Deadly Premonition

Please play this game. There is nothing I could say that cannot be experienced first hand. Also if I did go indepth into why I love this game, I'd be spoiling the whole experience. Play it, now. Just not the PC version, that one is near unplayable. If you don't have a Switch or Xbox Series or a PS3, just emulate it. I don't care if its illegal, you have to play this game.

I've played through this game twice now and the charms of the game didn't hold up well on second playthrough. There wasn't a lot of reward for exploring this game deep. I encountered a lot of glitches and frustrations– which made this revisit even more of a chore.

I'd recommend a playthrough, though.

Deadly Premonition may come off as an inside joke on account of its shoestring budget and kooky, off-brand Twin Peaks premise. The first couple hours of gameplay do nothing to dispel that assumption, as you traipse through ridiculous cutscenes and shoot inexplicable zombies in "RE4-but-bad" action sections. But then the town opens up, you're given a car, and the game basically sets you free for most of the time. Exploring the world of Deadly Premonition would feel like a chore if it weren't for the key addition of driving everywhere, which ensures that you're always playing and not just fast-traveling from a menu. You won't find Witcher levels of sidequest depths or hidden collectibles here, but you also won't find another game that attempts to reproduce the cozy "life in a northern town" ambiance of Twin Peaks while also leaning fully into its anodyne absurdity. I don't want to imply that Deadly Premonition is solely for Twin Peaks fans, but if you can get on the wavelength of one, you can probably get on the wavelength of the other. In any case, if you want a laid-back adventure game where you can just drive around aimlessly, and the usual open-world games don't do it for you, try this with an open mind.

such a strange , long, unique game. the gameplay parts of it (shooting, driving, collecting) are a bit undeveloped and weird, but they're fun enough (but why do you have infinite ammo?) but the real seller is the story. and i usually dont care for story at all, but here its compelling and just weird enough to make you want to get the next piece of the puzzle over and over until the finale. but yeah, the finale is really fucking stupid and wacky it just becomes a bit TOO cheesy towards the end, after all the serious shit you do the finale makes it all seem like a joke (giant retard monsters etc...)

7/10

Deadly Premonition is such an underdog game. It by every considerable metric should be a failure of a game. The visuals are terrible for 2010, seventh gen standards. These would look dated on the Wii, let alone the PS3 and Xbox 360. The gameplay stutters, the AI is idiotic, the audio is mixed and mastered like crap. The game at so many fundamental angles should be a total failure.

And yet, it really is a masterpiece.

Deadly Premonition manages this balancing act of visuals that are just competent enough, gameplay that is fundamentally doable, and a legitimately A-list story with a super immersive world, that it really provides an uncanny, incredible experience. It's hilarious, it's enthralling, it's mysterious, and it's captivating, despite all the low budget gruffness and programming incompetence that went behind it. I've never played a game this deeply flawed yet this utterly brilliant in my entire life. Truly a one of a kind experience, a must play for gamers who like weirder types of games.

I can't wait to see a proper sequel to this project. DP has so much potential, and with competent visuals, a way better map (that is the worst part of the game, navigating the map is brutal), tight and modernized gameplay, and that extra coat of polish, and DP2 could be one of the best titles ever made. DP1 as it stands is a cult classic, who despite its flaws, manages to be that one in a million budget title that provides an incredible experience.

It's like a Silent Hill parody gone absolutely right and wrong at the same time. 9/10