Polygon.com just reviewed this game, they gave it a 3.5, they were too generous in my opinion.

Buggy game with glitchy controls, incomplete story with dull writing, I truly regret buying it. Sorry if I offend those that like the game, but it's been about 6 years since I purchased something I did not like at all.

Me too, back the old blackboard.

" I will wait for the reviews before deciding to buy a game.
" I will wait for the reviews before deciding to buy a game.
" I will..."

It took me a bit to locate the review on their page - here's a direct link to spare others the searching. :)

http://www.polygon.com/2013/10/10/4821916/montagues-mount-review

I agree with most points raised in the review. I differ in three aspects that the review stated (or didn't touch upon):
1. I _did_ enjoy the atmosphere
2. I didn't think the writing was shallow. It's certainly nothing special, but it also wasn't so bad that it would have thrown me off, and the the professional voice acting made it work regardless.
3. I enjoyed solving the puzzles, though I agree that they mostly make no sense and feel like arbitrary puzzles thrown in for the sake of having puzzles - which is a pity in a game that hinges so much on atmosphere and immersion.

I think the rating (3.5 out of 10) is adequate, perhaps it's half a point too high. The game is neither "average" (which would equal 4-6 points for me) nor horrible. The fitting qualifier (imho) would be "mostly bad", so 3/10 stars seems justified.

Yesterday I wrote my own review for GOG, and gave the game 2/5. But the review hasn't been published yet. Ouch ... you certainly aren't lucky with your picks ...

Aye, I picked up those two as well. Huge mistake...and I'd had a decent streak going choosing quality indie games. A lesson not to plan a purchase or pre-purchase without much info.

I'd also give Montague's Mount a 3.5. My review hasn't been posted (or somehow didn't go through) yet, my main problems were the severe glitches, so I chose 2 out of 5 stars. The story fell flat, the puzzles were a chore, and there was nothing that really captured my interest.

That's weird Adokat, I wrote a review too yesterday, and it hasn't been posted. Between that time and today, two reviews got through. Psyringe posted a review too, and it hasn't been posted either. Very strange.

I think Polygon's review is spot-on, but you do raise some good points.

The atmosphere and voice acting are definitely the two (only?) strong points. I understand many of the design decisions, such as the sombre piano music, slow cutscenes, slow walking speed, etc. They're all designed to slow the player down and allow them become immersed in the atmosphere and story. But what story? The voice acting was excellent, but the writing was often so cringe-worthy, I was genuinely embarrassed.

But one thing that hasn't been addressed anywhere yet, and the thing that frustrates me the most is one of the main reasons I bought the game - its claim "The first game to explore and promote the Irish language (Gaeilge)". This is utter rubbish.

I don't speak Gaelic, but do have an interest in Irish folklore and have encountered some interesting Gaelic texts before. Pre-purchase, I imagined hearing the lovely language spoken to me and possibly even having to translate something in a puzzle. Instead, aside from a couple of one-or-two-word signs, all the game does is list item descriptions in Gaelic. It was interesting the first couple of times, but having no real reference to the pronunciation in-game, I very quickly ended up completely ignoring the Irish descriptions and immediately reading the smaller English. Why wasn't the narration in Gaelic, or in-game writing? Rather than promoting the Irish language, Montague's Mount almost seemed to throw it in as an afterthought.

While I'm grumbling about the text, if the entire game is focused around absorbing the player into the atmosphere, isn't having "ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED: INSPECT 25 OBJECTS!" plastered across the screen for meaningless 'achievements' somewhat contrary to that?

Sigh. I apologise for my long and overtly negative grumblings, but this game did so many frustrating things that just a little QA testing should have fixed and made it at least bearable. I feel genuinely disappointed.

If you have a PS3, get your hands on a copy of "FOLKLORE", or at the very least, see some playthroughs on youtube; that game is packed with mystic Irish atmosphere, with a lot of true myths about fairies, the otherworld, spirits of the dead, etc.

Hmm, perhaps I'm more forgiving with regard to the writing because I'm not a native speaker. :) When I was younger and still listening to pop music (childhood sins ;) ), the English lyrics felt okay, but they turned into something horribly flat when translated into my native language. I agree. A game that _actually_ promoted Gaelic is an intriguing idea. But "Montague's Mount" fails at doing this, and it fails for a reason that is so fundamental and obvious and simple that it's hard to understand why the dev even thought it would work: You can't promote a language in a game where no one ever talks - except some monologues of a narrator who doesn't even speak the language that you want to promote.

I think what the comments show is that there _is_ an interest in a game that allows players to actually experience the Gaelic language. Montague's Mount just isn't that game.

I was discussing this with my wife and we came to the conclusion that the main problem is a matter of risk, or lack thereof.

Montague's Mount reminds me of both Dear Esther (an obvious similarity) and for some reason, Miasmata. Both games I love. Both games have their ardent fans and a fair share of haters. But both games took large risks. Dear Esther tried out an interesting new narrative style and Miasmata did some exceptionally risky things with movement, science and navigation. I thought they were both largely successful and both really benefited from taking these risks.

Montague's Mount could and should have taken the obvious risks: promote the Irish language! Take the plunge and make the narrator speak Irish! It would have been a huge risk and would have definitely divided responses, but it would have made it stand out. Instead, it avoided anything risky, dismissed its potential and became a very bland (half-) game.