American Arcadia

This game really reminds me of The Truman Show, but the difference is here the main character, Trevor, is being helped by someone from the outside world named Angela, who tries to make him realize that he’s actually living in an artificial world.

Story-wise, the game uses two different perspectives, Trevor and Angela, but they’re both part of the same storyline. Trevor is trying to escape his reality, while Angela is doing everything she can to help him get out. Around the middle of the game, things start to get confusing in a good way, making you question what’s really going on in Arcadia. You start wondering if Trevor is making the right choices, who the real villain is, and so on.
On top of that, the ending has some extra plot twists that you can only discover if you’re willing to explore more thoroughly in certain rooms throughout each chapter.

From a gameplay perspective, the game also offers two different styles. You play as Trevor in a side-scrolling platformer style, and as Angela in a first-person open area where you focus on hacking. These two perspectives feel very intentional, like the game is trying to show how restricted Trevor’s life is, where he can only move left, right, and jump, while Angela has full freedom to move and do whatever she wants.

On Trevor’s side, the platforming gets more intense as you progress toward the mid to late game. You’ll be crossing busy roads full of cars, avoiding gunfire, and timing your movements carefully.
On Angela’s side, the puzzles also become more complex, starting from hacking cameras all the way to hacking Arcadia’s facilities. In many missions, you’ll have to handle both at the same time, managing Trevor’s platforming while also hacking things around the environment to help him escape.

Overall, this game left a really good impression on me. Both the story and gameplay feel fresh, especially with the dual perspectives and the subtle philosophical meaning behind them.

Love this game!

Well, this is one of those games where I have to wonder - how the hell did I not know about it for three years? Anyway, this is one that should be in every library. Genuinely slick, great artistic design, one of those rare games that feels fully baked and where nothing added would improve it. What a job by the devs!

really enjoyed the game