It is hard not to see the influence of Naughty Dog's Last of Us in A Plagues Tale: Innocence. A story of a brother and sister traveling a brutal world is almost identical to the adventures Joel and Ellie took nearly six years prior to this game. But it is also hard not to give this game credit - A Plagues Tale: Innocence is a dark game filled with brutal imagery and plot points that is worth a try.
Story
Set in the year 1348 in France, in the middle of the 100 Years War and the Black Death, you play as Amicia, a teenage girl of royalty who - alongside her younger brother Hugo - witness the downfall of their kingdom by a religious inquisition. While the real reason behind the Inquisition's attack is initially unknown, you know it has something to do with Hugo, who is quarantined at the beginning of the game with some sort of sickness.
It does not take long for the game to inform you this is a dark story. From the beginning you witness family and loved ones being murdered from inquisition soldiers as well as by the hordes of plague-infested rats that ravage the land. As you progress through the story, you meet a handful of characters that join forces with you as you try to find safety in the dangerous world around you.
Gameplay
A Plagues Tale: Innocence is a stealth game with some combat mechanics added to it. The combat is almost realistic in the sense that Amicia will die if hit once. This creates the need to be stealthy and strategic as you enter a new area with groups of enemies to get around. Though that does not mean Amicia cannot defend herself and her brother. Equipped with a sling, she is able to throw rocks and other items to take down her enemies. As you progress through each area, you will be able to scavenge resources in order to craft projectiles for your sling. You will also be able to use raw materials such as rocks and pots to distract enemies so it is easier for you to progress through the area. There is a decent amount of variety of enemies, which include archers, swordsmen, and armored soldiers - each with their own strengths and weaknesses to understand which projectiles are and are not effective.
If you are seen by the enemies, the game can be pretty forgiving in getting you back into a hiding spot to reset their AI. However, if you are seen it is basically game over. While the game provides you with a dodge button, it rarely works. When an enemy gets too close to you, the game transitions into a cinematic where you are unable to dodge and have to watch Amicia get stabbed, speared, and/or arrowed. Not only does this make the dodge button seem unusable, it also takes you out of the atmosphere the game does so well of inducing you in.
The other type of enemy that you must maneuver around at the hordes of rats. These plague-infested rodents will eat you (and the other guards) if you get too close to them or are stuck in the shadows for too long. While there are ways to destroy these hordes further on in the game, majority of the time you will have to use fire and light in the area around you to disperse and walk through the rats themselves. While the look of an individual rat is underwhelming to the eye, the sight of literally hundreds of rats on screen trying to eat you is an unsettling feeling.
Splitting up the combat / stealth areas are the occasional puzzles. For those who have played the Uncharted or Tomb Raider games should feel very at home with these as majority of these puzzles takes us the room you are in and requires some strategy to get through. Though, the puzzles themselves are not as challenging as you might expect - similar to the other games I have mentioned.
Graphics
A Plagues Tale: Innocence looks fantastic on the PlayStation 5. The game does a fantastic job at setting up a dark and brutal atmosphere as you progress through city streets or when you venture into the tunnels below the surface that are clearly altered by the plague's presence in the world. The one con that cannot be looked over are the facial expressions of the game's characters. They look flat and unorthodox, which is a shame as it takes you out of the atmosphere, even if for a moment.
Audio
Again, the influence of The Last of Us shines through in this game. As you progress through the 8 hour / 16 Chapter experience, there will be moments where you just hear guitar strings in the background. The moments when Amicia and Hugo are bonding with this soundtrack is almost identical to the moments Joel and Ellie had. But during combat and maneuvering through the hordes of rats, the soundtrack ramps up that adds to a sense of dread and stress that matches the mood perfectly.
Verdict
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed A Plagues Tale: Innocence. During the first couple of hours, the combat felt incredibly wonky, and the lack of a working dodge button really took me out of the experience. But as I continued, I began to really enjoy the story, the characters, and the atmosphere of France during the Black Death. I was also happy I picked this up with the sequel just around the corner. The game has its faults...but it is still a fantastic (yet dark) journey that deserves a chance.
Score: 8/10