Mr. Robot Reviews

2008 was sort of a weird generation of games: the whole concept of a subscription model -- especially for gaming-- was new and no where as good as it is now. The main originator was GameTap. And it was during that time that I was able to play indie darling Mr. Robot. Mr. Robot takes place in the far future as humanity is in cyrogenic sleep as the ship, the Eidolon, is flying through space to an unknown planet for humanity to wake up and populate it. It's during the voyage that our story takes place. The game stars Aismov as he quickly gets wrapped up in solving puzzles and stopping an insane AI. So yes, Mr. Robot is not going to win any awards for originality as the game wears its influences on its sleeve: Final Fantasy, sci fi classics from books and movies, Dragon Quest... Game play is a mixture of Solstice / Equinox / Landstalker (isometric 3-d perspective platforming) and Sokoban mixed in with classic roleplaying tropes. The game is definitely built with the platforming in mind as everything clearly designed around the methodical problem solving. Controlling Asimove is a little tricky due to the isometric perspective as well as him being weirdly heavy as he'll float across an extra tile like a good robot would. It's great for realism, not so great for making an accessible game. There's lots of little clues to help with perspective. Robots and traps are seen on the map and cause damage to our friend. Sometimes you can hack them by getting on their heads and taking out a certain node. Take too much damage while on the ship and Asimov explodes. You have 3 lives to get to the next way point/save spot, otherwise you're sent to the last save. You can recover lives by collecting energon -- which also doubles as your currency. Jumping slightly ahead, I never found myself hurting for money. I digress, the lives system barely worked in 2008, and it definitely doesn't work in 2025. This is also connected to the level design: the game does a pretty job to save the player some grief when backtracking needs to be done; there's usually a short cut. Except when there isn't one. I can think of a few examples that are on the mean side: There's a room that has 2 blocks stacked on each other and getting to the other ledge; the giant robots who press switches in multiple rooms and relentlessly chase Asimov; areas with flame traps and spikes as they are instant death; having to keep certain robots alive as they are part of the solution. Then the hacking portion (roleplaying) is traditional turn based. The robots are filled with various functions when in reality each robot or computer system has it's own critical function node. Take it out that node by destroying the security system, and poof! That robot or computer is crashed. This is accomplished by through traditional turn based RPG combat. The team is made up of "ghosts," images of our hero and friends who use viruses and programs (magic) to destroy the security system in each node. The problem with this system is rough on a multitude of levels. 1) The combat is super slow and ultimately comes down to each side exchanging blows. So what was already a slow paced game is now extra slow. It can make it difficult to feel like progress is being made. 2) While there are multiple copies of the different character classes hidden around the map in secret rooms, there's little need to use them as there's no real character development or differences between the story characters that are present. 3) Experience is awarded at a very slow rate. This makes the beginning time in cyber space very challenging, needlessly so. 4)Programs / spells are close to useless unless it's buffing or healing. The attack spells do not cause enough for the power cost. In fact, the higher tier healing spells are unnecessary as well due to the game throwing items at you as well as the basic healing spell covering hit points, even if it is 1 at a time. Graphically, the game looks rather solid by today's standards. The game is clean and objects are cleanly displayed. The game nails the sci fi theme perfectly. The game likes to show the entire room when encountering a puzzle for the first time, though I didn't find it very helpful when planning my route or figuring out solutions. It is important to note that the game did crash on me a few times in 1 room late in the game. There's also several times where I've died on a screen and the puzzle would be solved for me after Asimov respawned in a room. Musically, the game is rather pleasant to listen to. There's nothing that is offensive. The sound effects are fine. And at the end of the day, there's definitely a certain charm to the game. Even 15 years later after I initially played the game, I still like it. I can see why so many critics and players back in the day liked it. Yes, it's rough around the edges, it's a mostly easy 15 hour playthrough. The game seems to have been designed in mind for other modules in mind that never seemed to have materialized over the years, especially now that Moonpod is defunct. Which is a major bummer. The game occasionally goes on sale for a fraction of the cost and makes it the perfect time to check out this game.