Ethan Carter begins with a somewhat proud statement telling you that the game will not hold your hand. A strong set up. Whist most AAA titles would try to funnel you through an experience, TVoEC has you relishing in it. That's a good thing too as it is wonderful to look at. Red Creek Valley is as beautiful as it is mysterious. A relic of days gone by, left untouched in an abandoned corner of America where darkness and mystery brew. In comes Paul Prospero, a supernatural detective who has received word from a fan, the titular Ethan Carter, that something is not right in his home town. Prospero is left to his own devices to explore and piece together the fragmented mystery in order to find out what has happened to Ethan Carter and his family.
Prospero, however, is no ordinary detective. He has the power to use objects and see into their past. This is TVoEC's most fundamental and only gameplay mechanic, for it is mostly a narrative experience. Which is why I found myself so often disappointed by TVoEC. The majority of my enjoyment came from soaking in the melancholy of Red Creek, but once I had solved a few of Ethan Carter's 10 puzzles, I started to notice the cracks in developer The Astronauts' opening statement. It's not 100% true. The puzzles are so easy they practically solve themselves, it just asks you to find the right object, such as a rock, and place it where it needs to be in order to recreate a scene. After the scene is properly set up, we must decipher the chronology of the crime, and if you can't solve that with just your intuition, a trial and error approach always works out. The completion of these puzzles helps to unravel the plot. As I delved deeper into the narrative, I lost interest. Many of the puzzles simply reiterate something I already knew, but revealing that would encroach on spoiler territory. Slightly disgruntled, I was looking forward to finally solving the mystery, but I was left even more disappointed. I specifically remember being told in year 5 English, when I was 10 years old, to never ever even consider writing this sort of conclusion to a story. I wish The Astronauts were also given this advice because Ethan Carter whimpers out of delivering any kind of satisfying revelation and instead tries to pull your heartstrings in the most contrived manner. What a shame. I wasn't left angry, just disappointed.
That's not to say I disliked TVoEC. I really did like it. It's not nearly as strong narrative wise as it should be, but I can admire The Astronaut's ability to create a cohesive and thematically interesting world that was a joy to explore. They clearly understand the potential of narrative in video games. Red Creek Valley is truly a sight to behold and is equally enjoyable to explore, but the game slowly petered out and I was left with a sour taste in place of true satisfaction. Its initial mystery and constant melancholic tone were enough to keep me for the few hours the game lasts, which is alright by me.
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