When Fiona’s life hits a sudden roadblock, she’s unable to find her motivation. She loses her job and relationship, wondering if there’s anything that can help. Upon remembering an ad discussing a new life elsewhere, she takes that opportunity. Leaving behind everything to pursue a new life, she sets herself up for a strange adventure. She will meet new people, explore an island, and pay off her debts.
The prologue doesn’t give you most of the life-sim elements but it provides an insight into Fiona’s life. It’s easy to imagine yourself in Fiona’s shoes when nothing is going right and you just don’t want to leave your bed. You get a good idea of the typical gameplay but you don’t see how Fiona landed in the situation she finds herself in. If you want to see what Neverway can potentially offer, it’s a great starting point but you won’t see the key aspects just yet.
Neverway has a prologue demo available on PC.
Fiona’s life is dreary and she’s clearly not handling her situation well.
Story – A New Life
You play as Fiona, a young woman who has reached a difficult time in her life. She hasn’t shown up to work and they have fired her as a result. Her partner has tried to contact her but Fiona hasn’t been responding or emotionally available. Fiona hasn’t left her apartment in days because her mental wellbeing isn’t great. When she’s forced to go back outside to collect her belongings from the office, she eventually plans to move to an island destination that changes her life.
The beginning is similar to High School Dirty Secrets in that the story points are slowly explained over time. You aren’t exactly sure how or why Fiona feels the way she does but you can get some inferences from the story. It’s also relatable in some ways because it’s easy to feel like everything is too much. Most of the story hasn’t happened yet and it just sets up how Fiona starts her life on the island.
Fiona’s apartment is dull and dreary, with not much vibrancy.
You don’t experience the life-sim elements or meet many characters. Instead, you get used to navigating the world, picking up items, and indulge in some combat. The stakes are low but it’s important to adapt to the controls now. After you complete the prologue, there’s an opportunity to practice more combat in a simulation setting. You can also explore more of Fiona’s computer programs to get a feel for your usage.
The game promises management similar to Seeds of Calamity and you can see the foundation once the prologue ends. Getting used to the navigation is also important and it’s easy to find your way around Fiona’s environment in the beginning. Combat is also fast-paced and the challenges you can access give you a good idea of what you will expect. You don’t get more than a quick peek but hopefully you are aware of what to expect when you play the full game.
Combat is mostly limited to a simulation outside of a train sequence.
Audio & Visual – Dark Scenery
To match Fiona’s mental state, there’s lots of dark colours in the environment. From the start of the prologue to the end, it’s a dreary environment. There’s not much sound to match Fiona’s disconnect with her environment. When Fiona takes the train home and strange occurrences appear, the audio and visual start getting more variation to reflect the situation. Once Fiona moves to her new home, brighter colours begin to appear, especially the orange interior.
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- You meet the supernatural early on but it’s not clear if it’s real.
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- Whether imaginary or real, crawling through a tunnel is tough work.
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- Once Fiona is in her new home, you start to believe things will improve.
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- Even when you move to a new island home, you must pay rent.
Neverway was previewed on Steam with a code provided by Tinsley PR.
