After a long time in development, Compulsion Games released the full and final release of We Happy Few. An odd looking game on the surface, this game is action-adventure as well as survival and more. The unique story is dark and sometimes filled with confusion, but we just had to check it out.
After checking out the demo when the game was initially shown on Kickstarter, there were obvious things that needed work, but the game play itself was baffling. Not to say that this is bad, just different. There were few pointers to make sense of what needed to be done, other than a direct correlation that people need to be happy, and kind of creepy looking too.
Set in the mid 1960s, We Happy Few, with rogue-like elements and first-person perspective, follows three characters that are living an alternate reality after World War II. Each character has a main goal and deep plot to follow. They must finish their task before the next. In this city of Wellington Wells, societal collapse can be seen and felt no matter where in the game you are, which includes an over whelming sense of paranoia. The whole town is very dystopian with sketchy things around every corner. Townspeople are blissfully unaware due to an overuse of a hallucinogenic drug that makes everyone unaware of their own reality. This also affects you, the player and how you navigate.
To get through Wellington Wells, you need to be stealthy and plan to use some survival elements as well. The main objective with each character is to use their unique abilities to try and leave town. Along the way will be items to pick up such as weapons, food, drink and wealth. Safe houses are scattered throughout to provide some type of recovery during each story but access will come from the ability to use crafting. Crafting with resources is paramount in the continuation of game play. But the best part isn’t all of the fun things to craft and use during the story.
Everyone wants to know about the pills that are being used by the population in We Happy Few. These pills create an effect called “joy” and keep the residents blissfully unaware of their war torn surroundings. Not only that but the pills keep everyone from realizing the true effects of what has happened. Your character can choose to use these pills and get around the townspeople but when the effects wear off, the town start to go back to its dismal true state but you become what is called a “downer.” Suddenly the townspeople will get very aggressive toward you and the need to fight becomes imminent. Although your characters abilities are strongest when you’re a downer, the abilities still work at a slightly lower strength when everything is looking great.
Overall, the game has a different and fun art style. Although the characters can be somewhat creepy at times, the overall look of the town is just as twisted as you’d think as a person on strange drugs. The game play isn’t overly difficult but can be frustrating if a balance of abilities and “joy” aren’t used appropriately. For the plot, there is a lot to get to know about the background but this doesn’t always fit directly in what is going on in the moment and this can make everything seem a bit disjointed. We Happy Few is an interesting concept and more developers should take a leap such as this.
7/10
Available now on PS4, Xbox and PC
