Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You

About

Orwell: Ignorance is Strength is a single-player mystery simulation game with an interesting plot and excellent gameplay. As the first human researcher of a new governmental security program, you must investigate citizens' online presence to prevent terror attacks, with consequences for the information you supply. The game features phenomenal visuals, a spectacular soundtrack, and a wonderful atmosphere, but some bugs and grinding may be present.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

Orwell: Keeping an Eye On You screenshot

91%

Audience ScoreBased on 8,135 reviews

story2.1k positive mentions

grinding75 negative mentions

Engaging and thought-provoking storyline that explores themes of surveillance and privacy.
Unique gameplay mechanics that involve gathering and analyzing information to influence the narrative.
Multiple endings based on player choices, encouraging replayability.

Gameplay can feel linear and overly guided, with many important pieces of information highlighted for the player.
Some players may find the pacing slow, particularly during phone calls and text conversations.
Limited character development and some dialogue can feel unrealistic or clichéd.

story
5,161 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
57%
3%
The story of "Orwell: Keeping an Eye on You" is widely praised for its engaging narrative and thought-provoking themes surrounding surveillance, privacy, and morality. Players take on the role of an investigator using a surveillance system to uncover a terrorist plot, with their choices significantly impacting the story's progression and outcomes. While the gameplay is often described as simplistic and linear, the depth of the story, character development, and unexpected plot twists keep players invested and eager to explore multiple endings.
- “Fantastic game, gripping storyline, and a number of possibilities make this game very replayable!”
- “With a gripping story and a unique gameplay style, it keeps you hooked from start to finish.”
- “The developers have masterfully crafted a gripping and unsettling story that tackles contemporary issues such as surveillance, privacy, and ethics.”
- “Once you realize there are practically no gameplay elements and you're just reading through a story with janky pacing, the whole thing falls apart.”
- “The characters, while initially interesting, sometimes lack depth, and the story does not always capitalize on its potential to deliver a truly memorable experience.”
- “The story is very linear, and the game pretty much does most of the stuff itself, but it's actually relaxing working as a big brother.”
gameplay
1,596 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
28%
66%
6%
The gameplay of "Orwell" is characterized by its unique, surveillance-based mechanics that primarily involve reading and dragging highlighted text to build profiles on suspects. While the narrative is engaging and thought-provoking, many players find the gameplay repetitive and simplistic, often feeling more like a visual novel than a traditional game. The experience is heavily reliant on the story, with limited interactivity and minimal challenge, making it appealing primarily to those who appreciate narrative-driven games rather than action-oriented gameplay.
- “With a gripping story and a unique gameplay style, it keeps you hooked from start to finish.”
- “A great game that unites perfectly well its gameplay with its story.”
- “Its unique gameplay mechanics and thought-provoking narrative make it a standout experience for those who appreciate story-driven games that challenge both intellect and ethics.”
- “Once you realize there are practically no gameplay elements and you're just reading through a story with janky pacing, the whole thing falls apart.”
- “The gameplay is literally just drag and drop information onto the character it is relevant to.”
- “The gameplay is very boring, which is the main issue here.”
music
588 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
48%
50%
2%
The music in the game is widely praised for its ability to enhance the storytelling and atmosphere, with many reviewers noting its haunting and ambient qualities that effectively underscore key moments and plot twists. While some found the soundtrack to be repetitive, others appreciated its subtlety and how it dynamically shifts to reflect the emotional weight of discoveries within the narrative. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant asset to the game's immersive experience, contributing to its tension and engagement.
- “The minimalist art style and tense soundtrack add to the game's unsettling atmosphere, making you question the balance between security and privacy.”
- “The music adds so much to the atmosphere of the game, creating a professional sound that turns alarmed and alert when critical information is discovered.”
- “The soundtrack perfectly fits the game and was particularly noticeable during certain parts of the game which greatly increased the impact of those moments.”
- “You have 3 music tracks: the main menu theme, the basic ambient theme, and a more intense theme for when things 'get serious.' Outside of the music, you might have a few computer beeps or a quick musical tone at random points, but they're so spread out that a majority of your time is spent with almost nothing going into your ears.”
- “The music was boring and would let you know you would hit a twist before you even read it because it changes song when you click on a page that has a plot twist written on it and has only one song it uses for every single twist.”
- “The final problem I have with this game is the soundtrack as it is overly generic 'dramatic' electronic music that keeps repeating and sounds like menu music to a war shooter.”
graphics
511 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
55%
2%
The graphics of the game are characterized by a minimalist and unique art style, often described as low-poly or geometric, which complements its narrative-driven gameplay. While some players appreciate the clean and user-friendly interface, others find the visuals simplistic and lacking in depth. Overall, the graphics serve the game's themes effectively, creating an immersive atmosphere that aligns with its thought-provoking story, though they may not appeal to those seeking high-end visuals.
- “The minimalist art style and tense soundtrack add to the game's unsettling atmosphere, making you question the balance between security and privacy.”
- “The art style is clean and 'mature,' but it is still really engaging and fun to play.”
- “The game's graphics and sound design are also excellent, bringing the world of Orwell to life in vivid detail.”
- “The plot is excellent and relevant, and despite having horrifically bad graphics (which is intended), it doesn't actually detract from the experience.”
- “The issue is that this art style is not the primary focus, instead that focus is on a painfully bland UI.”
- “The graphics are simplistic, but it doesn't need a fancy 3D 60fps affair as a game like this isn't about pushing the boundaries in that department.”
replayability
431 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
71%
10%
The game's replayability is a mixed bag, with many players noting that while it offers multiple endings and branching choices, the overall experience can feel repetitive after the first playthrough. Some players appreciate the opportunity to explore different outcomes and achieve completionist goals, while others find the linear narrative and lengthy dialogue sequences hinder their desire to replay. Overall, it has decent replay value for those interested in exploring all possible scenarios, but many agree that it may not warrant multiple playthroughs for everyone.
- “Fantastic game, gripping storyline, and a number of possibilities make this game very replayable!”
- “Overall great writing, interesting characters, nice visual interface, and replayability to see how different choices affect the game's outcome.”
- “There are three main endings and a whole lot of different states + achievements, so there’s a surprising amount of replayability, and after two playthroughs, I definitely haven’t seen it all.”
- “Some replayability for those choices, but after 100%ing the game, I doubt I will replay as the story changes are not huge.”
- “The game lacks any sort of replayability but is pretty fun the first time through.”
- “The biggest downside is that the game is short and fairly linear; there are only so many branches/possibilities to explore, so once you've exhausted them, there's really not much replay value.”
atmosphere
115 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
58%
39%
3%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and unsettling qualities, effectively blending minimalist art, haunting soundtracks, and a dystopian theme that provokes thought about surveillance and privacy. Reviewers highlight how the music and sound design enhance the overall experience, creating a tense and engaging environment that draws players into the narrative. Overall, the atmosphere is considered one of the game's greatest strengths, contributing significantly to its storytelling and emotional impact.
- “The atmosphere of the game is excellently executed.”
- “One of the game's greatest strengths is its immersive and atmospheric presentation.”
- “The developers have created such an oppressively paranoid atmosphere with the simple interface and nerve-wracking audio cues that it's incredibly easy to be charmed and overlook its relatively short length.”
- “The atmosphere that the game creates, the character development as the story goes on and the like are expertly done; the surveillance that the game encourages you to do shows the targets to simply be real people as well with their own desires and lives, and while humanizing them you get the sense of seeing them as something else.”
- “The atmosphere felt mysterious and melancholy.”
emotional
111 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
96%
4%
Players report a profound emotional connection with the characters and story, often feeling like real investigators grappling with moral dilemmas and the consequences of their choices. The game effectively uses music and narrative to heighten emotional moments, leading to feelings of guilt, conflict, and investment in the outcomes. Overall, it is described as an emotional rollercoaster that leaves a lasting impact, prompting players to reflect on their decisions and the ethical implications of surveillance.
- “You quickly form an emotional connection with the characters and find yourself rooting for them.”
- “This game was an emotional rollercoaster and a great one at that.”
- “It genuinely made an emotional impact on me at the end of the first chapter, and that's rare.”
- “Just a whole lot of clicking back and forth between a few pages to progress in a rather boring story.”
- “Started to put me to sleep trying to find the next blue text to advance the boring story.”
- “Terribly boring story with gameplay that highlights literally everything for you so you don't even need to pay attention in a game about investigation and conspiracy.”
grinding
84 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
7%
89%
The grinding aspect of the game is frequently described as tedious and repetitive, with many players expressing frustration over non-skippable dialogues, lengthy conversations, and the need to replay chapters for achievements. While the immersive storyline and gameplay mechanics are appreciated, the extensive reading and data collection can lead to a monotonous experience, particularly on subsequent playthroughs. Overall, the game may appeal to those who enjoy narrative depth but can feel like a chore for players seeking more dynamic action.
- “But the experience isn't tedious as playing the game for the second time gives you some insight into things you might have overlooked during the initial playthrough.”
- “A bit grindy sometimes.”
- “Decent grinding.”
- “While this simplicity makes the game accessible, it can also lead to a repetitive and tedious experience.”
- “The first playthrough was exciting, but playing it again in order to get different outcomes can be tedious because you cannot skip dialogue, and it is typed out rather slowly.”
- “The only thing to complain about here is the 'call' cutscenes are unskippable, which isn't a problem in itself if you plan on going through the game once, but in order to get all of the achievements in the game, for the endings, you must play through it more than once and without spoiling anything there is a five minute unskippable cutscene involved in every single time you want to get a new ending, by the end of it you can memorize just about every single word said in the conversation and it becomes less fun and more tedious.”
humor
42 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by its clever, ironic, and self-aware moments that often juxtapose serious themes with absurdity, leading to morbidly funny outcomes. Players appreciate the hidden humor in dialogue and scenarios, which can elicit laughter amidst the game's darker undertones, creating a unique blend of comedy and drama. Overall, while the game maintains a serious narrative, it successfully incorporates humor that enhances the player experience, making it both engaging and entertaining.
- “The story is so clever, and with the art so complete, everything looks pretty realistic. It's just a bit funny that I can't explain how wonderful this game is, even though it's the only one I have played for more than 20 hours.”
- “It's funny to play this game and think about how easy it is to make and operate this kind of surveillance system in our time.”
- “There were times I burst out laughing, times I was actually brought to tears, and even half a chapter where I sat with one hand over my mouth as I clicked through with the other.”
stability
37 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
3%
84%
The game's stability has been widely criticized, with numerous users reporting significant bugs, freezes, and glitches that hinder gameplay, particularly during critical moments. While some players noted that the Linux version runs relatively well, many experienced issues that required restarting the game or creating new profiles to progress. Overall, the game is described as "buggy" and unstable, detracting from the overall experience despite its engaging premise.
- “Runs great on Linux with the native build.”
- “Smooth playing, no glitches.”
- “A game like this has been a long time coming and you have far exceeded other attempts at similar ideas by not only making it emotive and believable but also ensuring that the interface is smooth, bug free, grammatically accurate (thanks for that), and mostly easy to read.”
- “It just freezes during the first opening cinematic for me and does not work.”
- “Very buggy; I created my first profile and got stuck in a part where something was supposed to show up in the feed on the first day, but it simply didn't, and there was no way of advancing in the game. I read that you have to restart, and so I created a second profile to get a similar bug even earlier in the game, which didn't let me advance through. The page which you need to analyze simply doesn't show up.”
- “At the time of this writing, the game was plagued by a number of technical glitches and problems, but they were not insurmountable.”
character development
25 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
36%
52%
12%
Character development in the game has received mixed reviews, with many praising its depth and realism, allowing characters to feel like real people with complex motivations. While some players noted instances of stereotypical traits, the overall narrative and character arcs were highlighted as engaging and thought-provoking, contributing significantly to the game's immersive experience. Despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics, the strong character development and intertwining storylines kept players invested throughout the short episodic format.
- “I am very impressed with the writing and character development.”
- “The atmosphere that the game creates, the character development as the story goes on, and the like are expertly done; the surveillance that the game encourages you to do shows the targets to simply be real people with their own desires and lives, and while humanizing them, you get the sense of seeing them as something else.”
- “The high level of character development kept working on me over and over, changing how I feel about specific characters, making me alternate between love and hate for them, leading me to think I might have figured out the bad guy only to be presented with an even more attractive suspect.”
- “Conclusion, good game, not very entertaining gameplay, some of the 'twists' I could see a mile off, good story, good art style, some poor character development, although some good too.”
- “When I first got into this game, I was hopeful that it wouldn't be a flimsy investigative journalism style that left gaping holes in character development in favor of quick story progression.”
- “Beyond that, the art direction is phenomenal and the character development is scary for being a person literally looking on from the outside.”
optimization
15 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
40%
20%
Overall, the game's optimization received mixed reviews. While many players noted smooth performance and good graphics, some reported significant issues, particularly in the final chapter, where bugs affected gameplay. Additionally, there were mentions of a lack of performance optimization options, with some users successfully running the game on older hardware, while others found it unoptimized.
- “Game optimization: 10/10, runnable on an old Pentium E5300 and a 9600GT.”
- “The game runs smoothly and for the price of $9.99, it really is worth every penny in the end.”
- “+ Looks great, runs smoothly.”
- “Lacks performance optimization.”
- “Very unoptimized graphics with no settings.”
- “Unoptimized.”
monetization
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The monetization aspect of the game is heavily integrated with in-game advertisements, including realistic pop-ups and promotional content for its sequel and DLC, which some players find immersive while others find it annoying. The ads are designed to reflect real-world online experiences, enhancing the game's themes of privacy and surveillance, but they can detract from the overall enjoyment due to their intrusive nature. Overall, the monetization strategy effectively supports the game's narrative but may frustrate players over time.
- “As anyone that has experienced pop-up advertisements online could tell you, this is really annoying over time.”
- “They have an advertisement for their DLC, website, and other products when you try to close the game.”
- “I would liken Orwell to any big-name company out there, collecting information, creating a profile, then using it for advertisements, but this shows what that concept could become.”