Knee Deep's Curious Episodic Adventure Continues
Magical realist murder mystery
I liked the look of magical realist episodic murder mystery Knee Deep [official site] when its first act came out in July, especially digging its framing as a play, but didn't find time for it in all of the everythings I have to do. Maybe that was for the best, as this week has brought not only the release of its second episode, but voice acting for both of them too. Now I'll get to play a (probably?) better version of the first act before poking into act 2's Florida swampland festival. Thanks, busyness!
Knee Deep, see, is a murder mystery set in a backwater town in Florida. It's got three playable characters - a blogger, a reporter, and a private dick - but the whole thing's staged as a play of sorts. Scenery raises and lowers, spotlights might click on as characters talk, props are shuffled around and recycled, and so on. It's... it is kind of ugly, but it is at least a bold, stylised look. It all seems a fairly good way of dealing with the fact that a small dev team will have limited resources - leaning hard into it and making that part of the point (see also: Deadly Premonition's stock reaction poses and sound effects going hard on the melodrama.) I mean, and, yeah, obviously Kentucky Route Zero does seem among its inspirations.
Anyway! Act 2 came out on Tuesday, and brought voice acting for both episodes so far. The third and final act is planned for spring 2016.
The season pass is on sale on Steam at the moment, down to £9.34. Its handful of player reviews sound right up my alley, so I shall have to make time to play this.
