“Words, when used correctly, are the most powerful weapons.”
Developed by Whitethorn Games, We Should Talk is an very realistic game that revolves around choice-based gameplay and is based on real-life relationship scenarios. The ability to choose between what to say and what not to is not a new mechanic in games, however, We Should Talk places you in a very authentic setting where every choice supposedly has an impact on the story.
In We Should Talk, you play as a woman who prefers to spend her nights at a bar, chatting people up. She also has a girlfriend, who you talk to over texts over the course of the game. Along with this, there are ongoing conversations with a stranger and an old friend who apparently is this character’s ex.
These factors remain the same each time you play, except for the way you decide to speak to the other characters. With 9 different endings, this game will have you putting on your thinking cap and at times will cause your heart to stop because every decision here holds significance, and your relationships and the dialogue exchanged with the characters will have an impact on the narrative. At least that’s the marketing pitch.
First Impression
Personally I was very excited to play the game, and thus, I was all on-board with my first playthrough. At first, I tried to play this game and go with the choices which are similar to what I would make in real-life. Midway through the game, I was annoyed by the fact that ‘Sam’ (the girlfriend) confides in you texting you about her misery in great detail in just one conversation and, annoyed, i tried to be rude, which completely backfired which led to my first ending having a breakup with Sam.
I had not planned to actually agree with the ending, but I was forced to. This was because once I got rude, the game made my character very aggressive and I had no other options than to hurt Sam’s feelings and end everything. I came to understand that this game shapes not just the people you talk to, but your own self as well; according to the decisions you make.
This aspect actually turned me off at a later point. I expected this feature to bring along dynamic scenarios which it sadly didn’t.
Second Impression and Things Go Down
In my second playthrough, I wanted to take a direct approach toward a particular character and build a relationship with him. It was going well until it turned out that if you show interest in any character from the start, the conversation ends. You need to find a particular way to approach a character and actually build your relationship with him or her and I found this constricting and in contrast to what the game was supposed to offer. I also reached an alternative ending with ‘Sam’ again, which wasn’t planned.
What is more hilarious is that, if you get flirty with the bartender, she will join you in helping your relationship in one of the endings. While I very much support and accept the possibility of this ending, I didn’t like how I actually got it. This time around, I felt the game was driving me towards an ending way before I tried to behave differently with characters.
Third Playthrough and Final Shot
Before reviewing this game, I wanted to earn all of the achievements, because that way you can explore the deeper parts of the game and you get to know more about it. However, the more time I put into the game, the duller it became. After getting 4 endings, I didn’t want to play anymore because by then I had played the game 7 times, with 3 endings being repeated. At this point in the game, the fun and excitement to be had decreases significantly since you can practically predict every possible outcome.
Having to follow the flow of sequences and questions that Sam asks you may drive you crazy and make you want to switch to another game. I do not blame the creators or the game itself for this, but where they missed the mark was the game was supposed to let you choose how you wanted to spend your night. Instead, you are pretty much forced into following the same sequence and interact with the game characters the way the game wants you to.
The Game
We’ve pretty much discussed the story of the game, and how it progresses. Now it’s time to talk about the visuals and gameplay, and the visual design. I was not at all impressed by the visual aspect of the game. After seeing the expressions of the characters, specifically in the following image, I was completely disinterested.
The music in the game is just 2 songs playing on a loop that cannot be muted just by lowering the music slider in the option. This made it difficult for streaming because of the music being too loud.
The game flows well, but I’d have liked it if the texts could be skipped by the press of a button, instead of waiting for every text to pop up. The game also provides you with an option to speed up the display of texts but that still feels slow if you’re trying to achieve all the different endings.
Verdict
We should Talk is designed to let you choose how you want to proceed in the situations you are put in. However, this soon turns into restrictive endings and scenarios that follow the same series of events. You will repeatedly reach the same ending even if you make different choices.
However, this title does stand out as a choice-based game based on real-life relationships. The visual design may not be up to the mark but the core of the game is enjoyable, for the first couple of playthroughs at least. As it stands, We Should Talk is a stream-worthy game, and it won’t blow a hole in your wallet.