The Forgotten City

 Xbox Series X
Metascore
86

Generally favorable reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 11 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
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  1. Eurogamer
    Dec 15, 2021
    An elegant mystery with curiosity at its heart. [Eurogamer Recommended]

Awards & Rankings

12
#12 Best Xbox Series X Game of 2021
40
#40 Most Discussed Xbox Series X Game of 2021

User Reviews

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User Score
8.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 72 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 61 out of 72
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 72
  3. Negative: 5 out of 72
  1. avatar133
    Aug 2, 2021
    10
    Amazing game! Storyline, actors, music setting was really good! Played the original Skyrim mod. Even better than the mod. Only thing that IAmazing game! Storyline, actors, music setting was really good! Played the original Skyrim mod. Even better than the mod. Only thing that I found frustrating, was I kind of got lost and didn't know what to do.… Full Review »
  2. L3Fari0us
    Nov 20, 2021
    9
    Fantastic game that asks you to get to know its world and habitants.

    Coming into this game I had no expectations. I knew it was an    Fantastic game that asks you to get to know its world and habitants.

    Coming into this game I had no expectations. I knew it was an adaptation of a Skyrim mod made by the same people (which even won itself an award), but I couldn't believe how fun it actually was.
    The premise is interesting in it of itself, but the characters is where the game truly shines. They are all very complex and ask of you your attention. You need and have a reason to get to know them and learn their issues.
    The graphics and artstyle are, for the most part, beautiful and awe inspiring. The facial animations, however felt very stiff at times, which is a notable problem, since a lot of what you're doing in this game is looking at other people and speaking to them. Though, thanks to the well written dialogue and voice acting, it doesn't bother me as much as it would otherwise.

    Overall, I highly recommend anyone who is a fan of heavy dialogue games and some puzzle solving to try this title out. You won't regret it.    … Full Review »
  3. RhetoricThug
    Nov 14, 2021
    9
    *SPOILER FREE*

    The Forgotten City is a strong step toward intelligent and thoughtful story telling. It's a game that emphasizes dialogue    *SPOILER FREE*

    The Forgotten City is a strong step toward intelligent and thoughtful story telling. It's a game that emphasizes dialogue and exploration over combat and cinematic set pieces. The underlying gameplay mechanics draw from years of western RPGs and play off intrinsic player intrigue. All of which culminates into an experience that engrosses the player in organic exploration that offers well-paced immersive puzzles by way of NPC conversation in an arresting city filled with mystique.

    Please keep in mind a core team of three people developed this video game over the course of four years. I'm throughly impressed by the talent behind such a well-crafted and delightful tale concerning the general mystery of humanity. The use of mythos in this game is especially good and very accessible to those unread in the lore of humanities. The atmosphere's a finely tuned production and there's plenty of visual metaphors or puns seen while traveling the city and meeting its inhabitants. Overall I felt very satisfied completing this game, and compelled to time loop a few more times, uncover a different ending or rethink my last set of choices.

    Dialogue flow charts often feel long-winded and repetitive given the limited pathways the player encounters while weighing the mystery of it all. Nevertheless, the tangled web the player weaves going through the city is simply fascinating. Encounters with NPCs never feel unnecessary and provide a new perspective on the mind games played by us and the gods.

    The Golden Rule is sardonic enough to make you want to break it, only to find yourself back in the same spot trying to solve the same problems. It's up to the player to break the cycle. With so much to learn and discover, I highly recommend trying The Forgotten City. Its intuitive story telling didn't coerce me once to see what's round the next corner or shed light on the mysteries that await us in an eternal sequence of sinful adventure.

    Surprisingly, I didn't encounter any game breaking bugs. Frame rate stutter occasionally affects the action, but doesn't become unplayable. Again, kudos to the developers for this labor of love. The audio and voice acting seemed fine, and I enjoyed its ambience. Character models and the environment resemble Elder-Scrolls, most likely due to the fact that this game was initially a Skyrim mod. With limited resources the developers squeezed everything they had out of animations to make sure the game's writing had believable delivery by its cast. Combat is sparse and doesn't feel like filler to balance out diplomacy or argument, and I welcomed it when it suddenly forced my hand.

    I couldn't help but feel a subtle nod to The Talos Principle. If you've played Talos Principle, you might notice the similarities, like a focus on morality and socially determined ethics and epistemology. Both games do a great job building a memorable setting that's inspired by human history while persuading the player to solve the worlds' conundrums. It's a fresh approach to game design that doesn't pressure the player to progress in the name of gamification systems.

    I welcome more games like The Forgotten City, and hope the three individuals mostly responsible for this gem get an opportunity to apply what they're learned from this project and go on to create more stimulating and enthralling stories for us to play.

    8.5 (round up to 9)    … Full Review »
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