tedious.”
- character development4 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
While the game features impressive character designs and enjoyable gameplay elements, reviewers feel that the lack of a compelling story undermines the overall character development, leaving it feeling insufficient.
“The best thing about this game is the character designs.”
“It has some great elements, fun character design, great background art, simple controls, and great moments like the space oxygen-jet minigame.”
- stability4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game has been reported to have significant stability issues, including numerous bugs and glitches, particularly affecting puzzle interactions. Additionally, performance on Mac systems is notably poor, prompting some users to switch to PC for a better experience.
“This game is a little buggy and doesn't run very well on Mac; I tried it and switched to PC.”
“There are a lot of glitches and bugs when you attempt most of the puzzles.”
“This game is a little buggy and doesn't run very well on Mac; I tried it and switched to PC.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find the emotional impact of the game particularly poignant, with many expressing deep sorrow over the moment of leaving a character in the asylum, highlighting the game's ability to evoke strong feelings of heartbreak and attachment.
“The most heart-breaking thing about this game was having to leave him in the asylum.”