GabeN: The Final Decision
- September 16, 2015
- Alex Zhang
Get on SteamIn "GabeN: The Final Decision," play as Gabe Newell investigating the sabotage of Valve's Triple Steam Summer Sale games: Half-Life 3, Portal 3, and Team Fortress 3. Uncover a shocking story, confront Robin Walker, and make a critical decision. This narrative-driven adventure explores the fate of long-awaited Valve titles.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- The game offers a surprisingly engaging experience, with a brutal ending that leaves a lasting impact.
- It's a fun and humorous meme game that pays homage to beloved Valve characters and games.
- Despite its flaws, the game has a nostalgic feel reminiscent of classic RPGs, making it enjoyable for fans of the genre.
- The game suffers from significant technical issues, including crashes related to achievements and poor save functionality.
- Many players find the gameplay tedious and unbalanced, with a high encounter rate and lack of meaningful challenge.
- The overall execution feels rushed and poorly developed, leading to a lack of depth and coherence in the story and gameplay.
- story32 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 66 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game's story is a mixed bag, with some players appreciating its parody elements and humor, while others criticize it for lacking depth and coherence, often describing it as nonsensical or overly reliant on memes and familiar tropes. Despite its flaws, some reviewers highlight strong dialogue and character development, particularly for fans of the Half-Life series, suggesting that expectations should be tempered regarding its narrative complexity. Overall, the story seems to serve more as a lighthearted backdrop than a serious plot, appealing to those who enjoy its comedic and absurdist approach.
“Amazing game, awesome storyline.”
“The story is exactly what you'd expect from a sequel to Half-Life 2, full of great dialogue and extremely well thought-out character and plot development.”
“It started off good, story was simple yet interesting.”
“The story is quite bad, but I've seen worse in other games.”
“If you are going to buy this game, do not expect much at all in terms of story or gameplay.”
“The plot is nonexistent - something something illuminati and Valve characters make an appearance for no logical reason.”
- humor26 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is polarizing, with some players finding it amusing due to its meme-centric content and references to Gaben and Valve, while others criticize it as unoriginal and poorly executed. Many reviews highlight that the attempts at humor often fall flat, with jokes being either outdated or lacking creativity, leading to a mix of genuine laughs and frustration. Overall, the game's comedic value seems to hinge on familiarity with its references, making it a hit or miss experience for players.
“Funny little meme game about Gaben and Valve Co.”
“But you are paying for 2 things: the humor (and if you know who these people are, it's actually pretty funny at moments).”
“I also cannot stop laughing at the copy/pasted pic of Gaben in this game... so funny.”
- gameplay22 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 45 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
The gameplay has received mixed reviews, with many users criticizing it as tedious, simplistic, and unbalanced, often likening it to typical RPG Maker titles that prioritize humor over mechanics. While some players find enjoyment in its straightforward turn-based combat and potential for extensive playtime, others feel it quickly becomes boring and lacks depth. Overall, expectations for gameplay should be tempered, as it may appeal more to fans of lighthearted, joke-driven experiences rather than those seeking a robust gaming challenge.
“The gameplay is simple, use arrow keys to move, enter is your action button and combat functions like a Pokémon game in a simplistic turn-based fashion.”
“I can see myself spending hundreds of hours of great quality gameplay time with this wonderful title in the future.”
“Gameplay & mechanics: 9/10”
“Writing is lazy, fighting is your typical RPG Maker style, gameplay is plainly boring.”
“The gameplay consists of mostly tapping enter if you have the right gear.”
“The gameplay gets boring pretty quick too.”
- graphics8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 38 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The graphics in the game are highly inconsistent, with some users criticizing the use of stock RPG Maker assets and poorly executed artwork, while others praise the visuals as amazing, even rating them 11/10. Overall, the graphical quality appears to vary significantly, leading to a mixed reception.
“Last but certainly not least, the graphics are amazing.”
“The graphics are either completely stock RPG Maker assets or bad paint jobs.”
“The artwork is pretty much just Google images put into the game, so you can imagine it's all pretty bad yet mildly humorous.”
“The graphics are either completely stock RPG Maker assets or bad paint jobs.”
- music6 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is highly praised for its quality, with users noting that the royalty-free tracks are enjoyable and contribute to a relaxing experience. Additionally, the soundtrack and sound effects are described as incredibly realistic, enhancing immersion to the point of causing confusion with real-world sounds.
“The soundtrack and sound effects are amazing and so realistic that I first thought someone was shooting outside my apartment.”
“The royalty-free music is pretty good.”
“I relaxed for 5 minutes listening to this music, long enough to realize that I would be okay.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious and frustrating, often describing it as generic filler that detracts from the overall experience. The gameplay is criticized for being unbalanced and incoherent, making the grinding feel more like a chore than an engaging challenge.
“The gameplay is tedious, incoherent, and unbalanced.”
“After that, there's a generic elemental dungeon which is nothing but tedious and annoying filler.”
- character development4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 100 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The reviews indicate a significant dissatisfaction with the character development in the game, particularly criticizing the villain for lacking depth and relying on clichéd tropes like the "Illuminati." This suggests that the game's narrative suffers from superficial character arcs, which detracts from the overall storytelling experience.
