12/24/2023 0 Comments Beholder 2 bug smith![]() In Beholder, that reason is clear - we’re gaining a deeper understanding of the evil of the system rather than the evil of the individuals caught within it. It’s here that I get back to that question of why we put ourselves in the role of evil. It’s not a matter of his or his family’s survival - he does these things to enact a sort of justice, or at least with the hope that that’s what might be waiting at the end of a long thread of atrocities. However reluctant a participant he might be, he is still a willing one who willingly engages with the system to perpetrate evil on those around him. It’s the story of a faceless bureaucrat intentionally making that world more unjust to suit his own selfish ends. This isn’t the story of one of the faceless bureaucrats trying to do their best in a fundamentally unjust world. ![]() It’s after noticing that this is a caricature that the game loses some of its power. ![]() It evokes Terry Gilliam’s Brazil more than any actual world, instead being a caricature of a bureaucratic hellscape and the cutthroat politics that happen just behind the scenes. Beholder 2, while it has its roots in dictatorial bureaucracy, feels less like anything real, and more like a parody. The first Beholder felt like a simulation of the Stasi, and in doing so, was interesting in its attempt to humanise a group that had made life hellish for millions of people. The player sees the heads roll - literally, in some cases - and is faced with the reality of the violence they’re committing in the name of their own goals. While Beholder made it clear that the actions the informant was taking would lead to very bad consequences for those he was informing on, Beholder 2 is more visceral with the consequences. When I accidentally got someone executed, then, I felt bad, even though I was moving forward in my goal. Rather than driving people to suicide, I tried to help them with their problems so they would be in my debt and step out of the way of a promotion voluntarily. He just does things, and it’s up to the player to decide what path Evan will take or how they themselves will feel about it.įor my part, I tried to take the most gentle path possible at every turn. Evan, as the player insert, never expresses remorse for his actions, nor any clear emotional understanding of the consequences of his actions. To get ahead, Evan can do casually evil things like bully a coworker, or can do more malicious things, like get a coworker executed. It’s this drive that leads me to think about Beholder 2’s goals as an evil simulator. This becomes Evan’s primary goal, and he is prepared to do so at any cost. The goal of the game, as I said, is to get promoted into the upper echelons of the Ministry. This is a bureaucracy game, not a job sim. ![]() Oh, and Evan has a job that is reminiscent of Papers, Please, but the player doesn’t actually have to do this job with any kind of consistency. It’s an interesting mechanic, even if it’s not a unique one, and it adds a nice bit of pressure to the game. The game becomes a balancing act of trying to accomplish what needs to be done, while also being cognizant of the amount of time each of the necessary tasks takes. ![]() Each day has nine hours, and each task takes a certain amount of time. Influence and money can often be spent interchangeably - though only money can be used for the ever-increasing number of bills, and only influence can be used for a promotion or to open new conversation options - but time is a unique currency. It is up to the player to choose how to progress through these quests, though ultimately, that end goal of promotion remains the same.Īs part of these quests, the game uses three currencies - time, money, and influence. These can range from helpful and reasonable, to the absolutely deranged. You must get promoted into the upper echelons of the bureaucracy, whatever the cost.Īs part of this rise to power, the player receives various tasks they can do alongside their actual job. Your goal is to solve the mystery of your father’s death, and to do so, you must rise through the ranks at the Ministry. You play as Evan Redgrave, an entry level employee at the Ministry, given the job after the death of your father. Posted: 12 November Full review īeholder 2, unlike its predecessor, is not a management game. ![]()
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