This is the concluding part of my Eurogamer expo indie trilogy and it’s all about a game called Framed.
Framed is a “narrative-puzzle” game set in a brilliantly styled noir graphic novel world. Each screen is full of animated panels that the player has to re-arrange to continue the anonymous protagonists journey. One scene has the, in my mind spy, escaping across some ledges on the outside of a building. I had to rearrange the panels to avoid a policeman waiting in a window and avoid him falling to his death. It’s a great puzzle game but what I really loved about Framed was the styling.
The key phrase in that last paragraph was “in my mind”. The protagonist could be absolutely anything, or anyone, doing anything. The silhouette aesthetic was incredible too. I love graphic novels, and I love the whole noir style and Framed perfectly blended the two. The soundtrack was perfect too. The score was written for the game and performed by a live jazz band and it fits Framed like a well tailored suit.
The version I played was running on a tablet, but it was also available to play on PC. I really enjoyed actually physically moving the panels around the screen, that extra level of interactivity was really engaging. Unfortunately the release schedule includes iOS devices long before Android so I would go for the PC version, but it would by no means be a deal breaker.
I reluctantly walked away from Framed because I had to make a train back down south, but if it were up to me I wouldn’t have left. It’s just too good to walk away from. In most games a lack of defined context would be a huge flaw, in Framed it works. The artistic style is just exceptional, the gameplay is beautifully simple and the soundtrack is brilliant.
If there was ever a game that proves video games can be art. Framed is it.
Framed is being developed by Loveshack Entertainment and is set for an early 2014 release on Steam and certain iOS devices.
To get a flavour of Framed there are a couple of gameplay videos as well as a concept video below. I implore you to check this game out.
