Immortality

[b!T]

 

Genre - Indie game, Interactive film, Simulation video game

Developer - Sam Barlow, Half Mermaid
Publisher - Netflix, Half Mermaid
Platform - Xbox Series X/S, iOS, Android, macOS, Microsoft Windows
Release Date - August 30th, 2022

 

 

The game is based on the fictional model turned actress Marissa Marcel who had starred in three movies between 1969 and 1999 but which were never released. Marcel has since gone missing, creating a mystery for the player to solve. In the same manner as Barlow's prior works Her Story and Telling Lies, Immortality incorporates the use of full-motion video for the player to piece together Marcel's fate. The player begins with one clip from one of the three films, and the player can pause and click on a person or item of interest. The game will then show all other clips from the three films, as well as behind-the-scenes production footage and television and interview clips, which the player can review and seek out further persons or items.

[b!T]

OC - 91

MC - 93

 

Looks like the best work from Sam Barlow.

[b!T]

EDGE #375 (10/10)
"For all the delicious brain food it serves up, this astonishing game - a new high bar for creator and genre - never stops reminding you of the human beings at the heart of the moviemaking process, and the very real cost of their art."


Kate Sánchez, Paste (9/10)
"You look through the film, and while a lot of it seems unimportant, you slowly begin to see a world larger and deeper than Marcel herself. Without spoiling anything, all I will say is that once the narrative emerges, it's one that you can't pull yourself away from. Given the complete control the player is given, it's a feat of execution Half Mermaid deserves all the credit for."

Lindsay M, Digitally Downloaded (5/5)
"When I began this review, I wondered if Immortality would live up to the hype I had created in my mind. Luckily, it did. The characters, the narrative, and the completely unique experience that it odders… this game is special. Visual. Intuitive. Genius. Half Mermaid (and Barlow in particular) has upped its own ante, and I legitimately have no idea what the studio could do next. This studio is one of the rare true artists in our little industry."

Rizwan Anwer, WhatIfGaming (10/10)
"If you are a fan of games with thoroughly deep stories, a brilliant cast of characters, and a video game that will undoubtedly spawn a wide array of essays on YouTube, look no further than Immortality. This is a game that, in the beginning, may frustrate and annoy you with the non-linear direction of storytelling. Still, by the end, you will awaken to an experimental medium that truly elevated your thinking."

Darcy Tranter-Cook, Progress Bar / Dmax3901 (10/10)
"IMMORTALITY is a game about the little moments before and after a director yells 'cut!' It's a triumph: beautiful, endlessly captivating, upsetting, thrilling, and terrifying all in equal measure. The logistics involved in its creation send my head spinning even days after finishing it. It's a love letter to the art of performance, storytelling, and the communal, fluid craft of filmmaking. IMMORTALITY is a reminder that this medium can still show you something you've never seen before and it deserves all the praise that is (hopefully) coming its way."

Mark Delaney, Gamespot (8/10)
"The latest game from Sam Barlow and Half Mermaid builds on what you've come to expect while also subverting its own genre in clever ways."

Tristan Ogilvie, IGN (8/10)
"Despite some shallow search tools, Immortality is a thoroughly mesmerizing mystery and one of the most surprising video game stories of 2022."

Jesse Norris, XboxEra (10/10)
"This is one of the, if not the best gaming experiences of my lifetime."

Chris White, God Is A Geek (10/10)
"Immortality is a phenomenal piece of work, filled with great acting and direction, centred around the story of one woman's life in front of the lens in all its fragile yet powerful glory."

James Mitchell, Press Start (10/10)
"Immortality ambitiously succeeds at evolving the formats introduced in Her Story and Telling Lies to offer some of Sam Barlow's best work yet and one of gaming's most well-justified open-world experiences. Bolstered by some fantastic performances and a compelling mystery to uncover, it's engrossing and engaging from beginning to end. While it might assume some prior knowledge in telling it's underlying story, Immortality is an experience that's not to be missed and one that I'll never stop thinking about. It is truly fantastic and well worth your time."

Nathan Hermanson, Video Games Are Good / Naetoid (10/10)
"Even with Barlow's previous games in mind, I've never played anything like IMMORTALITY and might never again. It's a 10-15 hour experience that speaks to people who love stories, and to those who love creating and consuming art. It's a love letter to the oral tradition, to cave drawings, plays, films, dance, music, and games.

It blends so many mediums, it contains so many different forms of art, and it examines it all through these displaced films — and through its characters, it reveals in the end that at the root of humanity are stories and storytellers.

And we can't wait to see what else these storytellers do because it sure does feel good to just feel human in this chaotic time.

It's for that reason, and a million others that could add to our pages and pages of notes we took during our playthrough, that VGG is giving IMMORTALITY the highest honor we can bestow."

[Heaven Angel]

It's on gamepass but without any achievements. 

[b!T]

1 hour ago, Heaven Angel said:

It's on gamepass but without any achievements. 

 

It's X/S exclusive and not on 1X. Have to wait for Android or steam.

[Kumar123]

Wow, didn't know we had a topic on this. So, what have y'all got? Personally, I think the fountain of youth might be a good bet.

[b!T]

13 hours ago, Kumar123 said:

Wow, didn't know we had a topic on this. So, what have y'all got? Personally, I think the fountain of youth might be a good bet.