The main mystery revolves around Graavik and how it relates to Edward’s missing sister. The narrative was great about giving me an engaging – at times unnerving – mystery to solve. But I recommend you go into this game not knowing more than what I talk about below because its narrative is its main draw. As you can tell, I don’t want to reveal too much about the game’s narrative, but I’ll do my best to discuss the bare minimum. As I explored the town, I started to uncover the mystery behind the town itself and why it’s seemingly abandoned.Īs I walked around I would come across clues in the environment that would unveil what could have possibly happened. The game starts at their arrival at Graavik, a small, seemingly abandoned Norwegian town. The protagonist is Edward Harden, and he is accompanied by his ward Lissie on a journey to find his missing sister. unfamiliar towns can exude mystery in of themselves, they become even more captivating when they are shrouded in even more drama.ĭraugen by Red Thread Games uses the setting of a small town to tell a story about a missing person and a place that’s hiding a morbidly strange past. I for one like games set in such a place it creates an aura of mystery from the outset. Teddy and Lissie’s story never reaches its full potential, but there are worse ways to spend a few hours than exploring a wind-swept fjord.There’s nothing like a game set in a small town. In under three hours, Draugen pulls off a series of well-composed shots that are worth the entry price alone. Graavik has no shortage of beautiful views and stunningly detailed locations. It’s the journey that works here, not the destination.ĭespite its narrative shortcomings, Draugen still has plenty to offer. Teddy, Lissie, Betty, and the ghosts of Graavik’s past are inexorably linked and though symbolically significant, the game’s final moments seek to come together a bit too neatly. After two acts that balance exploration and exposition, its final chapter crashes towards a conclusion. The payoff just feels telegraphed from the get-go.ĭraugen ultimately feels like it’s only telling half of a complete story. In fact, Draugen approaches its themes of grief and loneliness with a meditative hand. This isn’t to say that the story is boring or uninteresting. When the game finally plays its hand, what should be monumental reservations land with a flat “ well, duh” at best. The system works well, allowing Draugen to both parcel out tidbits of narrative development and define Teddy and Lissie’s unique relationship.īut once the pieces start coming together, Draugen‘s cracks become more visible. On-screen prompts occasionally appear, allowing Teddy to discuss details with Lissie, often steering the conversation in one direction or another by highlighting important facts or skimming over others. As Teddy, players will interact with, say, an abandoned preacher’s pulpit, prompting an exchange between the duo. Most of Draugen‘s gameplay revolves around Teddy finding clues and discussing them with Lissie. Nothing ever quite adds up – Betty’s belongings appear in strange places and the truth is always just out of reach. Teddy and Lissie travel across Graavik, poking and prodding at the clues that shape Draugen‘s overarching story. Tragedy defines Graavik’s recent history, adding weight to the village’s empty homes and linking Teddy’s search to key players of the once-prosperous company. It’s slow going at first, but after spending a night in the home of Graavik’s most powerful family, the story starts to point toward a larger mystery. Teddy and Lissie are an odd pair, one deadly serious and the other seriously overeager, allowing their investigation to unfold through dialogue and interactable objects scattered throughout Graavik. Like life in a small rural town, Draugen moves at a slower pace. But what begins as a simple search for a missing sibling quickly becomes an exploration of grief and loneliness in a town full of secrets. The duo arrives in Graavik in hopes of tracking Teddy’s younger sister, Betty, after her apparent disappearance. And as one of Draugen‘s main characters points out, from a distance, the idyllic village “looks like a place made for ghosts.”ĭraugen is a first-person exploration game about Teddy Harden, a self-serious bookworm, and Lissie, a 17-year-old girl with an adventurous spirit. Anyone would be lucky to wind up here, amid an ancient valley and too-blue waters. A small village nestled alongside a larger-than-life fjord, the town’s pastoral architecture and scenic landscape combine to create an impossibly beautiful place.
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