80 DAYS
And we are off with another round of A to Z games! As revealed last week the first game of this run (technically a number) is 80 Days! I first (attempted) to played the mobile version of this game years ago before the PC version came out, hearing about it from the Video Games Hot Dog podcast. Like all mobile games I never really found the time to just use my phone for gaming, so when the PC release arrived I jumped on it.
80 Days is the adventures of Phileas Fogg and his capable valet Passepartout as they attempt to travel around the world in 80 days or less, in a slightly alternate history 1872. You play as Passepartout, doing all the work really, Fogg is more or less just the money man (and sometimes more than a little bit of a jerk). You diligently find accommodations, travel routes, transportation, pack bags and try to make everything go just right. From conversations with all manor of people across the globe to solving murder mysteries on the high seas, you Passepartout, make each decision as to how the story *might* go forwards. Each day, each outing, each encounter you are writing in your diary and have 2 or 3 choices at critical points that push the story forwards.
There is a lot to like about 80 Days. The distinct art style is both clever and clear with each city and mode of transportation have their own pieces of art that all show off like fantastical postcards (in fact when you take a screenshot it shows it as a postcard). The writing (by Meg Jayanth of Sunless Sea fame) is terrific, smart and entertaining. When making choices you try and plan but the game will often throw wrenches into the gears and 80 Days really shines once your travels begin to come off the rails. On top of that managing your finances, time and Fogg's health makes each choice doubly important.
There is so much to see and encounter in this game is kinda crazy, 120+ cities, multiple hundreds of characters and encounters...you only get a glimpse of it in a single run around the world. You can see the potential in future runs and the game really encourages you to give it multiple goes. At 60 to 90 minutes per trip, taking Passepartout and Fogg for another spin around the world is not a grind and the game saves at every stop and major encounter so it's easy to pick up and put down. And a brief peek at the achievements show the incredible potential and adventure to be had here.
80 Days has a few things that I do wish were different or better. The music was on the simple side, slightly repetitive and forgettable, not nearly as evocative as the writing and art. Like the music some of the controls still spoke of its mobile origins and artifacts of that design poking through. None of it game breaking, just a few things didn't quite work the way you would expect for a mouse driven interface. The only true disappointment I had was realizing that (slight spoiler?) you must always travel east to west with Paris being your first destination. Yes, while true to the original story, I would have liked more freedom in this regard BUT (big but) it really doesn't impact quality and breadth of content.
As a fan of the book (and various other implementations) of Jules Verne's Around the World in 80 Days if jumped at 80 Days with delight and was well rewarded. After 3 full runs (I finally made it in under 80 days on the last one) I am still going to keep going back to see the huge full world that is presented in this game. It really sweeps you up in the adventure and sometime it's easy to forget your masters wager and the time limit you are under. 80 Days is an choose you own adventure game of high caliber and I heartily recommend it.
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