Red Tape came across my radar a few weeks back. I’ve reviewed a few simple point-and-click style games in the past, and they provide a rather variable mix of quality. They tend to provide a rather chill and relaxed gaming experience, though they can be a little slow and dull to click through.
Red Tape seems to offer a similar gaming experience with a bit of a twist. I wanted to see if the game is capable of providing a decent experience to see if it could change my perception of this genre.
Gameplay
Red Tape is at its most basic a point-and-click adventure game. You play the part of an angel which, due to a paperwork mishap, finds themselves in hell. You’ll need to run through the 9 circles of Hell Inc, fight hellish bureaucracy, to try and get to the devil himself to try and sort it out. It’s essentially a point-and-click adventure story, walking simulator and problem solver combined.
When you start the game, the storyline becomes fairly strong. There is no tutorial as such, more the game talks you through everything you need to know. This means the game is extremely easy to get the hang of. The instructions on what you need to do are extremely clear, and that made it very easy to navigate your way around the game.
There was one thing that I did notice. It isn’t necessarily specific to Red Tape, rather it’s an issue that pervades this particular point-and-click style of game. There is a lot of walking around to find the next part of the game This means the pace of the game can at times feel very slow. I was finding myself starting to feel bored very quickly once I started playing. It’s something I’ve felt across other games of this style I’ve played, so it’s not specific to Red Tape, but this means if you’re easily distracted or looking for something fast-paced, this might not be the game for you.
Otherwise, the game seemed very easy to work your way through. The story line seems well thought out, and it’s usually fairly obvious to work out what you need to do. The instructions are not unnecessarily cryptic.
The game also seems to be targeting the younger generation. This game is definitely not one to keep the adults entertained. It seems more factored around developing problem solving within young kids, as well as learning how to follow instructions when required. This is something to consider when playing the game. As a kids game, it could definitely work, though there may be issues with holding their attention span for that long.
Graphics
The graphics are highly simplified. The scenes are very basic, and the animations are extremely primitive.
For a lot of games, this would be a problem. They are about as simple as graphics get, and many would find this actually quite boring. However, the game is also intended to have a point-and-click storytelling style. While the graphics will not be winning awards any time soon, it still works alright for the style of game that it is.
Verdict
What lets this game down is the slow pace of the game, which as I’ve mentioned is something that seems common with this particular style of game. Also, the simplicity of the graphics may be a little much for some.
To its credit, the story is very easy to navigate and it’s otherwise fairly well written. If you’re looking for a chill game that’s family friendly with a bit of simple problem solving that isn’t going to hurt your brain, this game will hit the spot. Just be wary that this may get boring very quickly if slow-paced games aren’t your thing.
