NOLA Is Burning

I don’t really write a lot of reviews of anything, but I feel like it is necessary for me to write this review. First off, I think the game is just decent. It was a good time killer for me, obviously a great amount of effort put in and I enjoy the freedom it gives me, including choices that matter. But if I talk about restrictions, I will also include payments. I respect the developer or team that was behind this game and I also respect them earning money from it. But this was probably one of the games I consider not spending anything on. For one thing, the first chapters that are free are pretty short, with only around 5-10 choices in each one. If you choose to have it free, you need to wait 2 hours for 5 minutes of reading and choosing a decision. Furthermore the story sounds like self-insert fantasy and typical clichés that make the characters seem basic. Most of the time while playing, I cringed just by reading the options and the scene. It honestly sounds like this game was made by a 12-year old that wanted to make what they thought sounded cool. And I hope I’m not insulting the dev because this game is a good COG Lastly I just wanted to give my thought on how I felt about this game. I like the game, believe me. It’s alright. But it’s actually sub-par and mediocre I can’t see myself just truly enjoying it, at least for me.

Well, because the voodoo cyborg dragon route plays exactly like the plain voodoo route, the plain cyborg route, the bullet-shooting crucifix peg-leg route, and the demon route. Also because the hallucinatory barrage of text you just read follows a dead-serious gangster thriller. I can't tell if we're supposed to presume it's all a dying hallucination or what. What's the point of feeling remorse, feeling no remorse, wallowing in blood, avoiding conflict at every turn, etc. if it's just all going to end in a bizarre mishmash that sounds like a thirteen-year-old's ideal action sequence? Also, in order to get anything other than the Demon ending, you must choose first to go for the kneecaps when captured by the Pitt's men, then save the one choking on his sandwich. He will pass you drugs that will enable you to survive what follows. Having four out of five options locked behind a very specific sequence is... dubious game design. The good part is that you can select your gender, the Bull's, and the Bull's spouse, as well as what career you take up if you make it to Mexico - or decide to take the city instead. That was a satisfying ending. Additionally, the game subverts the usual Chinese-gangsters cliches in most amusing fashion. IF failure wasn't mandatory midgame (leading to the bizarre endgame), IF your behavioral choices made more difference endgame, and IF there wasn't that utterly jarring off-tone sequence in endgame, this would get five stars. Instead... uh... I rate it voodoo cyborg dragon/5. Judge whether or not you'll purchase this game accordingly.

This is the second COG game I have played. I think this is not a must-play game. The story is kinds of strange at the second half and defiantly not as catchy as the beginning. It is okay to play with but there are other better options out there.