Encodya

Encodya truly has some neat aspects going for it. Endearing characters, beautiful art design, solid quality of life features. However, none of those are enough to overcome a heavy-handed narrative and some messy gameplay mechanics. Encodya is a sometimes passable, middling take on Cyberpunk, and an average point-and-click adventure.

It’s interesting how ENCODYA began as a short film called ‘Robot Will Protect You’ before becoming a game and story. It is a wonderful adventure and honestly, Tina and SAM’s relationship was nothing but heartwarming. For fans of the point-and-click genre or a good cyberpunk-themed story, you should definitely check this one out as it’s certainly worth a try. I’m hoping the frame rate issue is because of the age of my machine and not because of possible poor optimization for the previous generations of consoles, or that a patch is forthcoming to address the problem.

Encodya is a fun point-and-click- adventure game but has some minor flaws that do take away from the fun.

If you are a fan of classic adventure games, ENCODYA deserves your time. Its original music and great story progression will win you over right from the start of this approximately five-hour adventure

For what it’s worth, point-and-click adventures largely end up becoming a story. Encodya is exactly that. It’s a heartwarming story of life and lessons learned. The gameplay is largely incidental, but the setting, though derivative, is an absolute win. Players that are unfamiliar with the genre may want to forego it if they crave a bit more action, but it’s difficult to not suggest Encodya to point-and-click enthusiasts. It’s difficult, it’s enchanting, and it’s a bit odd—even if it isn’t wholly original. But, to be fair, the studio praised their inspirations more openly than most would anyways.

Although an amazingly beautiful game with a great story, the lack of replay does let it down in the end. I would have liked to have more instances of going back and seeing what happens after the end or changing character story arcs through my actions. All that said, it was a touching and poignant experience that was well told and that is enough.

Looks promising, but this adventure offers only weak story and gameplay.

I’m a big fan of point and click adventure games, and Encodya was such a genuinely earnest attempt at capturing the magic of the genre that I’m disappointed I didn’t enjoy it more. I wanted to like it, the whole time I was playing I was waiting for a moment when I would realise that I was loving the game, but it never came. It was too referential and the puzzles too simple for it to capture the feeling of a King’s Quest or Monkey Island. I can see elements of what is a very good game, but as a whole, it falls a little flat.

An interesting world full of cool ideas sadly hampered by its story and gameplay pacing. Encodya will supply a great variety of content and puzzles to baffle and test players of all skill levels, backed by a great story and world that make the game worth the price of admission. If point and click adventures are of interest, then this title should be on a wish list as it presents a unique experience and story that would have benefitted from a little bit more feedback and a patch.

Encodya brings an atmospheric, cyberpunk feel to a well-worn genre, but with a mundane plot and puzzles, it fails to capitalise on its setting.