So…Invisible, Inc.. A turn based stealth game. Think Metal Gear Solid with the game mechanics of XCOM Enemy Unknown and the plot line of Monaco.
And it’s Cyberpunk. And film noir. Cybernoirpunk espionage thing. Yeah, that sounds about right.
It’s available on Steam as a pre-release title, but you’ve got plenty of material to play with. You are an employee of an international espionage organisation who specialises in corporate theft and sabotage. When your team gets dropped into a location you control them via uplink, directing them through the building avoiding security, hacking cameras and computers and breaking into safes, mainframes and rescuing prisoners. Limitations are placed on the characters by their Action Points, which are depleted through movement and actions. AP limits can be increased through upgrades between levels and new items can be obtained. From the outset you’re only equipped with melee combat weapons that will stun guards briefly, and require a few rounds to recharge. You can defend yourself, but the recharge mean this strategy is more a get-out-of-jail free card when cornered.
From the beginning of the game you have a world map with a couple of options of levels and a time limit in which to achieve as much as possible. The levels are procedurally generated so every play through will be different. The control scheme is very simple to get the hang of – right click on the spot you want to move to, hover the pointer over a door or object to bring up the options for it (peeking being a very handy one) and select want you want to do. When you hover the mouse over any space it shows you how many Action Points will be left after following through, which is an immensely handy mechanic. Just in case this is starting to sound like a nice, relaxing game to think out your strategy there is a ticking clock on each level that ramps up the difficulty the longer you remain.
Being procedurally generated game with already a great bundle of content in it you’ll need more than a couple of playthroughs to experience everything it has to offer. The fact that it’s damn challenging extends the time you’ll spend on it. There’s no saving at the beginning of the turn and reloading if you fail – the blasted game autosaves so quickly you don’t get the chance (believe me, I tried). It’s a solidly designed game that will be experienced players a good run for their money. Check it out and we’ll have another cheap game for you next week!
