Virginia

 PlayStation 4
User Score
5.5

Mixed or average reviews- based on 119 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 42 out of 119
  2. Mixed: 38 out of 119
  3. Negative: 39 out of 119

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  1. rdekoch
    Sep 22, 2016
    9
    It's a truly interesting interactive experience that rewards replaying. It didn't sate my craving for unique gameplay, but the story got my attention. It's one of the most cinematic of games I've played. That said, because there are only a few things to interact with and nor real puzzles, it can feel inert. I am impressed by the how beautiful the game is, I wished it had more challenge orIt's a truly interesting interactive experience that rewards replaying. It didn't sate my craving for unique gameplay, but the story got my attention. It's one of the most cinematic of games I've played. That said, because there are only a few things to interact with and nor real puzzles, it can feel inert. I am impressed by the how beautiful the game is, I wished it had more challenge or interactivity/puzzles. It's still worth experiencing.… Expand
  2. IndieFreak
    Sep 25, 2016
    9
    Virginia's story is a delight to unfold, despite the fact that you can't affect it all that much. It's powerful, unconventional, daring and it isn't afraid to leave things to interpretation. Truly a sight to behold.
  3. Tirah
    Sep 30, 2016
    8
    Right off the bat I'm going to say Virginia is NOT a game. You have no choices to make, and there's absolutely no way in which you can affect what's happening on screen. All you do is click on objects and people to progress the story, which is basically an equivalent of you pressing 'play' on your remote whenever the movie decides to pause itself. Because that's what Virginia is: anRight off the bat I'm going to say Virginia is NOT a game. You have no choices to make, and there's absolutely no way in which you can affect what's happening on screen. All you do is click on objects and people to progress the story, which is basically an equivalent of you pressing 'play' on your remote whenever the movie decides to pause itself. Because that's what Virginia is: an interactive movie. That's not a bad thing, though - if this is the kind of entertainment you enjoy.

    Virginia was compared to David Lynch's works numerous times, and while it's pretty overused at this point, it's also very fitting. The story begins as a rather generic cop movie, and by the time it ends you're left sitting there, wondering what really happened. What was real and what was just a drug induced hallucination? Even if the story is confusing, it's definitely not boring and it firmly held my attention for its entire 2-hour running time. I was genuinely curious about what happens next and couldn't wait to find out.

    Virginia has rather unique visuals to go with its unique story. It's minimalist in style, low poly and simplistic. It may not look all that impressive in static images, but when you see it in action, it works. The environments are beautifully modeled, characters with their limited facial features are surprisingly expressive. Lights and shadows lead you intuitively to the objects you need to click on to move the story forward. Certain scenes are almost monochrome with the key objects being in contrast colors. It looks pretty and it works.

    There's no voice work whatsoever, everything is told via (live orchestra) soundtrack and the beautiful imagery. It works very well. The soundtrack is available on Steam at the moment and it's not even $5. If you like the music, I wholeheartedly recommend it.

    My only complaint regarding Virginia is its price tag on PS4. I prefer to play my interactive movie games from the comfort of my couch, so I always go for the console versions. $15 (at the time of writing) is a bit too much for a 2-hour movie in my opinion, especially seeing how the PC version costs half of that. Stop being greedy, Sony.

    And that's Virginia. It's not for everyone,but if you enjoy movies that aren't exactly what they seem to be and that look and sound good, you're going to like this one.    … Expand
  4. timmytime
    Mar 4, 2017
    9
    I loved this one - tells a story with a lot of depth despite being wordless and pushes the medium. The only reason I haven't given it 10/10 is I think it goes on 2 or 3 minutes too long, which may seem silly on such a short game. I think they just went a bit overboard in the non-linearity and metaphor at the end, which I understand while important and obviously part of the experiment theI loved this one - tells a story with a lot of depth despite being wordless and pushes the medium. The only reason I haven't given it 10/10 is I think it goes on 2 or 3 minutes too long, which may seem silly on such a short game. I think they just went a bit overboard in the non-linearity and metaphor at the end, which I understand while important and obviously part of the experiment the game is going for, made it a little less tight and focused than it could be.… Expand
  5. mr_blonde75
    Oct 2, 2016
    9
    Easily my favorite game of the year so far.
    By now you should know if a "walking simulator" is for you or not.
    If it isn't, then you won't like it, if you do enjoy these kind of games then please pick this up.
    The story, the atmosphere, setting all come together in a weird Twin Peaks like experience.
  6. GrumpyReviewer
    Sep 26, 2016
    9
    This game is not for everyone. It's a strange, weird, walking simulator where you become a female officer in the FBI during the investigation of a missing child. But, the moment you get this assignment, it's like the game pushes into a rabbit hole and it keeps getting stranger and stranger to a point where it becomes hard to see the difference between dream and reality.

    It does remind    This game is not for everyone. It's a strange, weird, walking simulator where you become a female officer in the FBI during the investigation of a missing child. But, the moment you get this assignment, it's like the game pushes into a rabbit hole and it keeps getting stranger and stranger to a point where it becomes hard to see the difference between dream and reality.

    It does remind of David Lynch's work, like Twin Peaks. And it does have a strong cinematic feel, with you traversing bits and pieces of edited scenes, instead of a linear narrative.

    At the end, I was not very sure what to think. I just know that I really enjoyed it. This is a very special game, and one that should not be missed by people who enjoy this kind of game. But, like I said, it is not for everyone.    … Expand
  7. Agarwel
    Sep 22, 2016
    9
    It is very interesting "game" (to be precise: Interactive movie walking simulator). It is story based game told in very unique style. It is without words (and yet it works). And it is very cinematic. Meaning there are basiaclly no empty filler spaces. Even when you need to go between location, there are cuts like in the movie. So the game is feeding you interesting content all the time (inIt is very interesting "game" (to be precise: Interactive movie walking simulator). It is story based game told in very unique style. It is without words (and yet it works). And it is very cinematic. Meaning there are basiaclly no empty filler spaces. Even when you need to go between location, there are cuts like in the movie. So the game is feeding you interesting content all the time (in this way it is very different from Rapture, where you spent most of the time walking.). The Story is very difficult and honestly I dont understand it at all (playd just one). It is like watching very difficult Lynch movie. But it is told in a way, that it glued me to the TV and I had to bing-play it in one sitting. It is short game (little over 2 hours). But the price is reasonable (under 10 bucks) so it is totally fine. Personally Im recomending this title. It is not exactly a game. But it is great experience worth the money.… Expand
  8. Nobilis1984
    Sep 23, 2016
    8
    Virginia recalls the great Telltale Games but in other graphics. It needs no language and also works thus 1A.
    The story can be interpreted in many ways. Twin Peaks Greetings.
    If you like "Twin Peaks" and "The X" will have its fun here.
  9. gygessgygess
    Oct 1, 2016
    10
    Wow, what an experience! I played it at a friends house, have no plans on replaying it, yet went ahead and paid for it to support what the devs have done here.

    If you're a fan of Blendo games (Gravity Bone, Thirty Flights of Loving, Quadrilateral Cowboy), but also like the thoughtfulness and drama of The Chinese Room (Dear Esther, Everybodys Gone to The Rapture) than you will love this    Wow, what an experience! I played it at a friends house, have no plans on replaying it, yet went ahead and paid for it to support what the devs have done here.

    If you're a fan of Blendo games (Gravity Bone, Thirty Flights of Loving, Quadrilateral Cowboy), but also like the thoughtfulness and drama of The Chinese Room (Dear Esther, Everybodys Gone to The Rapture) than you will love this game.

    Don't listen to people complaining about the game length, they really need to understand game development more. No good film or piece of music begins by setting out how long it will be. Gamers need to start thinking quality, not quantity. The two hours it takes to complete is paced perfectly, had it lasted much longer than attention would start to fade.

    Since there's a demo available, I'll just end off with a comment on the music. The score is fantastic, unbelievably high levels of production value, and is a step in the right direction for the industry. Play with headphones! The sountrack adds a lot of emotion, and I don't see that as a bad thing at all. You must experience it.    … Expand
  10. ppopopp
    Mar 8, 2020
    10
    First of all, the game is confusing and kind of on rails gameplay-wise.

    Don't let that fool you, the redeeming quality is how touching it is. They call the game a "feature". The main attraction is that the music was composed buythe Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. They put their heart into it guy and gals. My guess as an I'm sorry for piloting into the **** of this earlieth of the    First of all, the game is confusing and kind of on rails gameplay-wise.

    Don't let that fool you, the redeeming quality is how touching it is. They call the game a "feature". The main attraction is that the music was composed buythe Prague Philharmonic Orchestra.

    They put their heart into it guy and gals. My guess as an I'm sorry for piloting into the **** of this earlieth of the millenium.

    It's short. There's no dialogue. You 'll be asking yourself w*f half the time. But it'll tug at your heartstrings with both the story and the score.

    Do yourself a favor and find out what happened to Lucas.    … Expand
  11. tomason
    Dec 12, 2022
    8
    Very unique, cinematic, narrative driven game. The story and setting is very intriguing, it reminded me of the work of David Lynch with its cryptic symbolism. Not for everyone but for me was a memorable experience.
  12. Espee
    May 15, 2021
    8
    Good game which gets better on each playthrough. It is not for everyone, but still a cool story and experience.

Awards & Rankings

95
#95 Most Discussed PS4 Game of 2016

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
77

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 28
  3. Negative: 3 out of 28
  1. Let's Play Video Games
    Jan 1, 2017
    80
    It was only during my subsequent playthroughs that I was able to catch the game’s quiet understatement, and I’m so frustrated that I missed these the first time around. This is a game to be savored and treasured, but its blunt delivery and liberal use of codes and symbols only serve to sacrifice clarity.
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  2. Playstation Official Magazine Australia
    Oct 29, 2016
    80
    All combined, it’s enough to elevate Virginia above PS4’s typical story-led fare, divisive bow-out and all. [December 2016, p74]
  3. PSNStores
    Oct 19, 2016
    40
    It’s clear that Virginia is supposed to be mysterious, the absence of any dialog helps to keep things firmly planted in the unexplainable, but when there’s no payoff to any of the build up – it all starts to feel a bit meaningless.
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