Available on PC, Mobile,
We played on PC
Telltale has pretty much cornered the market on modern adventure games for fictional properties. But iNK Stories has taken that same formula of choice-driven gameplay and applied to real events in history. It’s an interesting take on the adventure game story and has implications that could even reach into modern day classrooms. But, most importantly, it remains entertaining while sprinkling in historical information.
The Story
As you may have guessed from the title, the game is set in 1979 in Iran, during the Iranian revolution. You play as a young man named Reza, an aspiring photographer, who finds himself caught up in the action of the day thanks to his friends and family, not all of which share the same beliefs. Like Telltale did with its Game of Thrones game, 1979 doesn’t let you play as any of the real figures from that time. You’re just getting the story of a specific set of fictional characters set against the backdrop of the time.
The Gameplay
1979 Revolution: Black Fridays gameplay has a few aspects. The most important of these is choice. You’ll be faced with lots of choices during the game. All of which hold some sort of consequence to the game’s plot. Another type of gameplay is photography. You use Reza’s camera to take pictures of things in the environment. This is where the history comes in. Once you take that picture, you’ll be shown what you’ve taken on the left hand of the screen and a real photograph of the same thing on the right hand screen. This screen also contains a sentence or two about the pictures and how they relevant in that time in history. There’s also an option on that screen to learn more, which will give you a longer, more detailed description of the significance of the photo.
Besides this gameplay you can also interact with things in the environment. The biggest of these are cassette tapes that you can collect that feature real snippets of speeches made by Ayatollah Khomeini during the time.
The Rating
1979 Revolution: Black Friday hasn’t been rated by the ESRB. The game contains a decent level of violence both between crowds of protesters and the characters you encounter in the game. During these segments you’re also likely to see some blood. The game also contains strong language and some sexual innuendos. If I had to guess, I would expect the game would receive an M rating from the ESRB.
The Takeaway
1979 Revolution: Black Friday is a game that gives you an enjoyable story with plenty of twists and lots of great characters. But perhaps the best aspect of the game is the potential it holds for using a game to teach real history to its players. I’m hoping iNK Stories can take me somewhere else in the future.
