Review
Played on: Xbox Series X
Released: 2019
What initially intrigued me about A Plague Tale: Innocence were the beautiful nature scenes I’d seen in screenshots and the vast number of rats. Yes rats. More on the furry rodents later.
What initially intrigued me about A Plague Tale: Innocence were the beautiful nature scenes I’d seen in screenshots and the vast number of rats. Yes rats. More on the furry rodents later.
Innocence is set during the hundred-year war in 14th century France, in the middle of the French Inquisition and the black plague. Both of which are essential for the story and gameplay.
Innocence has two main characters: Amicia, a young teenage girl which the player controls, and her little brother, five-year-old Hugo. Living remote, in a noble estate, their mother Beatrice is trying to devise a cure for Hugo’s disease. Meanwhile the Inquisition arrives with soldiers to plunder the estate, Beatrice sends her kids on their way to flee to a doctor she knows, called Laurentius.
This is the back story of which Innocence begins its journey. Your first task is escorting Hugo off the estate and to safety. Don’t worry, the actual escorting is easy to do, and the whole premise of the game. The main gameplay mechanic is stealth, but in a less aggressive way. You’re awarded for mostly avoiding enemies and finding your route ahead through the simple game mechanics.
There's a linear design, but it gives a sensation of a wide corridor to traverse and combined with a long journey throughout the length of the game. Reminding me much of The Last of Us, review here, just with less combat. This echo of TLOU is further pronounced by having to protect and escorting Hugo, with a harsh and brutal world working as a backdrop. A stark contrast for Amicia and Hugo, outside the safety of their home estate.
At first, the relentless and violent Inquisition soldiers seem to be your biggest threat, which Amicia learns to fight with a stone sling. However, soon you discover there's a much darker and sinister enemy type too. Rats. Thousands and thousands of rats.
These rodents completely cover areas and cannot be traversed without clearing them away. Stepping into them results in instant death, just like when an enemy soldier discovers you. Impressively, the game renders hundreds of them onscreen. Removing them requires flames and light to make them disperse.
Innocence has two main characters: Amicia, a young teenage girl which the player controls, and her little brother, five-year-old Hugo. Living remote, in a noble estate, their mother Beatrice is trying to devise a cure for Hugo’s disease. Meanwhile the Inquisition arrives with soldiers to plunder the estate, Beatrice sends her kids on their way to flee to a doctor she knows, called Laurentius.
This is the back story of which Innocence begins its journey. Your first task is escorting Hugo off the estate and to safety. Don’t worry, the actual escorting is easy to do, and the whole premise of the game. The main gameplay mechanic is stealth, but in a less aggressive way. You’re awarded for mostly avoiding enemies and finding your route ahead through the simple game mechanics.
There's a linear design, but it gives a sensation of a wide corridor to traverse and combined with a long journey throughout the length of the game. Reminding me much of The Last of Us, review here, just with less combat. This echo of TLOU is further pronounced by having to protect and escorting Hugo, with a harsh and brutal world working as a backdrop. A stark contrast for Amicia and Hugo, outside the safety of their home estate.
At first, the relentless and violent Inquisition soldiers seem to be your biggest threat, which Amicia learns to fight with a stone sling. However, soon you discover there's a much darker and sinister enemy type too. Rats. Thousands and thousands of rats.
These rodents completely cover areas and cannot be traversed without clearing them away. Stepping into them results in instant death, just like when an enemy soldier discovers you. Impressively, the game renders hundreds of them onscreen. Removing them requires flames and light to make them disperse.
This distinct difference between soldiers and rats as enemies, which cleverly represents the Inquisition and the black death, makes the levels diverse and shifts the the atmosphere in two different tones. One is violent and human, while the other has a sinister and dark presence.
The gameplay in Innocence is simple, slightly on the shallow side. Combat is focused on either interacting with fires or mechanical devices utilising your slingshot. Sure, you can defend yourself if discovered, but that’s mainly up to one single soldier. Otherwise, it’s game over.
You learn that it's about luring enemies into traps or leading rats away from your path. The aiming mechanics are clearly programmed to be used in hiding, aimed at static objects and slow moving enemies. There's one incredibly annoying place, where faster gameplay is needed and the terrible auto-aim shows its ugly face. This is a game made up for slow, stealthy gameplay, nothing else.
While simple in its nature, the game cleverly increases the difficulty by forcing the player to think about how to sneak around levels and use objects in the environments to cleverly continue safely. Each are feels like a stealth puzzle.
The gameplay in Innocence is simple, slightly on the shallow side. Combat is focused on either interacting with fires or mechanical devices utilising your slingshot. Sure, you can defend yourself if discovered, but that’s mainly up to one single soldier. Otherwise, it’s game over.
You learn that it's about luring enemies into traps or leading rats away from your path. The aiming mechanics are clearly programmed to be used in hiding, aimed at static objects and slow moving enemies. There's one incredibly annoying place, where faster gameplay is needed and the terrible auto-aim shows its ugly face. This is a game made up for slow, stealthy gameplay, nothing else.
While simple in its nature, the game cleverly increases the difficulty by forcing the player to think about how to sneak around levels and use objects in the environments to cleverly continue safely. Each are feels like a stealth puzzle.
Visually, it’s a very pretty release. With a strong focus on depicting nature in a beautiful way. It’s a little blurry looking, however, by turning the chromatic aberration to low and playing it on current consoles with a high framerate, keeps it sharper. Impressively it supports 120fps on the Xbox Series X version I played!
I appreciate the work put into depicting medieval France, the countryside and natural elements especially look wonderful. As do the shifts to dark and creepy settings, often indoors, from that era too. It’s not top tier visually, but it’s exceptionally good looking for a title that’s story focused on a smaller budget.
Innocence is a recommended playthrough, although the gameplay is simplistic, it’s a journey rich on experiences, both wonderful and cruel. A reminder of what I enjoyed in TLOU, albeit with a smaller scope. The journey is the experience and the relentless, brutal world is a place to survive and hope that everything goes well with the main characters.
Innocence is a recommended playthrough, although the gameplay is simplistic, it’s a journey rich on experiences, both wonderful and cruel. A reminder of what I enjoyed in TLOU, albeit with a smaller scope. The journey is the experience and the relentless, brutal world is a place to survive and hope that everything goes well with the main characters.
