I confess that I have always had a weakness for crime novels. A trench coat, a hat and a suspicious look are enough to unravel the slightest mystery. The creators of Tales of the Neon Sea must agree, because that’s all you need to describe Detective Rex. A former cop and half-human, half-robot, Rex lives alone with his cat while drinking and investigating cases to keep drinking. A delicious shot that puts us on the track of what we are going to play.
Rex suffers the consequences of a past accident that sidelined him from his police career and turned him into a cyborg. In a futuristic world where robots and humans look at each other with suspicion, Rex will have to solve a case that connects him to his past more than he thinks. A simple, straight-forward thriller that envelops us completely through its continuous mysteries and fast-paced, witty dialogue.
A sea of neon pixels
The first thing that stands out about Tales of the Neon Sea is its aesthetic. This is not modern pixel art, but rather a tribute to retro pixel, modernized almost without realizing it. As protagonists and supporting characters move across the foreground in single pixels, the background of the scene takes on a dynamic and complex life. A fine and detailed pixel, perfect to describe the vast world that Tales of the Neon Sea brings. Yiti Games has managed to compose a perfect balance between its love for the most classic aesthetics and the explosion of the most modern techniques, generating dynamic scenarios and, despite the small size of some, they do not feel cloistered.
In addition to the beautiful aesthetics of pixels, we must add the good mood of the developers. The love for pop culture is present throughout the game, being able to find references and continuous nods to famous sagas from the world of comics, film and television throughout the game Pretty Easter eggs that will make us feel like we’re in the dystopian future they posit. Yiti Games there Thermite Games.
To the pixel art aesthetic we must add the design of the characters, each of our interlocutors has his own model in the foreground. An image with a strong charge of American comic style, with fast and thick strokes, as well as strong and characteristic colors. This care of character models extends to the drawing of puzzles and riddles which we will discuss later. An aesthetic that adds to the soundtrack, which oscillates between the synthesizers of Blade Runner and the saxophones of LA Confidential, working for a film set.
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Cyber puzzles are coming
I recognize that one of the most limping aspects of the Point and click current are the enigmas. Often the importance of navigating between scenarios and plot leaves out this very important aspect of games. Quite the opposite of what happens in Tales of the Neon Sea, where the puzzles presented to us are quite numerous, but also original and different from each other. Lock picking, technological hacking, etc. They will stand in our way to solve the mysteries. However, I must point out how well Yiti Games has managed to create puzzles that are original, quick to solve and less difficult than ingenious. An aspect that is undoubtedly one of the best that this magnificent adventure presents.
Related to the puzzles, it should be noted that on some very hidden occasions there are secondary missions that can be found throughout the story. Conversations heard on the street or in a bar will unlock the possibility of accessing new areas with very specific and also more difficult puzzles.
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short but intense
Tales of the Neon Sea was released a few years ago for PC and is now seeing a new version for PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch, which is the version we got to enjoy. In addition, Tesura Games launched on April 21, in addition to a standard edition, a spectacular collector’s edition in our country.
Tales of the Neon Sea is clearly a point-and-click adventure of yesteryear. A point and click to use that adapts perfectly to consoles, especially in its portable format. The rhythm of the narration is fast and fun, interspersed with phases of searching for clues and collecting information played by Rex as well as phases of puzzles and platforms where we manage William (our kitten). In fact, that fast pace is what, in the long run, is the game’s biggest problem. can become repetitive.
On the other hand, its variety of settings and their beauty transport us to a veritable sea of neon. A small microuniverse in which it is a pleasure to move forward and reveal secrets, such as its secondary missions. It makes us want to not miss any detail except the final mystery. A story that we would like to see more chapters or second parts.
