Promesa
- February 11, 2018
- Julian Palacios
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Promesa" is a single-player Mystery Simulation game with spectacular graphics and a masterful soundtrack. The game takes you on a contemplative journey through dreams and memories, inspired by Argentinian and Italian cities, in a 45-minute experience that changes with each playthrough. Created by a small team, "Promesa" features a unique visual style and an acoustic soundtrack, offering a personal and introspective adventure.
Mac OS
Nintendo Switch
PC
Playstation 4
Windows
Xbox One
PlayStation
Xbox
Reviews
- Promesa features stunning visuals and a beautifully crafted atmosphere that immerses players in a dreamlike experience of memories.
- The sound design and soundtrack are exceptional, enhancing the emotional depth and overall ambiance of the game.
- The game successfully evokes feelings of nostalgia and reflection, allowing players to connect with the personal stories and memories presented.
- The walking speed is excessively slow, which can detract from the overall enjoyment and engagement with the game.
- The narrative feels disjointed and lacks clarity, making it difficult for players to fully grasp the intended message or story.
- Some players may find the experience too short and feel that the content does not justify the price, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction.
- graphics48 mentions
- 46 % positive mentions
- 48 % neutral mentions
- 6 % negative mentions
The graphics in "Promesa" are widely praised for their stunning visual presentation, combining high-definition modeling with low-resolution textures to create a unique and immersive aesthetic. Reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke a dreamlike atmosphere, enhanced by its innovative use of light and shadow, although some note performance issues that can detract from the experience. Overall, the art style is considered a standout feature, contributing significantly to the game's emotional and narrative depth.
“Some of the most stunning graphical presentations possible in Unity create a world that is easy to get immersed in.”
“The art style in Promesa is truly stunning, and I enjoyed the scenery and acoustic environment very much.”
“Not quite as explicitly sad as I'd expected, Promesa is a collection of vignettes with a very cool aesthetic of high-quality models with Half-Life 1-era textures but 2020 Unity lighting, which produces just the most bizarrely compelling aesthetic - complete with a barren but reverberating moody score.”
“I do see the effort put into the graphical part, but it looks like a slideshow sometimes.”
“Actually a bit like Paratopic in terms of art style, only with movement about as fast as my old computer.”
“[b]Promesa[/b] features striking visuals, combining high definition modeling with low resolution textures, creating an aesthetic that I've never seen anywhere else.”
- story48 mentions
- 6 % positive mentions
- 77 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The game's story is described as minimal and dreamlike, focusing on themes of memory and the passage of time, but it often lacks clarity and emotional engagement. While the atmospheric visuals and sound design enhance the experience, many players feel that the narrative does not unfold meaningfully, leaving it open to interpretation and sometimes feeling too personal to resonate broadly. Overall, the storytelling is seen as a poignant sketch rather than a fully developed narrative, with some players appreciating its artistic vision despite its slow pacing.
“This helps deliver an emotionally powerful and incredibly personal story.”
“The story itself is dreamlike, with slow movement and visuals that hold your gaze.”
“To me it seems like a story about inhabiting places, physically and in memory, about what comes and goes within those places and how they might cease to belong to yourself, or to anyone else, and in so doing become empty space rather than a place.”
“I played this a long while ago now, but I don't think that the story so much unfolds or actually goes anywhere particular.”
“Even at 40+ % settings, the 'gliding' speed is nothing but unbearable as there is no exposition, no storytelling, no 'happening', no 'why', no 'if', not even a 'maybe'.”
“The game would have been much more powerful if the story would have gone into depth and also spent more time building clarity.”
- atmosphere32 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 9 % negative mentions
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its evocative environments, impressive sound design, and immersive music, creating a surreal and dreamlike experience. Many reviewers highlight the effective use of slow movement to enhance the atmospheric narrative, while the unique visual style adds to the overall sense of place. Overall, the atmosphere is described as potent and beautifully sincere, making it a standout feature of the game.
“Beautiful slow-paced atmosphere, loved the sound design and the music is absolutely spine-tingling in the best way possible.”
“The atmosphere, music, and style create a sense of place that feels very real.”
“I think the slow movement speed contributes to the atmosphere in this game, as just running through it would utterly destroy its dreamlike scenery and atmosphere.”
“Coupled with additional modern effects, impressive sound design and a fitting soundtrack, it manages to evoke a remarkable atmosphere.”
“The atmosphere, music and style create a sense of place that feels very real.”
- music28 mentions
- 71 % positive mentions
- 29 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its beauty and ability to enhance the atmosphere, featuring a mix of well-captured natural sounds, striking symphonic pieces, and ambient sound design that immerses players in the experience. Reviewers highlight the soundtrack as both calming and spine-tingling, effectively complementing the stunning visuals and creating a sense of place that feels very real. Overall, the exceptional audio quality and thoughtful integration of music and sound effects contribute significantly to the game's emotional impact.
“Another element in its favor is the soundtrack, ranging from extremely well-captured sounds of nature to several different but all strikingly beautiful symphonic pieces.”
“Beautiful slow-paced atmosphere, loved the sound design and the music is absolutely spine-tingling in the best way possible.”
“The atmosphere, music, and style create a sense of place that feels very real.”
- emotional14 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is described as a mixed experience; while some players find it to deliver a powerful and personal story enhanced by unique art and engaging dialogue, others feel disconnected and uncomfortable, lacking a meaningful emotional reaction. Overall, the game presents intriguing themes that resonate deeply for some, while leaving others feeling detached.
“This helps deliver an emotionally powerful and incredibly personal story.”
“The short but sweet: this is an intriguing and touching game with a unique art presentation that enhances the experience as opposed to detracting from it due to being distracting.”
“Pairing this with the emotionally engaging, and endlessly relevant, moments of dialogue, Promesa succeeds in painting a rich, multifaceted image of its topic while also prompting your mind to wander into rich thoughts.”
- gameplay6 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 50 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The gameplay is characterized by limited mechanics that prioritize atmospheric narrative over traditional action, which some players find detracts from immersion. While the environments and art direction are praised, the overall pacing is considered slow, and the story fails to engage effectively.
“The environments and art direction show a lot of promise, but the story is not that engaging and gameplay is too slow.”
“This game limits those mechanics and keeps you in its atmospheric narrative.”
“Personally, I always feel taken out of the mood of a game when I can run and jump and do silly things with the mechanics.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
Reviews indicate that the grinding aspect of the game is perceived as tedious and frustrating, particularly due to the character's excessively slow walking speed, which detracts from the overall experience. While some acknowledge the game's low price and experimental nature, the grinding mechanics significantly hinder enjoyment.
“I can't be too harsh on it since it's meant to be a short, experimental little thing that's all of five bucks and three on sale, but I found it to be impossibly tedious.”
“The problem is that it's being packaged and sold as a 45-minute experience solely by grinding the playable character's walking speed down to an unenjoyable crawl.”
