REVIEW

Yesterday Origins Review

by Rob Pritchard, January 15th, 2017

Sequels are one of the great mysteries of the video game world. Sometimes they can be produced by the developer to revisit one of their earlier franchises, and other times it is because the franchise has become a financial or critical success. In the case of Yesterday Origins, it is likely to be a combination of both of these reasons, as the original game Yesterday received positive reviews and a respectable amount of copies sold upon its initial release back in 2012 for iOS, Android and PC. The only question remains is to whether Yesterday Origins is a strong sequel that lives up to the original’s name, or if it is a case of déjà vu gone one step too far.

The plot of the game follows on from the points established in the original Yesterday. After an experiment with alchemy five hundred years in the past, John Yesterday now resurrects every time he dies with practically none of his memories intact. Along with his girlfriend Pauline, who has also been subjected to the same experiment, they are searching for an artefact that will allow John to keep his memories every time he dies. During their journey, they must also avoid the machinations of a sinister modern day equivalent of the same group that made John effectively immortal. Along the way, John revisits some of his former lives, which include a disgraced nobleman’s son accused of witchcraft, and a morally conflicted monk who is the part of a devil worshipping cult.

Whether you are playing as John or his former identities, the storyline is filled with dramatic twists and turns, and sometimes you are forced to perform gruesome tasks as either John or Pauline to ensure your own survival, such as using the instinctual hunger of a cannibalistic hog to fake your own death. In the first hour alone, there are more shocking moments than most modern titles could squeeze into their entire campaign, and although some of the situations may be a little bit graphic, they never show an excessive amount of gore to lessen the blow of the impact. Outside of these moments, the dialogue between each of the characters for the six chapter adventure is well written. Some of the particular highlights include John and Pauline’s mentally unstable companion Boris, and the multiple personalities of the art collector Victoria Baxter.

The gameplay of Yesterday Origins is mostly comprised of a three dimensional point and click adventure, similar to The Odd Gentleman’s recent reboot of the King’s Quest franchise, with an inventory system that allows for combinable items, and additional investigation elements that have been seen in games such as LA Noire and the Ace Attorney series. Instead of relying solely on using the conveniently placed items that have been scattered through each location, you will need to gain a logical reason for the character to combine the items by talking about specific topics with NPC’s, or finding a specific detail on an obtainable item or character in the investigation mode. Although this does sound slightly redundant given as most of the choices are fairly logical, it is a refreshing change to allow the player to reason for themselves why they would need to put the two items together, rather than simply relying on the artificial intelligence of the protagonists to be able to proceed.

If you have ever read a graphic novel or played one of Telltale Game’s recent adventure games, then the graphical style of Yesterday Origins will definitely be familiar. It uses a combination of comic book style cut scenes combined with cel shaded models to great effect, with very little occasional slowdown in sight. One of the best things to note is that the transition between the graphical styles of the cut scenes and gameplay is almost seamless, which is a triumph that many games do not manage to achieve.

The voice acting for Yesterday Origins varies in quality, but the majority of the characters are performed well, with the possible exception of Pauline, whose dialogue rises and drops in volume considerably at random points. The game also features a fully orchestral soundtrack, which complements each of the scenes perfectly. Some of the standout pieces include the soft music when you are in the dungeon during the prologue, and the opening title theme which plays once you have completed the initial part of the game.

Overall, Yesterday Origins is one of the most intriguing adventure games of the current generation. The innovative puzzle system, along with the combination of high quality music and competent voice acting has created a sequel that has complimented the original game, and has surpassed it in almost every way. Although it may not shine as bright as some of the recent developments in the graphic adventure genre, this is an experience that should definitely not be forgotten once it has been played.