Baroque

Download Baroque and descend into a twisted world of post-apocalyptic despair! Unravel the enigmatic storyline, face grotesque creatures, and uncover the truth behind the mysterious Neuro Tower. Dare to enter the abyss? Play now!
a game by Sting, Inc.
Platforms: Wii, Playstation 2 (2007)
Editor Rating: 6/10, based on 1 review
User Rating: 9.0/10 - 4 votes
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See also: Horror Games
Baroque
Baroque
Baroque
Baroque

For video games in 1998, there were many ways to reinvent the wheel. During this time, the developers over at Sting Entertainment decided to create their own spin on the death and respawn mechanics found in video games. By doing this, Baroque established its core gameplay mechanics for players. Apparently, this served them well thanks to the successful PS2 remake for Baroque in 2008. This remake modernized Baroque’s gameplay for a more modern audience, while retaining its core elements.

In this review, we will explore Baroque and its current viability as a video game to revisit.

Story

In Baroque, players get to explore a sort of post-apocalyptic world. Here, a cataclysmic event called the Blaze took place on the 14th of May 2032. This event essentially ended humanity with the exception of some that were able to remain in the world thanks to a new form called Baroques.

The Baroque form rendered everyone relatively amnesic with only bits and pieces of their past lives to hold on to. However, some weren’t lucky enough to become Baroques. Instead, they became monstrous creatures called meta-beings.

As the nameless protagonist, you’ll have to explore this world with your amnesic state and nothing to prepare yourself with. Thanks to this, Baroque begins its unique approach to storytelling. Apparently, everything is stacked against you from the start. Eventually, you’ll discover that the protagonist had committed a major sin that was related to the events of the Blaze.

Characters

There are several characters with unique personalities to be encountered in the post-blaze world. One of such is the Collector, a kid that stores items as a hobby, the Coffin Man that keeps an underground training dungeon for the protagonist to test his skills. Another noteworthy character is the Horned Girl, a character that can voice the thoughts and ideas of those around her.

Gameplay

To discover yourself, you must venture into the tower. The Neuro Tower is a randomly generated location with various floors where you’ll spend your time in Baroque. Upon death, you won’t be met with a pointless Game Over screen. Instead, players are presented with new advancements to the plot. You’ll see these new advancements if you are able to fulfill some conditions while progressing through the tower. Therefore, you need to be strategic enough to know when you should probably die. Death can unlock new cutscenes, areas and comments from some non-player characters.

During combat, players have to monitor two gauge bars. The health and vitality bars are important for keeping track of your status during battle. You can refill them by eating different forms of flesh and hearts. These will keep you alive during your explorations. The controls are a bit clunky and the voice acting leaves a lot more emotion to be desired, but somehow, the passion behind Baroque seems to always seep through while playing.

Pros

  • Great Story
  • Interesting characters
  • Nice challenge

Cons

  • Weak controls
  • Bad voice acting
  • Weak first impression
6

Baroque manages to keep its charm and exceptional style even in the face of its flawed controls and hardware limitations.

Download Baroque

Wii

System requirements:

  • PC compatible
  • Operating systems: Windows 10/Windows 8/Windows 7/2000/Vista/WinXP
Playstation 2

System requirements:

  • PC compatible
  • Operating systems: Windows 10/Windows 8/Windows 7/2000/Vista/WinXP

Snapshots and Media

Wii Screenshots

Playstation 2 Screenshots

See Also

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