John Yesterday is not a man like the others. Parisian by adoption, this American runs an antique shop with Pauline, his girlfriend. So far, nothing out of the ordinary. But his propensity to resuscitate each time he dies is much less banal! Especially since these express resurrections have two very specific effects: John's body returns to the age and in the state in which he was when he first died (it's rather nice) but, in return, he completely loses the memory (it's immediately less nice). Fortunately, modern technology allows him to leave messages on his smartphone and his personal website, just to understand who he is if necessary. For this, he can also count on Pauline, who has the same supernatural ability, except that she never loses her memory. Convenient to rejuvenate at will... Far from being superheroes, the two main characters of the game have actually undergone an alchemical transmutation, one five hundred years ago, at the time of the Spanish Inquisition, the another just three years ago. All of this you might already know if you've played Yesterday. But if this is not the case, rest assured: it is absolutely not necessary to be an assiduous of the productions of Pendulo Studios to take advantage of the latest. Everything is summarized and explained several times and, in any case, the main narrative framework consists precisely of delving into John's past. Sometimes literally, since flashbacks regularly plunge us into bygone eras. This allows you to avoid routine, just like controlling sometimes John, sometimes Pauline. When they are physically separated of course, but also in the same scene from time to time. It is then up to the player to alternate between the two lovers whenever he wishes. Or when the puzzles require it since John and Pauline sometimes have to exchange objects to succeed in progressing in the adventure.
500 YEARS AND NOT A WRINKLE
In order not to spoil anything, we will not say more about the scenario of the game. On the other hand, impossible not to mention the little taste of "Knights of Baphomet" that the adventure has. Atmosphere both medieval and modern , couple of Franco-American heroes, initially Parisian decor: impossible not to think of George Stobbart and Nicole Collard.We have done worse as a reference, and the very original synopsis of Yesterday is enough to spare him any accusation of plagiarism. Moreover, the graphic style of the characters is also not lacking in singularity. We find the slender and angular artistic direction so dear to Pendulo. Surprisingly, the marriage with the "hand-painted" 2D sets works perfectly. Yet they are generally elegant and soothing, while the characters are all crazier than each other. Moreover, the game is a little more focused on humor than its predecessor, and thus reconnects with what the studio knows how to do with better. Dialogs, item descriptions or comments about failed action attempts are often not lacking in salt. The puzzles are quite classic in substance (secret passages, mechanisms to unlock, characters to move away to be able to search quietly…) but the form evolves somewhat compared to a classic point and click. Motivated by the console release, the developers sought to create a system that works with both mouse and gamepad. In the end, the pad is even the most practical tool even if, fortunately, the field mouse remains usable.
The puzzles are quite classic in substance (secret passages, mechanisms to unlock, characters to move away to be able to search quietly…) but the form evolves somewhat compared to a classic point and click.
Contrary to tradition, the interaction between an object and an interactive zone is not done by choosing the first one and then bringing it to its destination. On the contrary, you must first select the area, then an object. Similarly, the combination of two inventory items is not done by dragging one over the other, but by selecting one (which is then displayed in a window evoking a comic book box) then l 'other. Moreover, the inventory can include not only objects, but also elements of information (place, objective, past action, qualifier about an individual, etc.) obtained in particular during dialogues. This information can then be used with a character, an area of the decor or an item of inventory, as would be a classic object. In particular, this allows developers to prevent players from making certain combinations haphazardly, since the reason for the combination must sometimes be added to the equation. It is rather well seen! Good point also for the soundtrack, which combines very acceptable French voices with pleasant music. Only downside, it happens that the sound environment falls a little flat at times. Moreover, if it is really pleasant and recommended to all lovers of adventure games, Yesterday Origins is not perfect for all that. It happens that because of a punctually poorly mastered staging, we do not really know what the current objective of the characters is. And some puzzles might have deserved a little more clues, but that remains subjective. Much more objectively, the game disappoints with imperfect localization. Nothing catastrophic or systematic but, on occasion, there are a few hiccups. Seeing phrases such as "you are looking for do a Google search" or ""I can't give it up" on the screen leaves no doubt that there is a clear lack of proofreading. A few small black dots on an overall very attractive!
