Despite some bright spots, enough of Deadly Premonition 2 is bad that I’ve given up.
Let’s step back.
Deadly Premonition 2 is both a sequel and a prequel to the first game.
I dig this setup.
I’m interested in the conspiraces of this Louisiana town ruled by a merciless criminal family.
Patricia, the precocious child who declares herself our partner, is a delight.
It has some good jokes, too.
But the parts I’m enjoying are not enough to make me want to fight through the rest.
The tone is relentlessly wacky, and the game is plagued by busywork.
The town shop sells spam, easy enough.
And the diner sells red beans & rice, but only on Mondays.
So I tried killing time with more side-quests.
I perfected skateboard tricks.
I shot 30 wild dogs (which takes ages farming respawns).
I chased the hotel chef and bellboy and concierge around the hours of their separate schedules.
I found photograph spots.
I shot 30 bees.
I started a quest I couldn’t finish until the story advanced.
I shot 1 squirrel.
It was still only Saturday.
Red beans obtained, I finally returned to church.
The minister accepted the food and gave me a new mandatory three-part fetch quest.
I closed the game.
I can walk right up to her but not interact at all.
Her attention must be fully focused on whatever it is she’s not actually holding.
It’s full of small changes which waste time or make life difficult.
At this point, the payoff doesn’t feel worth the effort.
Deadly Premonition’s tone was quirky in a charming way, built upon contrast.
A sleepy town rocked by murder and otherworldly horror.
Local cops bouncing off York’s brash eccentricities and dinnertime anecdotes about serial killers.
A long and slow drive interrupted by a chat with Zach about Richard Donner movies or punk bands.
A few colourful characters amidst townsfolk living mundane lives.
It struck a good melodramatic balance.
The sequel heavily tips the balance from quirky to zany.
Deadly Premonition 2 is one of the trashy 80s movies which York so adores.
Most people in Le Carre are outwardly and instantly exhausting, loudly performing a wacky character trait.
I could push through.
Maybe I will, eventually, when memories of busywork have faded.
But for now, I’ve given up after 13 hours.
Oh, and DP2 is also wonky on PC.
Screen resolution is locked to 1080p.
The game has softlocked during conversations, requiring a restart.
Background NPCs pop into existence mere metres away.
In a cutscene with a grim mutilation, one character undercut the tension by vibrating intensely.
My dear little sidekick was often stuck in a pointing animation.
Or he’d give me another bounty quest.
Oh, I’ve looked it up: it’s another bounty quest.
