The Gallery

About

The Gallery is a single player casual role playing game with drama and thriller themes. It was developed by PRM Games and was released on September 8, 2022. It received mostly positive reviews from players.

An art curator is held hostage by a portraitist who threatens to detonate a bomb unless their demands are met. 'The Gallery' contains two interactive narratives - set in 1981 (with a female protagonist) and 2021 (with a male protagonist).

Skip User Reviews

77%

Audience ScoreBased on 113 reviews

story27 positive mentions

grinding1 negative mentions

The dual-narrative structure with stories set in 1981 and 2021 provides an intriguing premise and replayability with multiple endings.
Strong acting performances, particularly by the leads, and solid cinematography contribute to an immersive FMV experience.
The game explores sociopolitical themes and includes meaningful choices that impact the story's direction, with a polished interactive movie format.

The two storylines are very similar with many repeated scenes and dialogue, leading to a sense of repetition and reduced player enthusiasm.
Many choices feel inconsequential or poorly connected to the plot, diminishing the impact of player decisions.
The plot is often criticized as slow, confusing, or lacking depth, with some finding political commentary forced and detracting from engagement.

story
143 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
19%
75%
6%
The story is a mix of praise and criticism, with some players finding the dual timeline approach and socio-political themes intriguing and offering multiple branching paths, while others view the plot as repetitive, slow, and lacking depth or meaningful consequences. Acting and cinematography are often highlighted as strong points that somewhat compensate for a narrative that many consider underwhelming, clichéd, or confusing. Overall, the story appeals more to those interested in experimental FMV formats and political commentary, but it may fail to engage players seeking a tightly woven, impactful thriller.
- “Another FMV banger with excellent acting and gripping storyline.”
- “I found them intriguing and entertaining, and I appreciated especially that the plot could develop in very different ways depending on your actions - there are 12 different endings for the 1981 story, 6 different endings for the 2021 story, and many more differences along the way.”
- “This movie has an original story, it mostly keeps political commentary where it makes sense for the story (it's in here, but it's mostly about motivation for the antagonists and not trying to moralize to the viewer), and it focuses on trying something different and, as a result, is what generally makes me prefer this kind of media to most movies and TV shows these days.”
- “The story isn’t well told, the choices are not that interesting (seemingly inconsequential early and then repetitive 'comply or resist' choices later), and way too many of the things that happen in the movie are detached from reality.”
- “Because the story was bad, watching it twice for those experimental elements was not as enjoyable as it should’ve been.”
- “But this is just a catastrophically bad story with nonsensical elements, and I just can’t recommend it vs. other FMV games unless you really, really love experimental work in the genre.”
gameplay
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
46%
27%
The gameplay primarily revolves around making meaningful decisions that influence the story, similar to interactive movies and narrative-driven games. While the approach of choice-based gameplay is engaging, some players felt execution and story connections were lacking, leading to a less impactful experience. Overall, fans of choice-driven narratives and live-action scenes may find this game appealing.
- “From a gameplay perspective, I've always enjoyed games that give you meaningful choices—where the decisions you make actually affect the outcome of the story.”
- “The game uses the traditional mechanics of interactive movies: a scene plays until the player is asked for a decision between 2-3 choices, the player's choice determines how the story goes on.”
- “If you like narrative-oriented games where you make decisions to affect the gameplay, this is definitely a title you should check out.”
- “Anchoring the gameplay on 'choices that matter' only has impact if the connection between action and reaction is clear instead of seemingly random.”
- “Well, that wasn't quite right but it was an interesting approach that they did; it just didn't pan out so well due to a lack of good execution, writing, or meaning of why those stories are parallel or why the protagonists get switched. I guess it's just for gameplay purposes, which is fine.”
- “Being an FMV game, the only gameplay is to make decisions.”
graphics
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The graphics offer a unique art gallery aesthetic that will particularly appeal to art enthusiasts, featuring visually engaging elements like flowing colors on the menu and paint splotch animations. While some scenes may feel slow, the presentation effectively immerses players in the artwork’s history and diversity without relying on stereotypes. However, the overall visual experience may feel shallow or unengaging to those not already interested in this style.
- “While I usually don't find the aesthetics of menu screens worth mentioning, I really liked the effect of wafting colors flowing into each other on the main menu, as well as the way the start screen gets built by splotches of paint falling down.”
- “Admittedly, some scenes do drag on, but it was genuinely fun to learn more about artwork, for both time periods.”
- “The game also gives a list of all the artwork in the game, so I looked up the story behind a lot of classic works, as well as recent artists, and it was interesting.”
- “The aesthetic of an art gallery will appeal to art enthusiasts, but if that's not a scene that excites you by name alone, you won't get much more out of this, so skip it.”
- “Bottom line: a shallow commentary on the deeper meanings of modern society, wrapped in the aesthetics of an art gallery.”
- “It’s like watching the original Total Recall or Point Break and their modern remakes (but pretend they’re shot-for-shot remakes with different actors and graphics/fashion) back to back—why?”
replayability
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
57%
The game offers strong replayability through multiple story branches, two distinct narratives set decades apart, and over a dozen different endings. Players can experience varied scenes and outcomes based on their choices, making each playthrough unique and engaging.
- “There's replay value with at least a dozen different endings and two different stories told decades apart for stylistic variation.”
- “There are many branches of scenes that change drastically depending on your decisions, so there’s a lot of replayability.”
- “It's got two different stories going on, and even though they share a bunch of similarities (it's on purpose), it's still something that keeps the game interesting for replayability.”
optimization
7 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
43%
57%
The optimization of the game is generally solid, with well-executed video and audio elements that complement the performances. However, some character development feels shallow, which slightly undermines overall immersion. Strong acting, particularly from key performers, helps elevate the experience despite minor narrative shortcomings.
music
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The music is praised for fitting the distinct time periods well, with an '80s style soundtrack for the 1981 storyline and contemporary top 20 hits for 2021. However, some users feel it doesn't reach the high impact of other games' soundtracks, such as the memorable ending song in "Black Clouds" by Wales Interactive.
- “The soundtrack is also appropriate for the time period, where the 1981 storyline had music befitting an old '80s movie, whereas the 2021 story's soundtrack sounded like modern top 20 music.”
- “The soundtrack is also appropriate for the time period, where the 1981 storyline had music befitting an old '80s movie, whereas the 2021 story's soundtrack sounded like modern top 20 music.”
- “The soundtrack is also appropriate for the time period, where the 1981 storyline had music befitting an old '80s movie, whereas the 2021 story's soundtrack sounded like modern top 20 music.”
- “The soundtrack is appropriate for the time period; however, the 2021 story’s music sounds like modern top 20 hits, which feels out of place compared to the 1981 storyline's authentic 80’s movie vibe.”
- “While the 1981 storyline features music fitting for an old 80s movie, the 2021 storyline's soundtrack relies on generic modern top 20 tunes that lack cohesion with the game's setting.”
- “The music tries to reflect the time periods, but the modern tracks in the 2021 storyline clash with the overall atmosphere, making the soundtrack feel inconsistent.”
humor
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game’s humor is praised for its witty, well-timed delivery and lively tone, blending clever writing with a spirited main character to create an engaging and genuinely funny experience.
- “Inspired by true events described in the author’s fascinating note, the gallery is a 1920s caper told with humor and spunk that readers will love.”
- “Laura Marx Fitzgerald draws her reader in with delicious prose and perfect amounts of humor sprinkled in at just the right times.”
- “The main character's spunkiness added humor into the mix.”
emotional
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
Users found the emotional aspect lacking in the newer version due to a boring story and underdeveloped characters, which diminished their investment in choices and interactions. However, some noted that the older version had more emotional depth and immersive performances, resulting in a more emotionally engaging experience.
- “The performances in the older version had more emotional depth, making the experience more immersive and engaging.”
- “Emotionally charged.”
- “I did not enjoy my first playthrough due to a boring story and characters; perhaps I just don't understand the political climate of England.”
- “The story was very boring, which made me not care about my choices, the outcomes, or the different interactions with the characters, which is a shame.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users feel that the atmosphere in the 1981 version is notably superior, contributing significantly to its overall quality and immersive experience.
grinding
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find the grinding aspect tedious due to repetitive sequential scenes and suggest adding a single button to skip all previously viewed scenes to improve the experience.