The cyberpunk subgenre has been regularly explored in video games, immersive simulation classics such as Deus Ex have managed to create complex worlds that players can get lost in, the latest game that seems to take advantage of this subgenre is Foreclosed, a cyberpunk-style action adventure game, developped by Antab Studio.
In the game you follow the story of Evan Kapnos, whose identity has been seized, he lost his job, his brain implants and access to the city’s blockchain, and now he must escape past his identity and implants. Foreclosed has an amazing visual style and varied game mechanics, but the story he tells quickly fails and the game mechanics he raises worthless.
Technical section
The visual aspect of the game is quite attractive, it combines gameplay with comic book aesthetics very well. As you progress through the game, you will see how the use of the full screen is combined with the typical thumbnails of a comic book. Even the in-game instructions are inside what would be boxes or speech bubbles in a comic book.
The world we move in seems truly futuristic, and while the story tells about a bleak future, the settings aren’t strictly bleak. The whole game is filled with a truly all-encompassing purple and has that typical neon future full of technological advancements. Overall, Foreclosed visually reminded me of the Blade Runner movies.
Regarding the sound design, musically it changes appropriately depending on the scene you are in, so if you are in a nightclub there is music playing all the time and if you are in a quiet abandoned building. Sure, the sounds of the plans as in a comic appear on the screen.
You know the world of Foreclosed sees people intrinsically tied to companies that have their own identities, and if Kapnos can’t find a way to fix this, at best it will be auctioned off, that’s what we do. tells you at the start. of the game, but as you progress the data it provides does not develop the plot satisfactorily and is not clear enough so You really don’t understand Kapnos’ motives.
And while Foreclosed gives you options for dialogue, they don’t add much to Kapnos’ personality and whatever option you choose, the answer will always be the same, so it is easy for you to find yourself in a dialogue loop. Additionally, Kapnos’ character dubbing is monotonous, and his thoughts, as well as his conversations, do not contribute to character development.
Playability
Foreclosed mixes stealth, shooting and hacking. As you progress through the game you unlock new mechanics so you start with understanding how and when to use stealth to what extent you can escape certain places. You also quickly understand how hack with a very simple button combination.
You only have access to a gun a gun that is somehow connected to you. And while it’s still the same weapon, you can unlock different types of bullets or increase their firing speed. Additionally, there are implant-activated powers that unlock as you level up, though there are only six to choose from.
Kapnos can also acquire certain abilities like a shield or disorient his enemies, in the same way You only have room for four of these skills. To unlock your implants and weapon upgrades, all you need to do is increase your experience level.
Foreclosed allows you to explore your surroundings, although the only purpose it seems to have is to find the artifacts that will allow you to gain more experience. The game itself tells you where the artifacts are, but these ultimately don’t seem very useful as gaining new powers or Upgrading your weapon doesn’t seem to increase your potency significantly.
A lot of combat is about waiting, your skills and weapon are limited by an overheat system, so between using skills and shooting you have to wait, which ends up causing the skills not to be a great advantage. You can easily win a match without using skills.
In theory, the powers should give more excitement, but they are so out of balance that it could cause certain powers, like the health regenerator that floats on an enemy or the exploding bullets, to do absolutely nothing. which added to the overheating doesn’t seem really useful to me.
At some point in the game you also manage to get telekinetic powers, you can move things around long enough that your system doesn’t overheat, so you can hit and shoot. Which will come in handy as you will find enemies with vests, helmets and shields, which To defeat them, you have to mix stealth, telekinesis, and shooting.
However, it should be noted that when enemies appear, they seem to have only two options: stay completely still or walk slowly while they shoot you. The AI mostly chooses the first option; if there is a wall between you and an enemy, instead of trying to sidestep or rush, they will stay still and shoot endlessly on the same part of the wall.
Duration
Foreclosed is a game that can be completed in about 3 to 5 hours, depending on your ability to pass the tests that the game requires. For the type of game and the little content that the game has, I find the duration fine, however, precisely one of its problems is that it does not have more content that explores the cyberpunk world he poses.
conclusion
Foreclosed es un juego que sabe usar muy bien el estilo futurista y el cómic, pasar de pantalla completa a viñetas, y usar palabras para representar los sonidos resulta muy acertado y refresca los combates, sin embargo para ser un juego con tanto en el combate , it’s a shame his weapon set and special abilities are mostly boring and efficient.
Foreclosed It was released on August 12 for all consoles and PCs. For this analysis, it was played on an Xbox Series X.
