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https://www.theguardian.com/games/2022/nov/14/pentiment-review-a-renaissance-mystery-with-an-eye-for-historical-detail>
"Plenty of games have recreated historical places, but few even attempt to
capture what it was actually like to live through these eras. Pentiment feels
special because it excels at empathy. Its depiction of Renaissance Bavaria is
remarkable in that it fosters a genuine connection with the ordinary people
living, eating, working and dying through a period of tumultuous change.
This was a time which saw the rise of Protestantism following the radical
teachings of Martin Luther, the popularisation of printed books, the uprising
of peasants against cruel landowners and the blasphemous revelation that the
Earth revolves around the sun. Much like the period we’re living through today,
long-held certainties were questioned, and established orders were swept away.
Pentiment looks at how these changes dramatically affect the lives of folk
living in a tiny Bavarian town. You play as Andreas Maler, a journeyman artist
who takes a job illustrating manuscripts in the local monastery. The
scriptorium is on the verge of obsolescence, as the new technology of the
printing press is beginning to replace laboriously copying texts by hand.
Maler’s world is soon turned upside down when a visiting nobleman is murdered
in the monastery, and his friend and mentor, Piero, is accused of the crime.
Maler has only a few days to clear his friend’s name by gathering evidence on
other possible suspects. He delves into the lives of the villagers, eating
meals with them and uncovering long-held grudges and embittered attitudes
towards those above them in the rigid 16th-century hierarchy. Religion holds
sway over every aspect of their lives, but long-held pagan beliefs sometimes
clash with Christian teachings.
Several people have plausible motives, and your relationships with the
characters will change depending on whom you accuse and the choices you make
along the way. The sheer number of characters in the game is overwhelming at
first, but as the story continues to evolve over 25 years of the town’s
history, you become deeply invested in the individual plights of these folk as
they age and change. It’s almost like a 16th-century soap opera, with an
enticing mystery at the heart of it all."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
