Pentiment Reviews

Utterly beautiful, if this is the type of game to resonate with you from its art alone then it is certainly worth the experience. It truly is art.

Great game. I completed it in around 18-20 hours without using a guide and exploring most stuff. Very satisfying to play through. If you like dialogue heavy games and medieval history you should definitely give it a go. The art style is great and fits the game perfectly. Some genuinely emotional parts to the story too.

I bought this game years ago but only finished it today. I love everything Obsidian makes, and this game is no exception. The art style and design are so unique and beautiful that I think everyone appreciates them, so I won't dwell on it too much. Out of the thousands of games out there, Pentiment is worth playing just for its art. I want to talk a bit about the story and gameplay. I actually quit playing this game years ago, around the middle of Act 1, mostly because I was worried about missing important details, and the game doesn’t have a fast-forward option. It was a pain to replay, so I stopped. But this time, I got really hooked on the story in Act 2; I couldn’t sleep and kept playing. However, after finishing the game (spoiler alert), here’s some advice for my past self—and for anyone considering buying this game: Don’t worry about missing some details. The whole story is interconnected, and nothing you miss will diminish it. Just accept your first playthrough for what it is. Once you complete the game, if you feel like it, you can always do a second run to explore all the branches and details. For me, I’m satisfied with my first playthrough, and whatever I missed isn’t worth another run.

In an era of bloated games, Pentiment is welcomed respite. Obsidian Entertainment distills storytelling and choice into an engaging, intimate, and rewarding venture. Its greatest triumph is the dialog system, setting a new standard for interactive storytelling. While many games tout the infamous "characters will react to everything you do" selling point, this is one of the few games that means it. In nearly every conversation, there is a sense that a character is truly listening, remembering or riposting. Going from a casual conversation to detailed list of every failed speech check is a welcomed surprise from beginning to end. This system is not without its flaws, however. There were a few times a journal entry referred to a character the player hadn't met yet, or a received quest that was no longer actionable given previous conversations. Another downside is the general lack of content between conversations. Although walking about the town is enjoyable, walking from character to character could feel a little grating at times. Often, the player could be rewarded for interacting with characters off the beaten path, but there is a sense there could've been more content. Future installments might do well incorporating an in-universe dice game, or card game, or anything to give the player an excuse to hang out with their new favorite characters. Despite these minor drawbacks, Pentiment is an experience that lingers long after the credits roll. Its rich storytelling, masterful dialogue, and stunning presentation make it one of the most unique narrative-driven games in recent years. Though the journey may be over, the desire to revisit its world and explore different outcomes remains strong—a testament to Obsidian’s commitment to meaningful player choice and immersive storytelling.

An absolutely, incredible, one of a kind game. No other game I've played has done such a good job of transporting to a different time and place, enthralling you in 16th century Austria. Spread over 3 acts, the very noticeable downside is that act 3 mostly plays as a very slow epilogue with a well earned ending.

can't really put into words how deeply this game touched me and how much i related to the main character (that's a cry for help), but i can say that you should not go without experiencing this outstanding work of art.

An all-around very good game. Compelling, well-written story, very good characters, decent gameplay, excellent music. It's even highly educational about life in 15th and 16th-century Europe. My only complaint: I wish that there was some visual cue that told you whether or not you'd exhausted dialogue with an NPC, it gets quite tedious to go talk to literally every NPC you can just to figure out if there was anything more to say.

Good game, IMHO, it is not for everyone, but if you liked Disco Elisium and looking for something similar, Pentiment is the best option among in this genre. I enjoyed very much, also learned many new things. 15th century has ups and downs for sure, it was not a pleasant time since the corrupt religions and ignorance and lack of science. This game provides a glimpse of it. I give 8.7 over 10.

I remember seeing this game in passing before. 'Looks a little like a medieval tapestry, the characters especially. Interesting choice for a setting, the Holy Roman Empire only a few years after the Twelve Articles. But how did they make it work? And what was worth writing about here?' Imagine my surprise when I later picked it up, read that Obsidian had developed it, and after only a few hours it had sunken its hooks into me. Pentiment is not exactly an RPG with much freedom of choice, all plot hooks eventually lead to the same conclusion with only small variations along the way, and that's really the only bad thing I have to say about it. I'm not even sure it IS a bad thing, perhaps it is so by design. Which design, by the way, is detail-oriented in just the way I like it. For one simple example, the dialogue bubbles of characters who are illiterate are written in a simple, coarse font, whereas the literate characters speak in varied typefaces depending on how they came into their literacy. And the plot Pentiment presents is rich with historical details, theological discourse and deep, well-written characters. It lures you in in the guise of a simple whodunnit premise, and then it starts to flow. It talks of the cycles of history, of belief, of God and therefore Man, of the inevitability of change. It speaks of loss and despair, and also of hope and renewal. It touches on so many of the basic facets of the crystal of life that all of us are eventually going to see ourselves reflected through independently of the era we live in, and by doing so it forces us to self-evaluate. Yes, there is art here, and beauty. If your eyes glazed over during that last paragraph, think of this as a slightly more compressed early Renaissance Disco Elysium, buy it and experience it. Be prepared to ask, and answer, many questions of yourself.

A game about people, the flow of time, God, and the relationships between the three; Pentiment is a beautiful game both in it's visual design and as a story to be told. It is not an experience everyone will enjoy, and someone who is disinterested by a game that some might describe as an interactive novel will likely not find this game holds their attention. In my opinion however, it stands tall among other contemporaries in it's genre like Disco Elysium as a testament to the fact that video-games can move us, shape our minds, and leave us changed for the better as much as any literary classic or renaissance painting. In short, it was a pleasure to play this game.