Gods Will Be Watching

Far in the future, Sgt. Burden is in charge of a team researching a deadly virus on a far-away planet. The team is attacked by bioterrorists, and the virus stolen. Fearing that this research could lead to a new era of terror and war, the team must survive on the freezing planet until they can repair their radio and get word to the higher-ups that something is terribly amiss.

Each decision the player makes is meaningful; Sgt. Burden is tasked with keeping the team alive and well, but also has the fate of the universe to think about. Will Burden save a dying friend, or stop genocide? Of course the choices aren't so clear cut in the moment, and players will have to draw on their ethical sensibilities again and again. There is no right or wrong decision.

There is, however, a large degree of chance that comes into the gameplay--in one scene, Burden faces a captor who plays Russian Roulette with his life, and there's no way to get out of it--the game may end because you just weren't lucky enough to win.

Gods Will Be Watching's themes include the sacrifice in keeping hope alive, facing moral dilemmas for the greater good, and resource management.

The game has been critiqued by some as being frustratingly difficult due to the randomization of luck.

• Were you ever frustrated by the degree of luck that came into play? Did it make for interesting gameplay--perhaps more realistic gameplay-- or was it simply obnoxious?
• If you could go back, would you do anything differently?
• Was it jarring to be "reunited" with characters who had died or left the party at the beginning of each new chapter? Did this hinder the idea that your actions have consequences?