Analysis of 63 Days, a raw experience that went unnoticed – Xbox Generation

It is often said that the first impact is something that needs to be worked on, since this is when the consumer decides whether or not they like a product. Likewise, there is the expression love at first sight or things like that. 63 Days works perfectly, since an interactive audiovisual product must have this substantial impact on players for them to be interested. Based on the above, it seems to me that 63 Days is one of those games that manages to do this well, since its art style, graphical quality and menus are designed to perfection.

As for the art style, there’s a lot to talk about, as the game is enjoyable. The grim, apocalyptic, warlike aesthetic of World War II is not difficult to replicate, but of course, in a strategy game with an isometric perspective, it is not easy to demonstrate the details and adapt too clearly an environment and a context. In this sense, the game achieves immersion solely through its artistic style, being perhaps one of the strong points of this game.

But the artistic style would be nothing if it wasn’t accompanied by good graphic quality. We know this is a game with a modest budget, and while the developers have some limitations, it’s admirable how polished 63 Days is. Coming back to the first impression, When trying the tutorial, it was quite impressive to enter a “realistic” world, with interesting graphic quality and which also plays with lighting both on an artistic and playable level..

The graphics quality doesn’t stop there, since most of the criticisms that we usually receive with this type of games are that they are not well optimized. Fortunately, at least for the Xbox Series, 63 Days manages to be stable almost all the time. In addition, although it is visually powerful, the game only weighs 7 GB, which is very little compared to its power on certain points.

Finally, and to end the technical praise, I also want to highlight the sound section, because it accompanies the realism that the developers want to implement. The music in the game is excellent, it’s a mix between the epic of a battle and the complete destruction of a war. The dark and exciting feeling is something that aroused me when playing this game. There are other simple details like narrations, dialogues and other effects that seem quite realistic. In fact, the impact of the weapons is something that amazes, since the aim of the game is to develop stealth gameplay, and when the weapons are fired, everything resonates, giving that alert and fear through the sound.

I have to admit that 63 Days is a game of a genre that doesn’t excite me. When I discovered it, I was scared, because the only game I enjoyed in this style was Gears Tactics, so I had prejudices that helped me to be critical on certain topics, but they also gave me reason to realize that this is a good game.

63 days is a real-time action strategy game that curiously combines strategy and shooting. This combination, although it seems strange, works quite well, as it generates a dynamic in the missions that prevents the game from being repetitive and simple. In this sense, even if it is a genre that I do not know, it seems to me that it can be an incentive to attract a new audience, not only based on its niche, which seems very small.

Before explaining how this works, I want to clarify that this analysis has the problem that I am analyzing it in a console. These types of games are originally designed to be played with a keyboard and mouse, so adapting them to a console is often almost impossible. With this clarification it is clear that the console port in question on how to play, that is to say the Xbox controller, was not the best, so I had a lot of difficulty getting used to the way of playing.

The game has six levels which constitute the complete campaign. These levels are, in a way, small puzzles that we must solve with the resources we currently have. The campaign first introduces us to characters with different abilities. At the end, We will have at our disposal 5 different characters with very marked abilities that allow us to complete the levels in different ways. Despite this, there will always be a “correct way” with which we must pass the levels, but this is only the way that the developers thought of for the first attempt. The curious thing about these levels is that they are large and interactive, giving players the opportunity to devise different and fun strategies to complete them.

In my experience, the game is quite difficult, the “official” paths are complex and completing the missions of each level becomes an interesting challenge. In principle it doesn’t seem bad to me, because it’s a short game and it’s perfect that each level has a high difficulty. However, finding a solution is something that takes time, so it becomes a bit tedious to always have to think about possible solutions. What I think the game lacks is that it has intermediate levels, with simpler and different challenges, to give dynamism to the game and a little variety.

The game also impresses with the level of realism. Each character has unique abilities that, like in other games, resemble their physical traits. The older brother (Lynx), for example, is more resistant to damage and can carry bodies more easily, while the younger brother (Youngster) performs better in stealth and speed situations. Even the additional characters unlocked are unique. Everyone reacts to the storyline in different ways, possessing unique abilities that help in different situations. Therefore, analyzing the environment and the possibilities is something exciting when starting a new level.

It seems negative to me that the rhythm is based solely on stealth. While I understand that’s the point of the game, it’s sometimes a bit repetitive and even tiring having to drag the characters around all the time. Additionally, understanding that this is a real-time tactical game, but I think combat is necessary, and given the characteristics of our characters, direct confrontation is unfeasible.. Likewise, when there is a control issue, real-time tactics become even more problematic, as they are not easy to manage without a mouse or keyboard.

On the other hand, there is the artificial intelligence of our enemies. Although they usually already have predefined routes and a plot on the maps, when it comes to reacting against us, they have erratic interactions. For example, if they detect us, they will alert absolutely all allies, making it almost impossible to escape, which increases realism. It is also curious that they always attack us with grenades, which makes it impossible to escape. For the rest, the AI ​​didn’t seem too great to me, being just meatbags that need to be eliminated or avoided, they’re not people, they’re cameras.

63 Days is a strange game, and not being someone who usually plays these types of experiences, it doesn’t seem realistic to comment on a specific length. Anyway, For each level, given that there are 6, it is possible to take at least 2 hours to complete it if done with standard difficulty. If the difficulty is reduced, it is possible to retreat and attack without consequences. Now, trying to complete the missions can be a bit of trial and error, and yes, we will be guaranteed at least 10 hours of gameplay.

In this sense, it seems to me that it is an ideal duration, since the game becomes boring, at least for me, the more you play, the less interesting the proposition becomes. Even so, there will be players who consider it a very simple game, but at least for me outside of the niche I don’t think that’s a problem.

It’s a pleasant surprise to find games of this style that, although not of my initial interest, managed to interest me. 63 Days manages to be a small but complete game, with an impeccable technical section that accentuates the quality of the video game. It’s not just about looking pretty, it’s about working well. Despite the issues it has with its console control, it’s enjoyable.

On the other hand, the gameplay is something that, based on my research, is similar to games like Commandos. With that in mind, this seems like a very interesting game that will really appeal to the specific niche that loves this genre. Despite this, I believe that it can be very well received by the general public and, finally, benefit from this recognition that it does not currently have.