It is likely that you have heard of Disco Elysium and that even a friend has recommended what for many is one of the best RPGs in history. Still not you tried? Now that this great role-playing adventure is released on Nintendo Switch and Xbox, you have a new opportunity to get one of the most surprising, unique and fun games on the market.
The fascinating thing about Disco Elysium is that it doesn’t matter how many times you wake up drunk and dying in the dark and chaotic room from which this formidable RPG greets you. The great thing about this role-playing adventure and detectives is that he always manages to surprise you with new stories or new ways of approaching his action, sometimes in such a surreal way that it is hard to believe that it is the same game that you have already overcome in the past. Even the slightest change in your way of proceeding can unleash endless unexpected situations that will inevitably make you draw a face of astonishment followed by a knowing smile. Because it is your actions, your way of thinking, that define the history of a video game that arrived without making too much noise and ended up becoming one of the great winners of The Game Awards 2019. So if you decide that drugs and alcohol are the best way to solve your problems in the game, go ahead! but most likely you will hallucinate with the consequences.
It does not matter how absurd and crazy a thought sounds, or how brutal and cruel you show yourself in dealing with other human beings. Disco Elysium gives you absolute freedom so that you act as you please in the decaying city to which it transports us, and responds to that same freedom with a formidable script That catches you from the moment you open your eyes in a seedy motel just a few meters from a corpse, and with a hangover so insane that you don’t even remember your name. But do not make the mistake of thinking that the amnesia is the typical excuse to generate mystery. Rather, it is a resource that the ZA / UM masterfully employs to give you even more freedom, delving into the mind of a man tormented by multiple personalities that time and time again they will fight to come out and take control. I tell you about it and even after all this time I still get excited remembering how incredible this role-playing adventure can be that focuses all its attention on the investigation and the dialogues.
The great thing about this detective and role-playing adventure is that it always manages to surprise you At the time, I already told you in the Disco Elysium analysis that this is an unusual RPG since no fightingJust conversations and exploration, but even though this may set you back at first, don’t think about it! The story is so amazing and the dialogues are so well written that it is really difficult not to fall for the charms of a video game that after its original launch, and its subsequent adaptation to PlayStation, now comes to Nintendo Switch and Xbox with some improvements and changes that seek to further polish the gaming experience on consoles.
An essential RPG in the palms of your hand
Despite all the praise they received two years ago, the team behind Disco Elysium has not stopped working to show the best possible version of their formidable RPG. This is how he was born Disco Elysium – The Final Cut, although as I told you in its corresponding review, the game had many bugs that spoiled the overall experience. Since then, ZA / UM has continued to work tirelessly to create the final version of their masterpiece, taking good note of criticism from – especially – console gamers. “In the last six months we have learned a lot and we have acquired valuable experience interacting with the fan community,” one of the people in charge of the project told me, specifically talking about the version of Nintendo Switch, which is the one to which I have spent the most hours in the last few hours. days.
Performance on Nintendo Switch is somewhat erratic especially in dock modeWhile waiting for Steam Deck, have the opportunity to enjoy in portable format of a game like Disco Elysium is a joy. It’s not perfect, the performance on the Nintendo Switch is somewhat uneven especially in dock mode, but it’s still wonderful to play an RPG as unique as this in the palms of your hand. ZA / UM has taken this adaptation “as a challenge” and has not thought twice about “rebuilding the menus from scratch” so that “it is comfortable to play on a smaller screen while holding the console in your hands, as opposed to enjoying the experience on a larger monitor or TV a couple of feet away. ” The feelings are quite positive, so much so that I have practically only played in portable mode. So it is also appreciated that the subtitle size so that your eyesight does not suffer reading the hundreds and thousands of lines of dialogue that make up this fascinating detective story.
If you only knew the original PC game you’ll be glad to know that The Final Cut not only refines the gameplay formula with minor tweaks here and there, it also adds voices in english to the vast majority of conversations, with a great job of translation to Spanish, and add to its history four extra missions (mutually exclusive) that fit perfectly with the already known story, providing a brilliant conclusion to the protagonist’s political vision. One more sample of the immense literary talent that the ZA / UM team treasures, which will surprise you with a difficult story to forget loaded with memorable moments. Each dialogue, each description, each thought that emerges from the tormented mind of our protagonist will make you vibrate with pure emotion. And the most amazing thing is that the game does not need combat or action scenes to achieve this effect. That’s why before I told you that Disco Elysium always manages to surprise; because each new game brings unique experiences based on the decisions that you take during the adventure.
Precisely its leisurely nature, of exploring and talking, allows you to enjoy the game on Nintendo Switch even despite its performance issues. They are not particularly serious, but they can be annoying in the initial bars of the adventure until you get used to those little jerks that hit outdoors or overloaded stages. And it is a shame because although it is not a game that is technically surprising, it does have a very attractive staging and artistic design. Also they loading times They have become another small annoyance, although it is true that an update has cut that waiting time, from about 30 seconds on average to just over 20 seconds. It’s still a lot when you switch quickly from scene to scene, but again, Disco Elysium’s leisurely nature allows you to better cope with these inconveniences. The Xbox version, on the other hand, works fantastically well.
It will surprise you with a hard-to-forget story full of memorable momentsRegarding the control systemIt may be that I am more used to it after playing on PlayStation, but this time I have handled it much better. It’s still frustrating trying to find your way in scenarios that don’t always make it clear where you can and can’t go. On PC, with keyboard and mouse, you click where you want to go and the protagonist goes there fast and fast. With command the thing is different. You direct their movements with the left stick while “moving” between objects on the screen with the right stick, sometimes with the inconvenience of having to go through several items before reaching the desired object. It may make you desperate on occasion, but after a brief period of adaptation, you will navigate the world of Disco Elysium with ease. And it is worth doing.
Even with its problems on Nintendo Switch, it is still advisable to get lost in the streets of Revachol and enjoy the masterful story that this RPG tells. It is a game so well written, so surprising and unique in the dilemmas it poses, that if you make the leap on PC, Xbox, PlayStation or Nintendo Switch you will not regret it.