(4/18/2021 Edit: Meme review changed due to review bombing)

So apparently a combination of the ending and Chinese review bombing has caused the game to go from positive to mixed. So as someone who bought it when Zwei Association was the furthest you could get into the game and watching the story beats on Youtube, here are my thoughts.

This game has such an amazing soundtrack and world building that so many companies struggle to try to even get one right. What do I mean by this? Well, for example we have some performances by Mili who's been making herself known more and more over the past two or so years. Now moving past that we have some stellar BGM's that just end up being straight up catchy and great to listen to outside of the game in my opinion.

Moving on to the actual world, it honestly gives 40k grimdark kind of vibe. What do I mean by this? The world isn't kind. We're talking about horrific experiments, cannibalism, back-stabs, betrayals, you name it, the City has it. This game gives you glimpses into the lives of those who live in it. From the lowly rat trying to make a living stealing people's organs to the fixers who make a living killing others. It also slowly shows just how as the library grows how much it affects those who inhabit not just the city but those around it. It gives you this sense of well this world is ♥♥♥♥ and nothing can be done to change it. However, it gives a sense of morbid curiosity on to see just how bad things can get or how far someone will go if pushed a certain limit.

Gameplay is rather hit or miss due to it being an actual card game compared to it's predecessor Lobotomy Corp. You can make some REALLY overpowered characters by switching out traits from one key page you get with another one that you get later down the line. In order to do so, sometimes you have to grind that extremely annoying fight that you only managed to win by the skin of your teeth.The thing that makes this worse it the tutorial isn't really very good at explaining everything. Project moon is known for making difficult games so it's not a surprise this could turn people away. Hence why I don't have that many hours into it but still support the developers by purchasing the game.


Now the the meat and the potatoes spoilers inbound.

The main issue that people seem to be having is the fact that at the end of the game, it felt like nothing was accomplished and all that happened was you got sent to the outskirts by high ranking members of the Head. Another issue that people seem to have is the fact that Angela one of the main characters was so close to her chance to become human, decided to do a 180 and change her mind and release all the light she had gathered to become human. Add in the issue of the last Keter abnormality never being done left a bad taste in people's mouth.

My thoughts

Considering all the crazy things the Head has to deal with in the city, its no surprise that we couldn't beat the goons that he sent at us. Even more so the fact that we had just fought the resurrected Distorted Ensemble and Angela lost most of her power due to releasing the light she had accumulated during the time Roland was defending her. The problem is the story flow of the Library isn't sustainable due to the fact we can only catch glimpses of how the city operates and never the full picture.

Moving on past that the main theme of this game is how everyone is at the mercy of the City and that trying to go against it is a fool's idea. The point the end of the game makes is trying to break the cycle of the city by going against the nature of the whole Dog- Eat- Dog world that the City portrays. So by Angela deciding to show Roland mercy despite him wanting to take revenge on her for everything she put him through. She broke the cycle of stepping on everyone in her path to make her actions justified. Now for Roland by sparing, defending, and even saving Angela he throws away his past self of, "The Black Silence" and no longer lives by the rules of the City that dictate his life's choices. Which I found to be one of the best ways the stories of these characters could end in this messed up world.

I think it's neat how we watched these characters grow out of the City's ideals and decide to form their own way to live their lives from now on. My only real complaint is the fact that we don't get to see more of the cast just interact with each other until a few pictures in the credits which honestly disappointed me. I understand why due to Project Moon wanting to focus on Roland and Angela's story but I would have liked to see more interactions between all of the floors.

TL:DR; The game's soundtrack, world building, and characters keep me coming back for more. The game play can be really hit or miss but that just comes down to the nature of it being a card game. Project Moon has some really dedicated developers behind it and I can't wait to see their next installment of the world they have crafted together.