An Honest Game Review: Fort Solis

Fort Solis was a game randomly selected from my library as one to play as I start digging through my backlog. It's short length of only around 3-4 hours ended up making the experience feel less like something I needed to prepare myself to get into, but more of one I can jump in & have a pretty solid time.

And I kinda regret not playing it sooner...

It came out in 2023 to somewhat mixed reviews, with many of the reviews believing the game to be more like Dead Space going in, only to get a game that was vastly different than that. Fort Solis can be best described as a short Walking Simulator, or more accurately a Visual Novel. Granted though, my definition of the two is largely the same; a "Linear Narrative experience that puts storytelling, atmosphere & visuals over actual gameplay elements". That being said, it's no secret I tend to dislike linear storytelling, and even less so a secret that I tend to hate Walking Simulators or Visual Novels; I have a strong inclination towards seeing games fully utilise their medium to create non-linear stories in ways that allow the story to remain reactive to your choices.

Fort Solis however brought me back around however...

Between it's mostly well executed story, impressive visuals, and what felt like a perfectly sculpted atmosphere on a planet nearly devoid of one. It managed to prove well that gaming can still be a medium to experience these kinds of stories, so long as these stories evolve to the task. This game stays around for one thing, to tell a strong story about hubris, hopelessness, and how even someone fighting for the good of us all can be strayed by obsession, ignorance, and inability to accept responsibility. And it hits that nail with the precision & candour needed. I refuse to say any more than I have about this story as it's genuinely good enough that it needs to be seen by all who wish for a better world. My only critiques for the story itself come from the pacing, it wasn't terrible, but it got a bit confusing trying to figure out where to go at times, and sometimes some of the actions of the characters didn't make sense in a "emergency" but that's a nitpick to be honest. The Quick-time events were a bit of a nightmare, so I recommend this game on controller to at least make them easier to deal with. Outside of those issues it was a very good story. The Atmosphere & Visuals were exceptional, I won't dig too deep on the visuals because we need less Unreal Engine 5 glaze in this world, so i'll point to something the developers had far more control over, Atmosphere. They knocked it so far out of the park it may as well be on Mars, they seriously nailed one aspect of the "Horror" genre that most studios never bother with, creating the sense of dread, unease & fear without cheap tricks like jump-scares, loud noises, or warped figures. They created this sense purely through the way the gameplay, sound, visuals & storytelling intermixed, and this is horror. This is the first horror game in years I'd say I can actually like since it really knows what it is doing, I felt for the characters & their situation, and felt with them, and it only made the story even stronger as a result.

What added to this was the excellent casting, The main castings of Roger Clark & Julia Brown absolutely kill their performances all the way through, they sell their roles with an extreme level of clarity and respect for the world that the writers tried to build. Outside of the main casting though we have Troy Baker's performance, I loved his flawless performance as the new Indiana Jones, but my lord, this game shows his strengths in a way that his other roles just haven't been able to yet. Troy Baker's performance in this game is truly something special & sold his character of Wyatt Taylor in such an extremely good way that only contributed far more to the horror & atmosphere of the game. I really don't want to spoil this game in any way, and especially the exhilarating performances all around. If you like seeing VA's at their best, this game absolutely shows that.

In essence, Fort Solis is a very strong experience that really nails what I think narrative storytelling needs to be in gaming going forward if it's to compete with the more open-ended non-linear storytelling that can really show gaming's uniqueness as a medium for art. I'd firmly recommend it for lovers of Sci-Fi who are aiming for a short & more casual gaming experience you can finish in 1 launch of the game, all within an afternoon. And to horror fans who've become a bit jaded with cheaper tricks that now define the genre, this might scratch an itch not often scratched.

There was clearly a lot of Passion & Love put behind this game, and I'd love to see more within it's universe. It seems like it has good potential to ask some questions our society as a whole refuses to ask.

I don't use ratings, but this game is absolutely worth a chance. If visual novels or walking simulators are typically a no go for you, wait for it to show on sale & give it a go then. You might be pleasantly surprised like I was.

Walking Simulator / Visual Novel - Short, Realistic Horror, Cinematic, Linear Narrative, Casual Gameplay Experience

Rating:

WORTH A PLAY