Blacksad: Under the Skin

There were moments when I really enjoyed the game. I especially liked the animal cast and the creative way in which the developers play with the detective story genre. [01/2020, p.50]

Although marred by some technical issues at launch, as well as some poorly-implemented action sequences, the charm of this world and pull of its story are enough to make Blacksad: Under The Skin an engaging adaptation of the popular graphic novel series.

Behind a problematic launch, there’s a good game with a great story. It tries to do more things than it should, but overall it’s worth your time.

Unaware of its absurdity, Blacksad: Under The Skin fails at much of what it attempts.

There's a shimmer of something good in Blacksad: Under the Skin. Even though it is standard detective noir material, the story remains engaging enough that newcomers to the series might be encouraged to seek out the original graphic novels afterward. The core gameplay mechanics work well, since they feel like an upgraded version of the formula established by Telltale Games. Issues like slow movement, pregnant pauses, and finicky hotspot detection deflate any enthusiasm the game may foster. If you can live with this sort of thing, then Blacksad is a good adventure game, but others who mind these issues might want to wait for future patches to address these concerns.

Blacksad might bot be the thing that we expected it to be, but it is still a good choice for adventure fans, at least for a few hours. There is nothing specifically wrong with Blacksad, but some minor issues, a bit of a slow tempo and of course tons of bugs hurt the overall experience.

Blacksad: Under the Skin is a true adaptation of the comic album series created by Juan Diaz Canales and Juanjo Guarnido but delivers an overall frustrating experience due to technical issues.

Blacksad is painfully derivative, but it’s not so bad as it seems at first impression. It’s a pity that this intriguing, smart, mature story with colorful characters in an unusual world will never get the attention they deserve because of numerous bugs and horrendous controls.

Blacksad: Under the Skin has a pleasantly engaging story and fine, if somewhat repetitive, game play mechanics. Unfortunately, the end result just did not seem to be a finished product. Significant patch work will be needed to do justice to the story.

The pace of the narration is too slow, plus there is an avalanche of bugs, glitches and technical problems that contribute to undermining the experience.

Fans of the graphic novels may very well be able to stomach the flaws in Blacksad: Under The Skin, but I worry curious newcomers will find the experiential cost of entry too much to stomach.

In terms of true adaptation, Blacksad: Under the Skin is quite successful. The story is gripping and well written, with colorful characters, especially thanks to the voice-over and jazzy soundtrack. But in terms of gaming, the gameplay is heavy, the setting is sad, the glitches unbearable and the investigation mechanics too linear, making us want to watch what seems to be a better feature film than a good game experience. This adventure, although full of choices, treats you like a spectator.

Blacksad: Under the Skin is plagued by tons of technical issues and weak character designs, the story is interesting and could be enjoyed, provided you could neglect its technical shortcomings.

I imagine there are some big fans of the Blacksad stories that will get more out of this game than I did. But for everyone else, it'll only remind you how sad it is that we'll never get a sequel to Telltale's The Wolf Among Us.

I really wanted to love Blacksad. The noir story is quite compelling, being in the spirit of comic books. Alas, not so compelling as to overlook the severe technical issues which fester the title. This is a game that would have been better if it had been delayed a little further. Wait for much needed patches before trying it out.

While Blacksad: Under the Skin shows a lot of promise in its story, world and a couple of neat gameplay mechanics that help put you right in Blacksad’s shoes, it unfortunately suffers when it comes to the execution. Be it clunky pixel hunts, an awkward interface or a myriad of potential glitches, the end result comes off as a bit of a janky, unpolished mess. Pendulo isn’t exactly a perfect developer, but this may end up being their weakest work yet, at least until future patches can improve things. For now, though, best to just turn down this case.

Blacksad: Under the Skin works, it's a solid detective game that serves up a case worth cracking, a charismatic lead whose character you can shape in meaningful ways, and an investigation method that successfully wraps you in a brown trenchcoat. But when it doesn’t work you'll find yourself bogged down in the tedium of traipsing around another uninspired location, searching for that final wayward hotspot, and the atmosphere is sucked out of the room.

Blacksad: Under the Skin is a twisty whodunit that is unraveled by more bugs than you can count.