When comparing The Novelist vs Gone Home, the Slant community recommends Gone Home for most people. In the question“What are the best Exploration games on Steam?” Gone Home is ranked 9th while The Novelist is ranked 24th. The most important reason people chose Gone Home is:
Through interacting with objects in the environment of the game (a house) one is able to learn piecemeal the story that the game is set out to tell.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Longevity of gameplay though different choices
There are many different outcomes to the game, all of which can be experienced through multiple playthroughs. this makes for an extension of the time spent in the game and in so makes the game last a lot longer than a linear storied game.
Pro Difficult storytelling that can hit home
The story of the game involves a family with a learning disabled son and the trials and tribulations that occur. The father is a writer who is trying to concentrate on his newest novel, his greatest work and is torn on how to advance his career while maintaining his family. The player will choose from different options on how to balance this family life, making difficult choices that will have differing effects on the game and story. It is through these tough choices that the player will experience feeling that may have an impact on their mood and maybe even life.
Pro Deep environmental storytelling
Through interacting with objects in the environment of the game (a house) one is able to learn piecemeal the story that the game is set out to tell.
Pro Interesting side stories
Besides the main story there are several side stories in the game that center around the rest of the people who live in the house. Through interacting with objects in the house one learns of the surrounding circumstances of those that live there.
Cons
Con Endings seem to obvious
The different endings in the game feel a bit too neat, to obvious for the story that is played through, something more gritty or less conclusionary would have been more fitting.
Con Details are sometimes off
The objects and dialog aren't consistent for things such as the mom's place of employment.
Con Weak voice acting
While most of the voice acting is adequate there are many moments that stick out as poorly done and lessens the experience of the game.