Technobabylon vs Moth Lake

City of Newton, 2087. Genetic engineering is the norm, the addictive Trance has replaced almost any need for human interaction, and an omnipresent AI named Central powers the city. CEL agents Charlie Regis and Max Lao are investigating a serial Mindjacker who is tapping into the neural wiring of seemingly ordinary citizens, stealing their knowledge and leaving them dead. An agoraphobic net addict named Latha Sesame might be the next target. But when Charlie's past comes back to haunt him, he and his partner find themselves on opposite sides of the law, with Latha’s fate in the crossfire. -- Reviews (Windows version) -- PC Gamer - "An old school point-and-click adventure with a captivating story, strong characters, and a rich, well-realised sci-fi setting." 80% Rock, Paper, Shotgun - "Set in a semi-dystopian future, the game features multiple protagonists exploring a tale of genetic engineering, AI overseers, mysterious mind-hacking murders, and overlapping online and offline worlds. It is, in that sense, delightfully pulp sci-fi. But it's also a delicate story of individuals, personal struggles, and most of all, a nuanced approach to complex future-worries." Adventure Gamers - "Technobabylon is a beautiful, compelling game that fans of the cyberpunk genre will devour" 4/5 GameSpot - "When the going gets tough, the tough sometimes take a fishing pole and start fishing in a bloody Jacuzzi stuffed with a mutilated body. That's, at least, the lesson you learn in Technobabylon, a point-and-click adventure that's set in 2087 in a city where a powerful AI controls and observes all." 8/10

Synopsis: This is the story of Moth Lake, a small town that, behind its peaceful facade, hides a terrible secret. Only a group of teenagers, with a difficult life, will reveal what has been hidden for generations. Mysterious events will intensify starting from the eve of a solar eclipse, and our young friends will start a journey into the shadow and into their own soul. What to expect from this game: In short: •2.5D pixel art (Frame to frame animations, as if we are still in '90s) • Simple controls (Supporting touch screen, mouse, keyboard and controllers) • Unconventional puzzles (Don't worry, there's a free walkthrough if you need help!) • Stealth-action • Choices that will change the bonds between the characters as well as the spirit of the experience (Just like in life, a choice can make the difference between friendship, love, hate, life or death) • Thrills, suspense and horror (Not a survival game, but it can be creepy or scary at times) • Bad humor and strong language (They are teenagers, don't judge them) • At some point this experience might even move you to tear (I'm not crying, I just got a pixel in my eye) • 6 different endings • A soundtrack that is original, suggestive, and exciting In detail: Moth Lake is a story-driven experience, with a lot of textual contents (more than 20k words), and hundreds of different scenes (more than 300 scenarios). The script is a long journey through a mystery, through horrors and through the characters hearts. It contains dark topics and very sad stuff, but also a lot of nonsense jokes and weird conversations, so it's hard to say whether it is a horror game or not. The main characters move around a 2.5D world, interacting with many hotspots and NPCs. They can pull objects and perform a set of specific actions to solve very different puzzles. The artwork is a modern pixel art, with a big colour palette and a lot of frame-to-frame animations. There's a very large set of animations, including talking, walking, running, crouching, crawling, pushing, climbing, sneaking, punching, throwing... and much more. Scenarios have some modern lighting/shading work, with particles effects and a constant use of parallax, to simulate a 3D environment. There are 6 main characters and more than 50 NPCs, with their own look and personality. You can control 7 characters through the main story and more in the additional chapters. They all move their eyes, they change facial expressions, and they have some peculiar behaviours. As the story proceeds, the player has to take some choices, affecting the characters mood and sometimes even the plot. For most of the time the player controls a character surrounded by his/her friends. Each one has some kind of skill to be used at the right moment, and sometimes even their personality will be important to solve a puzzle. Some puzzles can be solved by a single character, while other must be solved using the whole squad cooperation. As I said, the game aims to give psychological horror vibes. So keep in mind that this game is not for everyone! Some scenes are disturbing, some scenes may give you anxiety, and some other scenes are extremely sad. Characters are constantly called to face their difficult past, and to go through their scary present. They need to hide, to take terrible decisions and sometimes even to fight for their lives. ...But after all, your choices can lead you to the best possible ending, and if you fail, you can always try again.