Surrogate
- October 26, 2023
- Brandon McQuay
Get on Steam"Surrogate" is a visual novel following Frances, a neurotic girl trying to uncover an urban legend while balancing her investigative and creative interests. The game features unique art direction, avant-garde decision making, and emotionally realistic character interactions, resulting in 5 distinct endings and 7 unlockable achievements. Players will also experience a simulated self-criticism system that adds to the anxiety of Frances' story.
PC
Windows
Reviews
- Surrogate features an extremely beautiful and unique art style that captivates players with its hauntingly beautiful visuals and engaging color palette.
- The writing is poignant and thought-provoking, with relatable characters like Frances who provide a deep introspective experience through philosophical dialogues and inner monologues.
- The game offers a compelling narrative with multiple endings, encouraging exploration and replayability, while successfully blending psychological, supernatural, and conspiracy themes.
- The audio quality, particularly the music, suffers from repetitive loops and quality issues that detract from the overall atmosphere of the game.
- Some players found the pacing to be inconsistent, especially in the early segments, which felt overly long-winded and repetitive.
- A few choices in the game can be confusing, as some are not actionable, leading to potential frustration for players who expect all options to be clickable.
- story9 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The story is praised for its depth and complexity, featuring a branching narrative that encourages exploration of different endings, each providing new context and layers to the world-building. Users appreciate the introspective themes and unique art style, comparing it to notable works like "Serial Experiments Lain." However, some found the initial pacing slow, suggesting that the narrative could have progressed more efficiently. Overall, the story is seen as engaging and thought-provoking, leaving players eager for potential continuations or new projects from the developers.
“Pretty solid visual novel with a unique art style, a short but branching and engaging plot with a lot of main character introspection and everything that comes with that process (i.e. self-loathing).”
“Great storyline that makes you think about yourself and the world around us.”
“I like that each ending adds a different context to the story without giving away the mystery as a whole. I think any game that can motivate you to explore the routes naturally is a sign of good writing.”
“The only part of the story that was a bit forced for me was the first 10-minute segment. I don't mind her monologuing, but I think you covered the same concept like 10 times over. You got your point across already; I think the game should move with purpose, and the second half felt better, with things happening at a better pace.”
“I mean for $2 that was really good. I thought the game had a lot of depth and layers to the story, with each ending showing the narrative and world-building from a different angle, having both grounded and supernatural themes, and a lot of space to speculate.”
“The story meant to be experienced, not described in this review, but in general, it's somewhat close to 'Serial Experiments Lain' or 'TehNolyze' vibe, with some inspiration taken from 'Milk Inside a Bag of Milk Inside a Bag of Milk' (in a good sense, I mean who does not take inspiration from that, huh?).”
- music6 mentions
- 17 % positive mentions
- 33 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The music in the game has received largely negative feedback, with critics highlighting its lack of variety, poor audio quality, and repetitive loops that detract from the overall atmosphere. While some players appreciated the vibe of the soundtrack, the prevalent issues, such as static pops and jarring transitions, significantly undermine the gaming experience.
“I liked the atmosphere in the game; not sure if this soundtrack was made for it because it sounded familiar, but it had a nice vibe to it.”
“Unfortunately, the music almost ruins everything.”
“There's very little variety in the painfully short music loops, and they have audio quality issues.”
“If you listen to the music in the trailer, those static pops and bad skips you hear are on the sound file, and it loops in game over... and over... and over... it's tragic how much it poisons the atmosphere of the game.”
- graphics3 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The graphics of Surrogate are widely praised for their extremely beautiful and inspired art style, which enhances the overall experience of the game. Reviewers highlight the unique visual presentation as a standout feature, contributing to the engaging and introspective narrative.
“Surrogate has an extremely beautiful art style; the palette alone is inspired.”
“Pretty cool game with a sweet art style.”
“Pretty solid visual novel with a unique art style.”
- atmosphere2 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 50 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game receives mixed reviews; while some players appreciate its overall vibe, others are frustrated by the repetitive and poorly executed soundtrack that detracts from the experience.
“I liked the atmosphere in the game; the soundtrack had a nice vibe to it, even though it sounded familiar.”
“If you listen to the music in the trailer, those static pops and bad skips you hear are on the sound file, and it loops in-game over... and over... and over... it's tragic how much it poisons the atmosphere of the game.”
- emotional2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Players appreciate the game's ability to evoke a sense of connection and understanding through relatable monologues and a small, supportive cast. The emotional interactions are praised for their depth, enhancing the overall narrative experience and making players feel less isolated.
“This game made me feel less alone by showing someone with the exact same monologues I have.”
“The small cast of supportive characters fits the narrative well and delivers a broad range of emotional interactions.”
