The game, which was intended to offer a unique perspective on life with OCD, suffers from a fundamental flaw - an annoying narrator that severely disrupts the atmosphere and player experience. Despite good intentions and interesting documentary content, the game struggles with problems that make it almost unplayable.
Developer's credits
I don't want to knock the developers' work, because it's obvious that they put a lot of effort and heart into it. Any education in such an important area is always beneficial. However, as a person with OCD, I cannot recommend this game. Even though it tries for decent representation in one aspect, the main problem I cannot overlook is the narrator. This is because he significantly degrades the entire experience!
Frustrations of the narrator
The narrator is an ever-present presence with obnoxious comments, bad jokes, and inappropriate laughter. While it is possible to turn the voice off, doing so also loses the documentary segments that are the most interesting thing about the game.
Infringing on the atmosphere and gameplay
The game is advertised as a walking escape room simulator, but in practice the narrator doesn't allow you to immerse yourself in the environment or think independently at all. It constantly distracts you and doesn't give you space to think for yourself and find solutions. In any game with logical elements, it is important to let the player focus so that they can discover and solve puzzles on their own. But that's not possible here, which is a major shortcoming.
Affect on the player experience
If there was a way to mute the narrator without affecting other aspects of the game, the experience would be much better. Unfortunately, without this option, the gameplay is very unpleasant. The presentation of the story is so bad that it almost feels like the game is making fun of OCD, which was the only reason I finished the game - I had to humor it.
Problems with controls
Another problem is the controls, which are poorly designed and can easily cause motion sickness. Overall, the experience is frustrating and difficult to digest. While the documentary portions portray the lives of people with OCD reasonably well, if the game were to reach a wider audience, it could provoke negative reactions and reinforce prejudices against people with OCD.
Suggestion for Improvement
My suggestion is to add a mute button for the narrator and emphasize that a calm and contemplative experience is the real goal. The game has potential, but in its current form its execution does more harm than good to the narrative it is trying to convey. I appreciate the efforts of the developers, but the execution is sadly lacking.
