On the whole, I’m quite glad I don’t live in Norco, Louisiana. Let’s face it, a town being named after an oil refinery is never a particularly positive omen. And, if this game is anything to go by, it’s a squalid, sweaty, polluted place that exists at the whims of the Shell corporation.
NORCO is set in an alt-future reimagining of the place. It’s difficult to place exactly what year we’re in: though the U.S.A seems to have been through a minor civil war, there are autonomous robots strolling about, and brain-backup technology is relatively commonplace. But don’t get the idea that this is some kind of unrelatable dystopia, this ‘future’ is just our world that’s zigged rather than zagged a couple of times.
You play Kay, a young woman returning home after the death of her mother. She soon discovers that her mother has been investigating mysterious goings-on around town. Soon enough you’re playing as the mum in the last days of her life as she pieces together what the company is REALLY up to.
The game itself is a relatively straightforward point-and-click adventure, taking you through a series of palpably humid backgrounds and solving eminently straightforward puzzles. But while the prehistoric forebears of this genre demand the lateral thinking, NORCO‘s puzzles are more speedbumps in the story to check you’re still paying attention.
In that regard, it’s got a surprising amount in common with Snatcher, with one city street backdrop featuring a surly Santa feeling like a direct nod to the Kojima masterpiece. Anyone using Snatcher as an inspiration is alright in my book, though Norco‘s sweaty swamp-punk story is a million miles from Neo Kobe City.
The narrative proves to be quite the journey, taking in a bizarre alt-right cult, Cronenberged internet monsters, rocket-powered cats, and some Biblically intense truths. It’s a rollercoaster – very fun in the moment as you try to figure out what the hell’s going to happen next but perhaps a little hollow once you climb off.
By the time the credits rolled I’d had a good time, though in all honesty I can’t say I actually got much out of the story. Sure it’s filled with bonkers ideas, has an anti-capitalist streak a mile wide, and pokes fun at people I don’t like, but as it barrels towards an unexpectedly Dan Brownish finale I ended up just admiring the pretty pixel art more than whatever it was trying to say.
But hey, the more hyper-local magical realistic graphic adventures the better. Kentucky Route Zero is unlikely to be beaten anytime soon, but any time someone wants to step up and challenge it I’ll be there.
Pixel Hunted 