Game Review: Franz Kafka's work is now a videogame

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by Chrisanna Lazaridou on 20 June 2017 · 2318 views

Daedalic Entertainment is known for adventures such as Deponia, Dead Synchronicity and others, focusing on exploration and puzzles that primarily concern the hero objects' interactivity. This time they bring us The Franz Kafka Videogame, an adventure inspired by the works of the author Franz Kafka. Coincidentally, I have just recently begun reading "The Trial" so finding this game was something I just couldn’t ignore and I am glad I didn’t because the game is just as surreal and crazy as Kafka’s books.

Plot

The hero of our story is mr K. (same “name” as the protagonist of the "Trial"), a poor psychotherapist who, through strange situations, is trying to make a living in America. The story is divided into chapters with puzzles and unfolds through small paragraphs and short dialogues with random characters, usually appearing before and after each puzzle. K. is faced not only with weird thoughts (typical of a Kafka character), but also with absurd phenomena such as flying watermelons and astronauts that fall from the sky. If you are a fan of the author you will find references to his work and the fitting atmosphere he offers with gameplay that evolves exclusively through puzzles.

The game has a very simple main menu without complicated settings, which is limited to language, on / off, and full screen or windowed mode options. Each chapter consists of various puzzles of mixed difficulty and the auto-save happens only after the end of each level. Puzzles are as reasonable and clear as they are vague, because you are not given any information as to what you have to do. You could solve a puzzle in a matter of seconds and then get stuck on the next and try everything randomly only to try your luck because you won’t know what to do. Examples of puzzles include creating images with shadows, pressing buttons in the correct order and many more. Other times, however, the solution of a puzzle requires more imagination than logic, like, for instance, the formation of a word that does not exist. In case (it is certain it will happen) you can’t solve a puzzle and proceed, the hint system gives you details on what to do next and I couldn't be happier.

Pricing & Availability

You can find The Franz Kafka Videogame on Steam for PC and there is a chance it might become available on iTunes as well.

Graphics & Sounds

The surreal and beautiful graphics, with the well-done animation, match the atmosphere and the mindset of the game. Undoubtedly, it's worth solving all the puzzles just to see the next mischievous scene. The introductory music is quite suited as well, with minimalist sound effects such as crawling paper, striking clocks and footsteps all being simple but effective.

Conclusion

The Franz Kafka Videogame is a collection of various puzzles that will keep you occupied for a few hours, depending on how often you get stuck, and want to solve everything without using the hint system. There are many references to the most important works of Kafka, but not as much as a fan of the author would probably want. This is a game consisting of many mini-games based on Kafka's surrealism, where a number of features of the author's works are applied. It is mainly aimed at jigsaw lovers who do not look for complex gameplay but a short break from everyday life. Let us know your thoughts and impressions in the comments below.