Tacoma

An excellent narrative adventure game that loses the surprise factor of Gone Home but still manages to be interesting and entertaining.

Though Tacoma's crew inhabit a far flung future with problems to match, I found myself believing in their relationships. [Issue#150, p.90]

The PS4 version of Tacoma doesn't add anything new to the PC and Xbox One ones, and thus is still a compelling and emotional journey to the space that we strongly recommend you take.

With Gone Home representing a key moment in gaming, Tacoma had plenty of potential to suffer from so called "second album syndrome". While it never manages to hit the same emotional highs – or lows – as its predecessor, it still stands out from the crowd, mainly through the implementation of some nicely interactive AR scenes to deliver its key story moments. While there are certainly other complaints you could level at Tacoma – such as its rigid linearity and how it occasionally falls into genre clichés – these can be easily forgotten as developer Fullbright once again proves where its strengths lie: with down-to-earth characters and thought-provoking storytelling.

Tacoma‘s three-hour span was a delightful experience, and I can see myself booting it up once or twice more to comb through the space station.

Tacoma has a heart all its own, exploring a myriad of themes and advocating for the human condition, but the branches that sprout from the tree rarely bear fruit. Still, the growth is wonderful, even without that sweet taste you so long for.

Tacoma is a really good story wrapped up in a simple walking simulator. Engaging with the AR segments and exploring the station was enjoyable; the information presented was mostly interesting, while the voice acting was excellent. In terms of actual gameplay, it's sadly lacking and the investigation feature is its' saving grace. There are some minigames thrown in, but very little else. Coupled with (this reviewer) several game crashes, this definitely dampened the experience. I would say it is worth making the trip once. Make sure to play this in one sitting.

Although Tacoma's unique method of storytelling in itself should make it worth playing, the urgency of the narrative is never really felt. Without the highs and lows, it all falls a bit flat. The puzzles are great fun but the game length does leave something to be desired. The graphical glitches during use of the elevator pull you out of the experience entirely which is a shame.