- Publisher: Slow Bros.
- Release Date: Apr 16, 2024
- Also On: PC, Xbox Series X
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
- Unscored
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Apr 22, 2024Quite simply for me, Harold Halibut is an astonishing achievement in story telling and game design. It has visuals that need to be seen to be believed and a story focusing on the human mind and psyche as well as the unknown. This game has it all for an interactive drama. Wonderfully voiced by a diverse cast, deftly scored by a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack and crafted with such love and care, Harold Halibut truly is a feat in modern gaming, and one that will stay with for me for a long time. I know this type of game isn’t for everyone, but for me, this is perfection.
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Apr 15, 2024Transcending the line between video game and interactive art piece, Harold Halibut explores the meaning of home on an isolated alien water world. While some pacing issues exist within the larger story, the handcrafted visuals that consistently charm alongside an extravagant cast make this a treat for fans of narrative adventures.
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Apr 15, 2024Though plaudits will be rightly levelled at its appearance, Harold Halibut is equally as impressive when it comes to its narrative, world-building, and how both are realised. Despite being relatively light in gameplay terms, the game packs a punch where it matters by sticking its landing and proving beyond doubt that the answer to the meaning of life may be closer to home than you think.
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Apr 21, 2024Visually stunning, Harold Halibut weaves a profound tale of human curiosity. Centered around a remarkably peculiar protagonist with scant knowledge of the universe, the game explores themes of friendship and virtue, crafting an unconventional narrative brimming with memorable moments.
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Jun 7, 2024The use of stop-motion-inspired animation alongside hand-crafted characters and environments makes playing Harold Halibut a truly unique experience. However, I wish the game was a bit shorter and more interactive.
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PLAYJun 6, 2024Makes for a wonderful interactive movie. You may need some patience to see it through to the end, but it’s a beautiful, rewarding adventure. [Issue#40, p.86]
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Apr 22, 2024Harold Halibut, created over more than a decade with innovative motion capture, is more akin to “My Dinner With Andre” than a Ray Harryhausen creature epic like “Clash of the Titans.” Although some conversations are too lengthy, it rewards those who stick to it with honesty, empathy and a subtle mastery of human nature.
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Apr 17, 2024Harold Halibut may not be the most innovative game in terms of world intervention mechanics, in addition to having some slip-ups in the rhythm of the narrative, but it is undeniable that the sum of its powerful story and spectacular artistic style make this one of the games most irresistible in recent times.
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Apr 15, 2024Memorable for his beauty and dazzling personality, Harold Halibut can boast of easily recalling the strangeness of Wes Anderson, a comparison that will most likely arise in a myriad of other reviews. A gallery of truly successful characters serves an impeccably constructed story, nevertheless undermined by a very subdued intensity and a slow pace. Harold Halibut may annoy some people, but they will still have a hard time denying all the dedication devoted with passion and talent to the handmade sets of the Fedora ship.
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Apr 15, 2024Harold Halibut shapes an attractive story led by a protagonist who manages to surprise the player. The magnificent artisanal artistic section accompanies this good script, but at times its approach becomes somewhat heavy on the playability. Here you have a good narrative adventure that could have aspired to be much more.
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Apr 15, 2024A VERY particular adventure, both in aesthetic and narrative terms. The story starts slowly and with very little explanation, but as the game progresses it becomes more and more interesting and does not disdain touching important chords. The mechanics are the classic ones of a graphic adventure but the gameplay presents a few too many rough edges due to a bit of "dirt" in the code. Finally, the total lack of localization in Italian could represent a significant obstacle given that the tone of the dialogues is well above classic school English.
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Apr 15, 2024Harold Halibut is an extraordinary accomplishment in a lot of ways, presenting a gorgeously-realized handcrafted world and a story swimming with unique sci-fi ideas and affecting emotional beats. Unfortunately, a lack of stimulating puzzles or gameplay results in a title that delivers quite nicely on a surface movie-like level, but doesn't dive as deep as you might expect.
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| This publication has not posted a final review score yet. | |
| These unscored reviews do not factor into the Metascore calculation. | |
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Apr 17, 2024While Harold Halibut offers up a warm and cozy vision of the future to explore, you have to put up with some plodding moments to really enjoy it. If you’re just here for a thrilling story or brainteasing puzzles, you’ll be disappointed. Instead, playing Harold Halibut is a bit like peering into an exquisitely crafted dollhouse, one that offers up a refreshingly retrofuturistic vision that you just want to reach out and play with.