After an acclaimed launch on Xbox and PC, As Dusk Falls is also about to arrive on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4, with some pretty good features that make the most of Sony’s exclusive hardware.
The announcement arrived directly at home Interior/Night, an all-female British studio that in 2022 gave us this little jewel of the narrative genre. After all, the studio was founded by Caroline Marchal, lead designer behind games like Heavy Rain and Beyond: Two Souls. And it was Caroline herself who presented us with all the news of the PlayStation edition together with Charu Desodt (Studio Director) e May Wong (Lead Designer).
What is As Dusk Falls?
As Dusk Falls is a video game that can be classified in the Interactive Crime Drama category. An interactive story that seems to be inspired more by TV series like Breaking Bad and Fargo than in the gaming world. The game puts the player’s choices at the center in a frenetic and compelling storywhich revolves around two very different families, who meet (or rather collide) by pure chance in an Arizona motel: the Desert Dream Motel. Here, on what seemed to be a normal day in 1998, a chain of events will upset the lives of the protagonists.
It will be up to the player (or players) make your way through difficult choices which could lead to disastrous consequences, both in the short and long term. After all As Dusk Falls deals with mature themes (such as family problems and desperation), and often presents us with an existential question: What are you willing to do to protect your family?
Through six chapters (with an average of one decision to be made every 20 seconds), the story unfolds before the eyes of the players, who will thus have to face the consequences of their actions. Every decision will be crucial, just like in life.
But don’t worry, at the end of each chapter a well thought out story tree will allow us to evaluate all the crossroads, and to replay them to obtain a different development. Not only that, at the end of each chapter we will also be given a psychological character sheet, which will show us how our actions have shaped his character.
As Dusk Falls: when does it arrive on PlayStation? What changes from the Xbox version?
As Dusk Falls will arrive on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 starting March 7, 2024 at a cost of €29.99 (for the digital version).
A physical edition is also planned, which however will arrive on an unspecified spring date, at the price of €49.99. The premium edition will include a film poster and Dante’s diary (which plays a crucial role in the story of As Dusk Falls). The agenda contains many elements and secrets of the ambiguous character of the sheriff.
Although the story remains unchanged from the Xbox edition, the PlayStation 5 version will take full advantage of the popular haptic feedback of the PS5 controllers, restoring even more immersion (especially during Quick Time Events). Also optimized controls for the touchpad (absent on Xbox controllers).
Other interesting features of the game are:
- Co-op for up to 8 players (both online and locally). Players will vote on which choices to make. A mechanic that stimulates dialogue and comparison and that makes As Dusk Falls an interesting game even in real life. A new frontier for party games?
- App per mobile. Want to play co-op but don’t have 8 controllers? Don’t worry, one is enough: the others will be able to play using their smartphone via the appropriate app.
- Streamer mode. The game is perfect for live broadcasts on Twitch, where the streamer will be able to allow the chat to vote on the options and choices that characterize the story
- Infinite replayability. On paper you can finish As Dusk Falls in about 6 hours. In reality however, given that each choice substantially affects the story, the replayability is almost infinite. From this perspective, the story tree comes to our aid (so that we don’t have to always start from scratch)
- Audio description: Greater accessibility for visually impaired or blind players
- Crossplay. Crossplay is enabled but only between similar platforms (so PS5 and PS4; Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One; Steam GOG)
We remind you that As Dusk Falls is included in the Xbox Game Pass catalogue.
Finally, if you really want to know more, we refer you to our review of the game which reads:
A song comes to mind Dogs called Wes Anderson. In the lyrics Niccolò Contessa sings: “And the bad guys aren’t really bad. And enemies aren’t really enemies. But even the good ones aren’t really good.” In fact, what makes As Dusk Falls a little gem is precisely that the care of the characterswith a storytelling that, although it has some small and negligible flaws, keeps players glued to the screen.
In fact, it would be too easy to start from the assumption that robbers are the bad guys and that the police can be trusted. The careful psychology of individuals characters, never two-dimensional, gives us a living ecosystem of people, all driven by precise motivations. And it will only be up to us to delve deeper into their backstories and the dynamics that move them, choosing who are the bad guys and who are the good guys. Bad and good who, even in this case, will only be related to our condition: that of hostages.
