Ratings and Reviews by Jack Brounstein
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Uninteresting, even when it's not trying to be, November 19, 2019It starts out as a mostly boring edutainment simulator (with occasional bits of not-very-sharp commentary), then detours into crazy town in a way that's still pretty boring. I don't know what the point of any of it was.
I didn't play Let's Explore Geography! Canadian Commodities Trader Simulation Exercise, which might have put some of the later developments into context, but after this I'm not particularly inclined to.
A Deserving Classic, October 3, 2019I knew two things about the game before I started playing:
* There's not much of a "game" in it, with only a few puzzles near the end
* Steve Meretzky intended it as a blistering attack on Ronald Reagan's policies
The first point is definitely correct--most of the game feels of a piece with the more recent walking simulators, where the focus of the experience is just to explore an environment and get a general sense of what's happening. This isn't a complaint! Wandering Rockvil, watching the decay, was fascinating; the dread from witnessing just how bad things got was palpable.
For the second point, though... Maybe it's just a consequence of being 30-some years removed from Reagan and no longer viscerally angry about or afraid of his platform, but I had some quibbles about the politics--it's hard for me to draw a straight line between the Plan as described and a fascistic cult coming into power, for example. And since 2041 is pretty OK, wouldn't it be possible to implement the Plan now and then change course in 10 years? (Also, just from a writing perspective, the 2071 segment is so, so bleak, it's almost funny that Dr. Perelman's response is, "Well, maybe it turns a corner at the 50-year mark." (Spoiler - click to show)The state's running gladiator fights to punish ration cheats!)
Despite my reservations there, I really did enjoy this game and have no qualms about recommending it.
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