REVIEW : Fire Tonight (PC)
Fire Tonight, a puzzle platformer with point-and-click components, recalls memories of young love in a pre-Internet era. Players gain insight into Maya and Devin’s lives together and what their future may contain as they search for one other in the light of a world on Fire.
Fire Tonight is a game about a young couple trying to find each other amid a city-wide fire. Maya makes her way through the Fire and flames to Devin’s apartment as Devin ponders the artefacts he’s collected from their relationship.
STORY – WE WERE FREE
It’s a simple premise that we’ve seen a hundred times: two 20-somethings in the large city must be in their 90s. The game was inspired by the song “Fire Tonight” by Information Society from their 1990 album Hack. The plot of this game is based almost entirely on the words of the song, written by Kurt Harland.
This game extends beyond the bounds of the song and incorporates the second point of view into the tale.
Where Devin plays the song’s narrator, watching the Fire from his flat and wondering how Maya is doing, Maya takes charge and works her way across the enflamed city to reach him. We may witness both characters reflect on their relationship and their future together by hopping between them.
Maya is shown as strong and self-assured, as evidenced by her journey to Devin’s residence. She wants to safeguard his safety and go to any length to do it, even if it means jeopardizing her own. She is intelligent, can think swiftly on her feet, and is friendly enough to solicit assistance from others she meets along the route.
We never actually see the two of them communicate with each other in Fire Tonight, save from a fierce boat puzzle or a phone call that is cut short. Seeing their relationship continue, whatever it may appear, would make for an interesting story. Overall, I’d have to say that the people were what drew me in, even if the settings they were placed in weren’t especially compelling. As they brave the 90s together, Maya and Devin, I plan to continue in another body of work.
GAMEPLAY – AWAY ACROSS THE LINE
As previously stated, the gameplay of Fire Tonight is divided into two unique modes: Maya’s puzzle-platforming and Devin’s point-and-click exploration. Each adds to the plot while also complementing the other’s narrative approach.
Maya is the character that feels the heat, as she is faced with dodging both unexpected flames and exhausted cops as she travels across the city. She doesn’t have much time to wax poetic about her life while navigating alleyways, finding keys to unlock neighbour’s gates, and lugging garbage around, but she has a cool roller-skating level that breaks up the monotony.
We spend a lot of time with Maya sprinting across rooftops and sneaking past flashlights, which is nice. However, it would have been more effective if some of the puzzles were more difficult to solve. For example, rather than following the correct path via a loading dock or shifting trash, it may have been more fascinating to assist a bodega owner in finding his cat or to locate a location that was still open to bring a firefighter some coffee.
On the other hand, Devin’s time in his apartment is interspersed with short musings about his life and his time with Maya thus far.
Looking around Devin’s apartment and seeing items he likes (like video games and music) with realistic mainstays like the wine he never drinks and dishes he forgets to wash gives you the impression that Devin’s life is tangible. We feel who he is and what he does with his time since his life is lived in.
Don’t get me wrong: we’re not given a novel-length amount of information about Devin’s life, but the point-and-click nature of the game works well for him. Exploring the place is fascinating in and of itself, and it was enjoyable to search about and uncover things that he would comment on.
Again, there’s a reason I focused largely on the story: it’s a short game. The gaming mechanics are mostly a vehicle for furthering the narrative, and that vehicle does not have to take any particular shape. An alternate version of the game in which the characters switch positions would be just as entertaining to play because the goal is found in what they have to say rather than how they get there.
GRAPHICS/AUDIO – LIGHT IN THE SKY WITHOUT A SOUND
Fire Tonight is just stunning. The art design and colour schemes complement one other nicely, and the decision to cast the Fire in a purplish pink resulted in a genuinely stunning environment to roam around in. The character design is straightforward but expressive, with no trace of hyper-realism or cartoony imagination. Instead, everything appears to be a part of this world as if we’re only peering in.
I also want to express my appreciation for the soundtrack. The game’s theme song, Information Society, is a classic synthpop piece with sharp hi-hats and synth swells superimposed on a continually driving pace. The music in the game reflects this, but it also features harsh keyboards and some fantastic decay effects that elicit a specific emotion.
The gloomy images and faintly fuzzy music combine to create a feast for anyone who has ever been drawn to the period when new wave music began to fade, and cassette cassettes ruled supreme.
Most importantly, the game’s presentation accurately reflects the broader narrative: teenage love is exhilarating, messy, and all-encompassing.
REVIEW : El Shaddai ASCENSION OF THE METATRON (PC)
