Just completed the game.

tl;dr version of the game: wow.

The slightly longer version: the story is more than what you think it is, and is so well-thought out, that I'm hard pressed to think of any loopholes.

The somewhat long version: Gemini Rue is a true work of art. Having finished the game, I read some of the reviews online, and while the criticisms in the Just Adventure review are a bit odd, some of the user comments on blogs and review sites are just downright depressing to read. I am of course referring to people knocking the game for its low-res graphics. Where the game fails to provide for high-res sprites/textures and/or 3D models, it more than makes up for in aesthetics, atmosphere and mood. Just as well that they're not touching the game anyway.

The story, of course, is the best part of the game. Truly, without giving any spoilers away, it had me compelled to finish it in two sittings. Even as I'm typing this now, I'm still awed at how well-written it is. A part of me is still clamoring for more, even though the ending is perfect and should stay that way.

I look forward to seeing Joshua Nuernberger's next project!

Yeah, I got it right after I posted. She tells you not to step into the room and the solution is... to step into the room anyway. Alrighty then, the gloves are off Gemini Rue!

I'm on the second testing day now.

I played the demo and thoroughly enjoyed it. So I have bought my own CD copy of the game.

I just finished the game myself and I cannot agree with you more. The narrative is simply and truly stunning. It makes a game that is exciting and thrilling to play and more or less satisfying. That is a true achievement considering many triple A games out there these days are simply not satisfying to play or finish. To think that one man can design a game to this standard is quite astonishing. I can't wait for my CD copy now!

The story is indeed great - but the game is not without its flaws. Putting the entire first half of the game in the same 4 streets was a really bad decision to make. It seems there's only 20 people in that entire world and they all live in the same two apartment blocks! I walked enough stairs up and down to last me a life time. The game is also rather easy but some of the puzzles are still odd.

Yeah, I've completed it too now. It was a good game, though it took a while for it to really hook me. The first half could have needed some more environments and characters, as it got a bit repetitive.

The story was pretty good. It didn't quite blow me away, but it's a lot more intelligent than most stories we get in games, and the final part was really good.

Voice acting could have been better for some characters (especially Balder). The pixel art was sometimes pretty good (especially the street scenes), but often too blurry or boring.

The action sequences were okay. I actually liked that it was possible to die. Adventure games don't _need_ to feature unkillable main characters; as long as it's not Sierra-unfair, it can be good with a game that punish you for failing occasionally. One of the timed sequences was a bit too harsh, though.

I just finished it as well. Very good ending, very good beginning. It did drag a bit in the middle but not that bad (if it was that bad I likely would have started playing something else). The art, music and story were all fantastic I thought except for maybe a few backgrounds (like the reactor room for example).

Looking forward to what this guy does in the future, I hope it is another adventure game.

Yeah have to agree on this bit, I'd have liked to sit on a hovercar to travel to a few more places. It wouldn't have hurt to put one or two of the characters in other districts too.

I really like the fact that the game doesn't wrest control of gameplay elements from you - some of the minigames are simple, but cool diversions, like trying to identify the smuggler ship on a picture viewer. I also think the computer terminals on Barracus are a bloody good idea - you can actually find out a lot about the game world in there.

The shootouts are good because they don't feel out of place. It isn't a revolutionary idea or feature, but it did give a lot of weight to the final shootout-duel between Azriel and you-know-who.

Only the radar one was a little silly, methinks.

I personally didn't get a dragged vibe. The story definitely revved to max speed for the next half of the game, but I was no less compelled during the first half. Maybe I'm just a sucker for the post-human noir setting, but I was constantly kept on my toes - who's going to betray me next, who do I trust, etc. I was just so motivated to find out more about the world that Azriel and D6 live in.

If I have any one major complaint to make though, alongside the inventory one, I'm not that fond of the cutscenes. They were, eh, slow. I suspect they are meant to give the game some poetic flair, but it didn't work that way for me sadly :(

Which one was it?

The one where you're supposed to escape up a staircase with a closed door at the top, while some goons are chasing you.

You're supposed to lock the door :p

Lol yeah. It got me the first time too. I couldn't figure out what to do. And then I realized "hmmm what if I could close the door?" And sure enough, I could! :D

There was another "doh" moment in the water tower. I was supposed to get the cable into the 2nd floor, and plug it into the conduit. Even with the extension, it just refused to go through the opening. I was getting annoyed, and then common sense kicked in LOL!

Oh...

Well, I finally escaped with probably less than 0,5 second to spare without locking the door.

I got a little bit of time with the game over the weekend and I have to say I'm enjoying it so far. The voice work isn't as bad as I was expecting so far, I think I'll be leaving it on for the time being. I really like the idea of using the terminals to locate people and places, it makes me feel like I'm sucked into the world a bit more than what could be done (like finding Mathius' address and then having to look at the map screen so that you actually figure out what street it's on).

I'm having a little bit of trouble figuring out how to get into Mathius' apartment right now. I tried lockpicking (electronic locks), kicking the door, and interacting with the window but that doesn't seem to do anything. That's where I put the game down for now, but while I ponder what to do I'll definitely go back to it.

Very impressed so far!