The first launch of the game gives above all the opportunity to appreciate the many options of accessibility and customization of the experience. Frequency of help messages spoken by our companions, display or not of each interface element, possible automation of (rare) QTEs, invincibility mode, and many other parameters are available so that everyone can adapt the adventure to their needs or preferences. If your machine allows it, we naturally advise you to push the graphic options to the limit, but know that in any case, you will take a good little visual slap. If A Plague Tale Innocence was already very pleasant graphically, Requiem takes an additional step. The facial expressions that we lamented the absence of three years ago, for example, are indeed present this time around, and perfectly worthy of a 2022 game. The textures, obviously in high definition, never seem blurry, even from close. And above all, above all, certain landscapes are truly breathtaking. Is this the result of the experience gained on Flight Simulator? Still, the panoramas of mountains, beaches and meadows make you want to go hiking in the four corners of Spain, here sublimated by the medieval period conducive to contemplation and by light and meteorological effects of impressive precision. . The scenario does not hesitate to make us travel, including in the rough seas, we can say that we see the country, and the beauty! If you doubt that, we'll let you take a look at our home-made, guaranteed-to-fake screenshots.
HUGO, THE KING OF THE RATS
True to the reputation of the first episode, A Plague Tale remains a game with a dark theme, where rats play a major role. Still just as invasive and dangerous, these rodents from hell see their numbers multiplied in this section. According to the developers, the maximum number of rats displayed on the screen, which was 5000 in Innocence, rises in Requiem to… 300! We didn't have fun counting them one by one, but we can confirm that certain scenes really overwhelm us with rodents, which literally break out in whole waves. If these swarms of rats are the occasion for a few chase sequences, they most often serve the infiltration component of the adventure. To progress in certain settings, you have to manage to light the right fires at the right times or, on the contrary, extinguish the flames carried by the enemies so that they are devoured.
Just to bring some new blood to these mechanics, Hugo is now able to commune with groups of moderate-sized rats. This first allows him to observe human silhouettes through the scenery, but also to take control of nearby rats.
Just to bring some new blood to these mechanics, Hugo is now able to commune with groups of moderate-sized rats. This first allows him to observe human silhouettes through the scenery, but also to take control of nearby rats. The player can then directly move the rodents so that they pounce on the unfortunate soldiers in the area unprotected by light or fire. Hugo not being with Amicia all the time, or not always able to use his powers, this novelty does not unbalance the game at all. The big sister of the family is also entitled to extended abilities, thanks to the new system combining weapons and alchemy. To put it simply, let's say that Amicia has four different types of throws (hand, earthen pots, slingshot, crossbow), four alchemical recipes (Ignifer to light fires, Extinguis to put them out, Pitch to to amplify them, and the Odoris to attract rats), and total freedom to associate with each other. Hitting a crossbow bolt coated with Ignifer on a wooden board will, for example, create a new light source, while throwing a pot of Pitch at an enemy will slow them down and make them more easily ignited. This system therefore makes it possible to solve certain environmental puzzles, but also to enrich the combats.
HUGO NOT ALONE
Never stingy with small additional game mechanics, Requiem also gives us the possibility of giving orders to the characters who accompany Amicia (there are rarely more than one at a time). The sturdy Arnaud can for example be sent on an enemy to murder him, while Sophia the pirate can use a prism to set fire to tall grass and distract enemies, or extend the radius of certain light sources. It should be noted that, just like its predecessor, Requiem manages to never make these companions painful or disabling, even though countless games break their teeth on the slightest escort mission. This is due both to their good general behavior, to their developed and endearing personality, to the fact that they are regularly renewed, and to a successful voice cast (in English as in French). It's also the soundtrack as a whole that is worthy of praise, because the music is at least as good as that of Innocence, which is saying something. At this stage of the test, you may have noticed that we haven't said a word about the scenario yet. That's amazing for a storytelling adventure, isn't it? It is actually completely voluntary, in order to leave you with as many surprises as possible. We will content ourselves with telling you that the emotion is there at times, and that the end seemed absolutely perfect to us. Including the post-credits epilogue. And including the post-credits post-epilogue post-credits scene (no, no, there's no mistake)!
HUGO OF THE CRYPTS
On the other hand, we must recognize that the game does not fly on all points. We would have loved to give it an 18 or 19, but too many minor hiccups dampened our initial enthusiasm. The technical report thus presents several small recurring bugs. We were treated to the erratic behavior of a few rats, to a character making a complete turn on itself before positioning itself correctly, to companions who slide to Amicia, to NPCs blocking us during an escape sequence, to somewhat abrupt transitions between certain animations, or even a 3D model of Amicia which started to shake slightly during a transport sequence. Even more surprisingly, while the game regularly puts our eyes on it, it seems to have trouble properly managing a simple depth of field effect. In some shots, the bokeh evokes more the poorly cropped portrait mode of a low-end smartphone than a professional camera. In addition, some dialogues fall surprisingly flat and clearly lack naturalness. And then, it may be a matter of taste but all the same, we found that the balance between action and infiltration was too much in favor of the first component. There are even one or two rail-shooting sequences, which have little to do in an adventure that we hoped would be based on infiltration and which is intended to be emotional. Come on, one last grumbling for the road: in a semi-realistic context such as this, the characters who take sword wounds or arrows in the stomach and who recover in a few minutes, it's Nope ! Here, who loves well punishes well, as the saying goes. But make no mistake: A Plague Tale Requiem is undeniably a very beautiful adventure that is well worth the detour!
