➤ Impostor Factory: the review of "To The Moon 3" 🎮

Almost ten years have passed since the release of To The Moon, but it seems like yesterday that we played the first adventure signed by Kan Gao e Freebird Games. An emotional impact that is devastating to say the least has allowed this game to remain branded for life in the soul of anyone who has had the opportunity to enjoy it to the full, as long as they have a well-disposed mentality towards the important philosophical-existential issues it deals with. . It was no less than four years ago the sequel Finding Paradise, in effect a confirmation of the narrative talent of Kan Gao, from this point of view one of the most interesting figures within the entire videogame panorama. In fact, there are few who can boast the same ability in dealing with such profound topics, placing touching twists without sinking excessively, managing to emotionally overwhelm the fans of the series also through the ability to play down at the right time. Two touching works, able to make tears flow from even the driest of hearts.

With these premises it was therefore legitimate to wait anxiously for the closing of the trilogy, which finally arrived on our screens a few days ago. There Impostor Factory review it arrives, in fact, when the game is already available on Steam, promising its players new rivers of tears expertly alternated with moments of genuine comedy.

Do you want to know if Impostor Factory can keep up with its two predecessors? Read on!

The plot: laughter and tears

Impostor Factory: the review of — Impostor Factory: the villa where much of the story takes place.

Anyone who has played To The Moon and Finding Paradise surely already knows what to expect from Impostor Factory. The third adventure by Freebird Games does not deny the expectations from this point of view, once again making the narrative component your dominant aspect. Indeed, compared to the two previous chapters Impostor Factory completely abandons any dynamics that can be approached to a concept of gameplay, focusing everything on plot without making her lose her rhythm. Elements such as the small puzzles encountered previously or the need to collect elements with which to continue the story are then definitively set aside. The interaction of the player is in fact limited to moving the protagonist of the story through the various places where it takes place, using the mouse or the arrow keys for this purpose. Also this time our dear mouse turns out to be the best choice, thanks to greater precision in the management of our character's movements.

Having made the necessary premise, intended especially for those unfamiliar with the other titles developed by Freebird Games, we come to this point at history. We will naturally try to limit the elements provided to a minimum, so as not to spoil the pleasure of discovering the main component of Impostor Factory firsthand. The game is divided into three acts, for a total duration of around three and a half hours. Those who expected the return of Neil Watts and Eva Rosalene of Sigmund Corp. will instead find this waiting for him Quincy, hitherto unknown protagonist whom we meet at the entrance of a villa, where a party to which he has been invited is scheduled. Going around the rooms of the luxurious residence, Quincy meets the other guests of the hosts, but it is above all the mysterious Lynri who strikes him and attracts him. While trying to learn more about the girl, Quincy finds himself catapulted into a horror film when he discovers that the hosts, Doctors Haynes and Yu, have been murdered.

Between time travel and the usual inevitable flow of memories, from this moment the story of Impostor Factory begins, set up in a similar way to that of its two predecessors especially in its central phase. It is in fact in this part that topics of particular weight are dealt with, such as our presence in the lives of others and the possibility of leaving our mark on them even when we are aware that our time may be more limited than expected. Without throwing punches in the stomach unhooked by To The Moon and Finding Paradise, Impostor Factory brings with it moments where a few tears it comes out easily, alternating as in the past with other pleasant ones comicality linked above all to a particular cat and a rice cooker robot, Quincy's adventure companions for part of the story.

Compared to the two previous chapters, Impostor Factory is however less convincing especially in the final part. In the latter the plot ends up a bit tangled, while remaining understandable, making the player lose part of the empathic charge accumulated up to that moment. However, there are some interesting revelations on the main theme of the series, which also makes this passage unmissable for its fans who have been orphaned by the couple Watts-Rosalene.

The story so far

The Impostor Factory Steam page says that this title can be played even without having first completed To The Moon and Finding Paradise, which we strongly advise against doing. To be fully enjoyed this third chapter must in fact be played after the first two, to whose history we also dedicated some time ago an in-depth study. In case you want to refresh it we propose it again, while if you are completely fasting the adventures created by Kan Gao we also bring you the review of To The Moon and the review of Finding Paradise just a click away.

Graphics and sound

Having established that the gameplay of Impostor Factory is practically zero, we just have to talk about the artistic aspects of this game: graphics and sound. Like the other two episodes, Impostor Factory was made with the use of RPG Maker and the stylistic choice to represent all the scenes as those of the classic role-playing games of the 16-bit era. Also from this point of view the ability of Kan Gao and Freebird Games is now known, so we are no longer surprised to appreciate parts of the game that are real moving pictures, accompanied by well-defined cutscenes. always made and placed at the right time.

Same goes for the colonna sonora, as usual extremely circulated and able to contribute significantly to the emotional impact of some scenes. Those who expected the usual song with the voice of Laura Shigihara, strangely absent, will perhaps be a bit disappointed. There is a way to console oneself, however, with the translation of all the dialogues in the language Italian company, available since launch.

Comment

Digital Delivery Steam Price 8,19 € Resources4Gaming.com

8.0

Readers (13)

7.5

Your vote

In overall terms, Impostor Factory ranks below To The Moon and Finding Paradise, managing only for a while to reach the level of emotional involvement offered by them. The skills of Kan Gao praised in the introduction phase are however alive and well and are appreciated also in this third chapter, however unmissable if you loved his two predecessors. In case you have not yet made acquaintance with this series, it is a good opportunity to recover it. Along with a nice supply of handkerchiefs.