KickStarter Backbone — pixel art detective adventure inspired by noir

[MRY]

The developers posted an "open letter" to players that I find interesting, because its phrasing is very similar to things that I wrote regarding Strangeland (not in a "they copied me" sense, but just that it seems like we're on the same wavelength, up to a point). But we have a pretty radical point of divergence, which is that their letter seems devoid of any acknowledgment of fault on the developer's part. Maybe there's a point at which you're so frustrated/disappointed in the reaction from players that you can't apologize, but it seems weird to write such a letter and not acknowledge the things that people are complaining about.

Backbone never held much interest to me (the only anthropomorphic animal characters I like are in children's stories like Frog and Toad Are Friends or Wind in the Willows or Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, and it looked like they had reduced the adventure game elements too far), but it's still sad when obviously passionate developers and obviously passionate fans connect at large scale, only for the reaction to be negative.

 

[JarlFrank]

The developers posted an "open letter" to players that I find interesting, because its phrasing is very similar to things that I wrote regarding Strangeland (not in a "they copied me" sense, but just that it seems like we're on the same wavelength, up to a point). But we have a pretty radical point of divergence, which is that their letter seems devoid of any acknowledgment of fault on the developer's part. Maybe there's a point at which you're so frustrated/disappointed in the reaction from players that you can't apologize, but it seems weird to write such a letter and not acknowledge the things that people are complaining about.

Backbone never held much interest to me (the only anthropomorphic animal characters I like are in children's stories like Frog and Toad Are Friends or Wind in the Willows or Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, and it looked like they had reduced the adventure game elements too far), but it's still sad when obviously passionate developers and obviously passionate fans connect at large scale, only for the reaction to be negative.

Well, that turned out well:

 

[MRY]

In some ways, that seems like an inevitable reaction when you don't immediately acknowledge the frustration others are having.

EDIT: That said, on reflection, I think the letter was not directed to the negative reviews, but was instead a cri de cœur meant to elicit supporting messages/positive reviews from those who liked the game. The reviews do seem to have ticked up a little more positive (I think it was at 58% last I checked, and is now at 59%). The game has definitely elicited a strong attraction and reaction from players -- 500 reviews already, just five days since launch, is quite impressive for an adventure game (assuming that's what this should be considered). 295 positive review (not counting keys) is certainly more than we've gotten for Strangeland in three times that many days, so hopefully the developers are getting good feelings from those.

 

[MRY]

Which isn't great considering this is still the gameplay description on their steam page.

Backbone's gameplay is a modern take on the classic point-and-click adventure, featuring stealth, exploration, and elaborate dialogues inspired by old school CRPGs.

As Howard, you will:
• Make meaningful connections with a diverse cast of characters in pursuit of truth
• Explore both flourishing and decaying districts of a now walled-off Vancouver
• Uncover clues and collect evidence
• Solve puzzles and sneak around
• Be a raccoon

They changed it!

Backbone's gameplay is a modern take on the classic point-and-click adventure, featuring a rich narrative experience and elaborate dialogues inspired by old school CRPGs.

As Howard, you will:
• Make meaningful connections with a diverse cast of characters in pursuit of truth
• Explore both flourishing and decaying districts of a now walled-off Vancouver
• Uncover clues and collect evidence
• Be a raccoon

No stealth, exploration, or puzzles.

The short description was also changed from

a post-noir roleplaying detective adventure. Become raccoon private eye Howard Lotor as you interrogate a diverse cast of characters, collect evidence, and explore dystopian Vancouver, BC inhabited by animals.

to

a post-noir narrative adventure. Become raccoon private eye Howard Lotor as you uncover a deeply personal story of change and transformation, and explore dystopian Vancouver, BC inhabited by animals.

 

[WallaceChambers]

Well, good on them for doing that much, at least.

 

[lightbane]

I decided to play this, and then I switched to a Youtube longplay once I noticed there were no consequences of any kind or any proper puzzles, becoming a walking simulator after the prologue.
The graphics are top-notch, if sadly fake-ish pixel art that hipsters use. The story is okay, although it has some plot-holes and it goes full retard at the end.

The start

Society is a caste of sorts where certain animals are at the top, and others are not.
The protagonist, who is pretended to be poor even though he has a somewhat bitching house seen at the start, discovers that a bar with the subtle name "The Bite" is kidnapping poor people to serve them as dinner for the Apes, the rich, this being part of a conspiracy by the owner, a female bear that's a mafioso in all but name, to get blackmail over them, or something.
One issue is that supposedly the victims are of the lowest caste, dregs of society no-one will miss... But, by the rules of their own society, they can't even come close to the place itself, and the missing person you discover here was a middle-class poor guy who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.
Then you go to the Science City district to learn about a supposed alien artifact that seemingly has very little relation with the plot and...
Howard, the protagonist, against all odds, pokes the thing like a moron, becoming infected by a black horror thing.

The retarded end

The genre switches to sci-fi horror, "subtle" political commentary (women complaining they should have more power as men exploit them, literally), and so on.
Howard becomes a mutating test subject who's dying slowly, while the Artifact annoys you with internal dialogue stolen from Disco Elysium.
Then Howard escapes the City's Wall which supposedly protects the citizens from the deathworld that is the outside world, and dies here. Or mutates horribly.
His female companion possibly makes an alliance with the bear that tried to kill her and Howard all the time, but is now suddenly a revolutionary that wants to destroy society so that women have more power. Also bring down The Wall, of course.
Oh, and the cannibalism part? A minor issue.
There's also the implication the furries are former humans that tampered with genetic fuckery, but it goes nowhere.
At least there's no "proper" furry stuff. The castes ensure the different types of animals stay with their own kind, so no hybrid abominations or anything. The romance part is underplayed and the MC is a virgin loser, unlike the average noir detective, who's still a loser but not a virgin at least.

It feels like they ran out of time and the devs slammed together the first thing they had plus a fanfinc of Disco Elysium.
In short, not worth playing. Also, they changed the title.
Also also, there's a prequel of this game that's better if only because it doesn't have a sudden genre shift for *reasons*.

 

[Durq]

Why isn't the Kickstarter page visible? I'm seeing just this: "Backbone — pixel art detective adventure inspired by noir has been hidden for privacy. This project has been removed from visibility at the request of the creator. It will remain permanently out of view."

 

[lightbane]

Something shady about not delivering the promised goals or something I bet.

 

[Neuromancer]

Why isn't the Kickstarter page visible? I'm seeing just this: "Backbone — pixel art detective adventure inspired by noir has been hidden for privacy. This project has been removed from visibility at the request of the creator. It will remain permanently out of view."

I didn't even know, that that was possible.
If a Kickstarter was successful and the developers got money from their backers, it should remain open forever for apparent transparency reasons.

 

[JarlFrank]

Something shady about not delivering the promised goals or something I bet.

Yes, same reason they changed the game's name on Steam (funnily enough it still has the old banner in your library lmao)

Title in your library is now Tails Noir, but the banner still says Backbone.
You can't find it by searching for Backbone though because the name was changed!

It can't be found under the old name in the store, either:

Same on GoG:

 

[lightbane]

The developers posted an "open letter" to players that I find interesting,

Shame I couldn't get to read it as the letter is gone along with the OG title, likely to avoid bad press, and promote the prequel as if it had nothing to do with the first game.

 

[Durq]

Why isn't the Kickstarter page visible? I'm seeing just this: "Backbone — pixel art detective adventure inspired by noir has been hidden for privacy. This project has been removed from visibility at the request of the creator. It will remain permanently out of view."

I didn't even know, that that was possible.
If a Kickstarter was successful and the developers got money from their backers, it should remain open forever for apparent transparency reasons.

I agree that it should remain visible forever, but I guess Kickstarter is nicknamed Kickscammer for a reason.