Infinite Game Works Episode 0
- June 10, 2014
- Sakura River Interactive
A Game about making Games! Actually care about the people you work with! Play the role of Justin a high school student as he embarks on his dream journey to become a game developer. Having just won a programming contest he enlists the aid of Cleo the artist and Aki the music composer. How will the team grow and take on the hardships along the way?
Reviews
- The art style is quite pretty and visually appealing.
- The story has potential and interesting characters, hinting at deeper plots.
- Some meaningful choices in the story part provide a refreshing topic.
- The gameplay is repetitive and lacks challenge, often feeling like busywork.
- Character development is shallow, with minimal interaction and progression.
- The game feels unfinished, with numerous technical issues and poor translation.
- story13 mentions
- 23 % positive mentions
- 54 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The story in the game shows promise but ultimately feels incomplete and poorly executed, with many players noting its confusing foreshadowing and lack of clarity. While some appreciate the immersive and self-contained episodic structure, others criticize the sporadic nature of the plot and the gameplay's repetitive mechanics that detract from the narrative experience. Overall, the characters and story drive engagement, but they fall short of expectations, leaving players wanting more depth and coherence.
“First off, the story is good.”
“The story, while episodic, is very self-contained and immersive to boot.”
“The story is mildly interesting, hinting at some bigger plot but is never really fleshed out so that at least I could see where it would go after the story concluded.”
“Like other people already said: the story had potential, but it feels unfinished and the gameplay has issues.”
“I would not recommend buying it unless it's on sale or the price is lowered by a lot, and you might not want to buy it even then because unless you think you can wade through the mangled English in order to actually find the underlying story, where it exists.”
“The actual storyline seems to be a series of sporadic (at best) random encounters with two students whom you eventually hire to help with your computer projects.”
- gameplay7 mentions
- 43 % positive mentions
- 14 % neutral mentions
- 43 % negative mentions
The gameplay has been criticized for being repetitive and lacking depth, with many players feeling that it does not fully utilize its potential despite some functional mechanics. While there are hopes for improvement in future episodes, the current experience is described as feeling unfinished and overly simplistic, especially after initial playthroughs.
“I hope that the gameplay will improve in the next episodes, because really, there’s not so much to do even though the characters are making a game.”
“The mechanics are also relatively good, which is to say, they work.”
“I sincerely hope that their next project, this title's direct sequel, will 1) actually work, and 2) rebalance the various elements of gameplay.”
“Like other people have already said: the story had potential, but it feels unfinished and the gameplay has issues.”
“I hope that the gameplay will improve in the next episodes, because really, there’s not much to do even though the characters are making a game.”
“The gameplay is so repetitive that even playing through the game once was on the edge of 'too much'.”
- music5 mentions
- 40 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 60 % negative mentions
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players find the soundtrack stunning and listen to it regularly, others criticize it for being repetitive and limited in variety, leading some to turn it off entirely.
“The music and art style are both stunning; I routinely check up with the artist for new things, and I listen to the soundtrack on a near-daily basis.”
“Ok, so I figured I'd play without sound, until the game started up and music began to play.”
“The background music is annoying; I had to turn it off because it's basically the same song over and over again.”
“I'm not sure how I feel about the music.”
“There are only 2-3 music pieces that come to mind; there might be more, but only 3 are really important.”
- monetization3 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game is criticized for its lack of depth and challenge, with players noting the absence of a "rest" button and limited advertising options that fail to create meaningful financial decisions. The simplicity of managing costs leads to a lack of engagement, as players can easily progress without needing to invest in advertising or game copies until late in the game.
“There was no challenge past not buying too much of something, and it wasn't as if you really had to do much with costs. I got so used to not needing to worry about money that I didn't buy advertising and game copies until roughly a week before a given convention.”
“First, there are only two advertising options for the entire game, and you can only get up to a 0.06 percent attraction rate.”
“However, the fact that they don't have a 'rest' button in the main choice menu and that they don't tell you that the lack of an actual 'order' button in the 'order advertisements and game copies' are both major oversights, especially considering how quickly you finish a game.”
- graphics2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics are praised for their stunning art style, which many users find visually appealing and captivating. The combination of beautiful visuals and an impressive soundtrack enhances the overall aesthetic experience of the game.
“Oh, and the art style is quite pretty.”
“The music and art style are both stunning. I routinely check up with the artist for new things, and I listen to the soundtrack on a near-daily basis.”
- character development2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Character development in the game is largely criticized for being minimal and underwhelming, with players noting that most of the focus is on game creation rather than on developing the characters themselves. Overall, the character development is described as mediocre to nearly nonexistent.
“While the concept isn't bad, there's close to no character development; virtually all of your time is given to creating your game.”
“Now, the character development is mediocre at best and almost nonexistent at worst.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious and unengaging, with little focus on character interaction to enhance the experience.
“The grinding feels endless and repetitive, making the game more of a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
“I found myself doing the same tasks over and over again, which really took away from the overall enjoyment of the game.”
“The lack of variety in grinding activities makes it feel like a mindless task rather than a meaningful part of the game.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players find the game to be short but impactful, highlighting its interesting narrative and strong emotional resonance.
“The game is quite short, it doesn't take long to complete; however, it was very interesting and deeply emotional.”