Your reaction to a lot of what I’m about to say about Read Only Memories is dependent on a few key factors, namely how you feel about adventure games, and more specifically, the even deeper niche genre of Japanese adventure games. Specifically, something along the lines of Snatcher. Now, if you’re asking, “what’s Snatcher?” Don’t worry about it, you’re not going to have any frame of context for everything I’m about to talk about. If, however, your reaction was “yeah, Snatcher!” Whooo, buddy- have I got a game to tell you about.
2064 at it’s core is an adventure game/ visual novel that casts you in the role of a down-on-their-luck reporter. After a particularly unrewarding day, you’re awoken in the middle of the night by a ROM (see: sentient robot) breaking into your apartment. Turns out, the ROM’s owner has loose ties to you and has been kidnapped. It’s now your job to track down just what’s happened, and a vast mystery across Neo San Francisco unfolds.
There’s a lot to like about 2064. The visuals are charming and throw-back without being pandering the way most 8-16-etc-bit homages come off. Character designs are pleasant and inviting, the UI easy and intuitive, and the sound design, voice acting, and audio cues sit well on the ear. Turing, the ROM on the run in question, makes for a fun, well-acted and endearing companion. While conversations can sometimes go on a bit too long, they’re always engaging. All in all, 2064 will keep you smiling and clicking throughout its entire length.
If there’s one downside to the game, and I’ve seen this mentioned elsewhere, it’s in the game’s final act. The big fight between what could be described as a final boss adds high stakes to a fairly laid-back game, potentially resulting the player death, which then means having to replay the entire sequence all over again. It’s beyond frustrating, seems to come out of nowhere, and what comes before doesn’t prepare you for it at all. Thankfully, once it’s over, the game finishes relatively strong.
With it’s both subtle and overt social themes, an interesting story, and intriguing mystery, 2064: Read Only Memories is a great time for anyone hungry for a distraction from the AAA-game space, or those who hunger for the point-and-click days of Snatcher’s cyberpunk vision of the future. It’s fun, and well-worth your time and money.
