Tacoma (Xbox One, 2017)

Tacoma
Developed/Published by The Fullbright Company
Released for Xbox One (8/2/2017)
Also on Linux/Mac/PC/PS4

Tacoma is a sci-fi walking simulator that was initially released in August 2017 for PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox One platforms and in May 2018 received a port to the PlayStation 4. Developed and published by the Fullbright Company, the same studio that brought us Gone Home,  Tacoma is similar to that title in gameplay but provides an entirely different environment to explore. We've looked at quite a few of these walking sims on the site, so let's see how Tacoma fares in this popular genre...

Tacoma has you exploring the high-tech space station named Tacoma in the somewhat distant future of 2088. You take control of a subcontractor named Amy Ferrier who has been sent to this space station to find out what happened to the crew members and retrieve the computer AI. As you explore the abandoned station, you'll learn about the crew that was on board via 3D recordings and hacking their devices to read their personal messages.

The story is revealed primarily through text, but the voice acting that's here is all very well delivered. The 3D recordings are presented via AR reconstruction, allowing you to rewind, pause and fast-forward (similar to the Batman Arkham games). The gameplay feels a bit like Gone Home in space, with the story being revealed to the player in a similar fashion, though it's hard to deny that Tacoma contains a much more interesting setting to explore. The overall narrative of the game feels much less personal than Gone Home, but like that title it explores the human reaction to adversity in several ways, particularly when faced with death..

The space station feels appropriately futuristic, containing lots of little details that make it feel as if it was inhabited and a healthy amount of objects within the environment you can interact with. Tacoma is a nice-looking game and the options allow you to switch over to 4K visuals at the expense of a lower framerate. Without the 4K enabled the game runs quite smooth, with only small stutters here and there which I assume is when the game loads new areas up. If you're into walking simulators I'd easily say this one's worth a look, especially if you dig the sci-fi setting. While the story might not be as impactful as Gone Home, Tacoma features an interesting environment to explore and finding out about the death of the space station's crew is a trip worth taking. Tacoma is a bit on the short side and will only last anywhere from 2-5 hours, so I'd recommend picking it up on sale or checking it out via Game Pass if it's still on there (it was as of April 2020).

Final Verdict: Tacoma is a sci-fi walking sim that has you exploring a space station in the future, attempting to find out how the crew died and retrieve the ship's computer AI. While a bit on the short side, this one's worth a play if you like these walking sims.

Purchase Links:
Buy Tacoma - Microsoft Store

Related Links:
Walking Simulators - Xbox Overview 
Gone Home - Xbox Overview
Fullbright - Official Site
Tacoma - Metacritic
Tacoma - GameFAQs
Tacoma - True Achievements
Tacoma Achievement Guide - Xbox Achievements

Elea (Xbox One, 2018)

Elea
Developed by Kyodai
Published by SODESCO
Released for Xbox One (9/6/2018)
Also on PC/PS4/Switch

Elea is a walking simulator with a sci-fi theme which was first released on PC in April 2018. In September that same year the game would release for the Xbox One, followed by a PlayStation 4 release in July 2019 and a Switch release in February 2020. The Switch version was released as Elea: Paradigm Shift, but from what I can tell is the same game with a new title.

Elea takes place in the future, where a pandemic has hit Earth and made it uninhabitable. A new planet with features similar to Earth has been located and an expedition has been launched via the ship named Pilgrimage. The Pilgrimage arrived on the foreign planet but shortly after landing all contact with the ship was lost. You take the role of space scientist River Elea Catherine Jones, one decade after contact with the Pilgrimage was lost. Your husband, Ethan, was among the crew on the Pilgrimage, and it's up to you to piece together the events of what happened.

Most of your time with Elea will be spent on the research ship named Recovery, though there are some virtual reality segments that will take you to other locations. At the start of the game you'll start off in some sort of virtual machine that messes with your memories, which will be seen several times throughout the game. You'll navigate the game from a first-person perspective and gameplay involves walking, interacting with objects and listening to the dialogue as you discover more about your missing husband. There are documents and PDA devices you can pick up along the way to read up on the lore if you so wish.

Elea is a good looking game in the visuals department, with some stand-out scenes that look great. The environments are detailed and some of the virtual reality segments are very psychedelic. There's lots of flashing lights and colors, so those prone to epilepsy from such things may want to avoid this one. While the graphics look nice, the voice acting leaves a bit to be desired. The low-budget aspect of the game shines through here, and while the voice actors read the lines competently they just didn't really seem all that into it.

Like any game in the walking simulator genre, Elea is not going to appeal to everybody. Those who like the laid-back style of these games may find something to enjoy, as well as those who just enjoy sci-fi in general. It's likely only going to last 3-5 hours, so if you decide to take the plunge you may want to hold out for a sale (I got it for under $2). It's not a bad game by any means, but certainly not really good either, just a bit above average. Those looking for some easy gamerscore will appreciate the fact that all achievements can be unlocked in such a short period of time, though beware that the achievement for getting out of the labyrinth in 15 seconds is very iffy and will likely require many, many attempts before you finally get it to unlock. Other than that one problematic achievement, unlocking everything else is incredibly easy.

Elea was billed as being the first episode in a series, but seeing as the 1st episode came out well over a year ago at the time of this writing and the 2nd episode still hasn't been announced, I wouldn't be surprised if it never sees the light of day. Elea was ported to the Switch in 2020 however, so perhaps if that version sells enough copies we'll see the next entry in the series.

Final Verdict: Elea is a provides some nice visuals and decent gameplay for those who enjoy sci-fi, walking sims or easy achievements.

Related Links:
Buy Elea - Microsoft Store
Project Elea - Official Site
SODESCO - Official Site
Elea - Metacritic
Elea - GameFAQs
Elea - True Achievements
Elea - Xbox Achievements