Incursion Demo

Text-based adventure games are a thing of the past nowadays, mainly because it is so easy to add interaction and make everything in 3D this day and age. It’s always a good idea to gamble on nostalgia, however, even if that means ignoring modern technology altogether and opting to bring back long-lost mechanics that may not catch on anymore.

Incursion is a text-based adventure game with a visual component as well, so it definitely does not adhere to the classic rules of the genre. However, the ‘text-based’ term still valid, because you cannot interact with the surrounding environment by clicking on it or moving around. Instead, you only get to answer questions and decide your actions through dialog.

The story starts with the narrator providing you with a bit of information on the world and the setting, although your input is also needed. In fact, besides the fact that you can name your character and give him a nickname, some places and locations can be named as well. The actual plot is a bit thin and boring, unfortunately, even if it contains a lot of humor.

As previously mentioned, the gameplay is not very complicated, and your only job is to make the desired decisions when the game asks you to. Because there are usually multiple options to choose from, that theoretically means that there more than one way for the story to end. However, it must be mentioned that the game is probably never going to be finished at this point, given the fact that the developers abandoned the project.

The 8-bit graphics may look silly on a modern computer monitor, but the artwork is quite impressive, and the designers managed to relay a lot of information with just a handful of pixels. Obviously, the animations are crude and jerky, but they get the point across most of the time. As a bonus, a nice soundtrack is included as well, which makes the experience stick with you.

Well, not really. It is quite unfortunate that Incursion is not going to be completed, because it could have been a moderately successful game. However, you can still enjoy a short adventure with this beta, as long as you do not mind not knowing how it all ends.