I’m not sure what I expected when I started playing The Artful Escape; I mean I had read the promo material and seen the wacky trailer that looked like a Bill & Ted sequel set in the world of Heavy Metal, but nothing could really prepare me for the blissful reality of it all. The game is first and foremost a music game, or rather a musical experience, as noted by the preponderance of mixer gain in favor of the music track that sent me scrambling for the sound options to lower that level in half. The opening splash screen is simple enough; a tree with a poster for an upcoming music festival, and once you start the game we slowly move past the tree to a park bench perched on a cliff overlooking a majestic castle-like city.
Here we meet Francis Vendetti, a young teen with Harry Potter glasses and a funky acoustical guitar decked out with all sorts of electronic components. Francis is about to be the opening act for the upcoming music festival, and he’s trying to find the perfect “sound”, which is where you come in as you hold the X button and strum some chords from a few folksy tunes before letting loose with an epic sci-fi guitar solo, so epic in fact that it catches the attention of an intergalactic talent recruiter who takes you on a magical journey through space and time.
The Artful Escape is nearly impossible to explain; almost like reviewing a music video or a live concert. The game starts off a bit slow; at least compared to what’s coming, as you explore your home town and talk to anyone who will talk back. Things really start to shred once you step through Lightman’s doorway and enter the Cosmic Extraordinary. Here you find yourself on a massive spaceship with a live theater, disco, nightclub, and other areas to explore. From this hub you will branch off into otherworldly adventures on strange planets and landscapes ripped straight from album cover art inspired by Boston, ELO, and Asia. You will gradually learn the history of the cosmos while interacting with indigenous life, always trying to get back to your ship so you can do it all again.
Gameplay isn’t terribly difficult or even that challenging. You explore these scrolling worlds much like any other platformer by running and jumping. You can use your guitar to extend jumps by shredding a quick solo or just hold down the X button for a continuous jam that blends seamlessly into the main soundtrack while often lighting up various parts of the level as you pass through. There are numerous moments, both in level traversal as well as significant encounters and even boss fights where you will get to play a classic game of Simon using a few buttons on the controller to mimic the sounds and colors presented to you. These moments are made even more interesting by the way the game integrates the button layout into actual creature designs; eyes and other orifices.
The game does slow down at times allowing you to engage in standard adventure game dialogue trees, but there are no consequences to these interactions. Midway through the game you are allowed to do some character building, choosing elements to form your rock and roll backstory. You even get to visit a shopping mall to perfect your image/look and take your spot as a guest on a popular late night alien talk show.
The Artful Escape is stunning in design and beauty, both from an imaginative and artistic standpoint as well as pure technical prowess with so much shiny surfaces and reflections I had trouble believing the game wasn’t using ray-tracing. Every single frame of animation, every alien landscape, every original creature design is fresh and breathtakingly beautiful; truly a work of art. And the way the levels animate and light up when you start to play must be experienced; it’s beyond words.
Complementing the visual design is an audio package that you’d expect from a AAA studio title, and one does have to wonder what the budget was for this game or what kind of talent agency contacts these developers had when they signed on names like; Michael Johnston, Caroline Kinley, Lena Headey, Jason Schwartzman, Mark Strong, and Carl Weathers. All of the voice actors turn in excellent performances and the script is witty, provocative, and thoughtful at times, as Francis struggles with his own identity and self-image, especially his musical abilities. As mentioned, the game is heavily driven by its soundtrack and what a soundtrack it is! Whether you are jamming out to platforming background music or shredding a guitar solo at your own one-man concert, every note of this soundtrack is magic (and also sold separately on the Steam store).
The Artful Escape really took me by surprise, and I ended up loving this game much more than I thought possible. It might even be in my top ten of 2021 so far. There is nothing complicated or even that much that resembles actual gameplay. The platforming is super-easy, as you run, jump, and slide down slopes and leap across gaps; merely a reason for the music to play until you reach that next Simon musical match game. If you die you spawn at a checkpoint seconds away, and you are allowed to fail the musical matches numerous times with no penalty. The Artful Escape is here to celebrate some fantastic music and visuals while creating a relaxing journey that flows with the music and tells a fun quirky story about a boy who is trying to find his spot in the Cosmic Extraordinary.
If you want to see The Artful Escape in action check out our gameplay series with commentary on our YouTube channel.
