But his first performance as a musician is scheduled for tomorrow, and Francis will be expected to perform that false identity for everyone he knows. It rings hollow (and it should) because Francis is attempting to be someone he isn’t. But “Press X to sing about miners” is not who Francis is at all. In Calypso, the small town where Francis has lived his whole life, his uncle is a hometown boy who made good. Francis is the nephew of Johnson Vendetti, who is a legend in the world of The Artful Escape. Francis is sitting on a bench on a cliff and the first prompt we see instructs us “To strum a folk ballad about the toil of a miner’s life, hold X.” It’s immediately pretentious, and that’s intentional.

There’s no violence to be found here just easygoing platforming, low-pressure musical riffing, and adventure gaming that goes heavy on the dialogue and omits the puzzles entirely.Īs the game begins, you are Francis Vendetti, a teen in a leather jacket, chunky boots, and eyewear that could be steampunk goggles or the perfect circle glasses that John Lennon made iconic.

It’s gentler, too, telling a story about learning how to be who you really are, and not who someone else expects you to be.

Evoking a variety of influences, from the artist Charlie Immer to the bright aesthetics of Lisa Frank, The Artful Escape captures the sheer cinematic thrill of watching your helicopter explode in a Call of Duty mission or falling off a cliff in a Naughty Dog set-piece, but transplants the action to a voyage that goes far beyond the realm of the real. The Artful Escape is a visual treat-a platforming journey that takes players on a journey from Earth to the galaxies beyond and renders every location with gorgeous care.

The artful escape metacritic download