T
wo games we’ve reviewed this issue
arrived with us in a very different state to
that in which they’ll be received by most
players. That’s nothing new, but Beyond A
Steel Sky and Deadly Premonition 2 have given
us pause, as we consider how to cover games
with the kind of issues that are likely to result
in significant discrepancies between our play
experience and that of our readership.
Beyond A Steel Sky is the more
straightforward of the two. Its technical issues
were plain and frequent enough to affect our
playthrough and warrant mention in our
appraisal. A patch from Revolution arrived just
prior to our issue deadline, and would seem to
have addressed the more glaring problems.
Our criticisms of the game aren’t invalid, not
least since many players will have encountered
similar issues pre-patch, though it’s worth
noting that these issues are less likely to
affect those who haven’t yet played it.
Deadly Premonition 2’s situation is more
complex. The game’s technical issues have
been addressed somewhat, though the changes
don’t go far enough. The framerate during
exploration is still poor, while those brief but
annoying freezes are even more common in
our experience. Yet these were made less of
a priority than a patch to the story. As we
mentioned, the game’s treatment of itstransgender antagonist is troubling. Yet soon
after we’d finished the game we believed we’d
have cause to revisit it, with Swery tweeting
an apology in which he promised a rewrite.
The scene to which he referred involves
protagonist Francis York Morgan meeting the
enigmatic Lena Dauman, before pointedly
using her deadname to let her know he’s aware
of her blood tie to the Clarkson family that
controls Le Carré. In one sense, it’s surprising
given his earlier denouncement of the town’s
treatment of Dauman. Yet this could easily be
read as an example of performative wokeness,
a would-be ally showing their true colours.
Such insensitivity would be true to this most
capricious of characters, and few would argue
that Morgan is presented as unambiguously
heroic. Yet if Swery’s acknowledgement
suggested a sensitivity to the game’s trans
players, the patch fails to address further
problems with the treatment of Dauman –
not least the multiple times she’s misgendered
outside her confrontation with Morgan.
The response to this highlights the
challenges publications face when covering
post-launch content. Swery’s apology and the
existence of the patch were widely reported,
with sites quoting the creator’s claim that “the
scenario... has been fixed.” Some, however,
failed to subsequently note that the problemhad not been fully addressed, while others were
forced to rely on second-hand reports from
those in positions to investigate the changes.
That’s unfortunate but understandable: few
publications have the time nor means to keep
returning to games to critically reevaluate
them. Besides, to do so is potentially to
channel resources away from coverage of other
games – including the majority that are
complete enough upon release not to require
significant post-launch attention.
That developers might submit a game to
certification needing extra work is
understandable. Likewise, that they might
spend the often months-long process making
improvements that are ultimately to the
player’s benefit – even if large patches around
launch day risk alienating those with slow
internet speeds. But is it fair to the developers
that ensure their games reach us in flawless
condition to give others the benefit of the
(often considerable) doubt? We’re not averse
to revisiting games – The Long Game and
Time Extend are testament to that – but to
review something is to evaluate it as it exists
at a point in time. In other words, we’re not
convinced our current approach should
change. As we said in our Star Wars Battlefront
II review in E314: “Whatever happens next,
we’re afraid we don’t patch review scores.” QConfronting the challenges of ‘release now, patch later’ culture
Post Script
Even a Videodrome-inspired
transformation for Morgan’s firing arm
fails to enliven the monotonous combat