Blackwood Crossing | Xbox One

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Story-driven, cinematic games are something we’re quite fond of here at PTC, and with that in mind we approached Paper Seven’s Blackwood Crossing with some degree of excitement. Despite technical niggles and a you-didn’t-need-binoculars-to-see-that-coming ending, the game still managed to meet expectations by enchanting and yanking at our rusty old heart strings.

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​by ​Rob
Holt

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​@acousticmagic

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Developer: Paper Seven
Publisher: Vision Games​
Platforms: Xbox One,
PS4, PC
Players: 1

Blackwood Crossing places you in the role of Scarlett, a black-nail-polish-wearing teen doing her best to stay close to kid brother Finn during a something’s-amiss-here train journey. Anyone with siblings will immediately feel at home; the dynamic between the two main characters is beautiful, funny, melancholic - every emotion you can think of, really. The option to choose between sarcastic, bossy and gentle responses to Finn’s questions is a lovely addition that significantly adds to the believability of the game and it's characters.

The supporting cast are also well implemented, with Mum and Dad, Grandma and Granddad, Scarlett’s boyfriend Cameron, Finn’s school teacher Mrs Lyndhurst and bully boy with no name all key ingredients in bringing the delicious narrative-cake together. It’s the minute details here that really get you invested in the plot - I particularly enjoyed mention of Granddad’s radio and how he always used to listen to the cricket on it. Add to this the mysterious rabbit boy, a character straight out of Donnie Darko (one of many movies to be parodied in the game’s hilarious series of “film” posters), and you’ve got an enthralling ensemble.

If the supporting cast are great, then the locations are truly transcendent. From the various incarnations of the train itself, to Finn’s treehouse - trust us when we say the scene in which the treehouse blossoms in front of your eyes in the middle of the train is up there with Breath of the Wild’s beginning - to the island of imagination that you have to put back together, every locale bristles with life and love.

We can’t mention the characters and game world without also dissecting the holy trinity: art style, music and voice acting. The former paints Blackwood Crossing’s world in Pixar-esque hues - if they let David Lynch direct their next blockbuster! From the deep colour palette, to the fabulously designed paper masks that the supporting cast wear, to Finn’s red cape, freckles and mop o’ hair platter, it’s a true feast for the eyes.

The music backs up the art style beautifully, with subtle keys hiding underneath softly picked acoustic guitars - the added slide of a dobro here and there adds extra emotive power to a cracking soundtrack; it’s just a shame it doesn’t bridge over the overlong, bare loading screens. Play through to the end of the game to be rewarded with an original song from former Gomez man Ben Ottewell, too. 

Blackwood Crossing will make even the most stoic tin-man have feelings again...

The voice acting is unfortunately a little bit hit-and-miss, mind. For the most part the performances are good, but in certain scenes (no spoilers, promise) the acting doesn’t quite match up with the beauty or emotion on screen. It doesn’t help that in an industry dominated with American accents, the cast’s crumpets-and-tea-old-chap accents take a bit of time to adjust to (not your fault Paper Seven, blame society!).

Blackwood Crossing is effectively an interactive movie, and though it excels in its storytelling, the gameplay will often leave you frustrated. As with any story-driven adventure you’ll find yourself interacting with a lot of things in the game: doors, windows, characters and paper butterflies (another truly spellbinding scene that made this cynical bugger’s eyes moist). The problem therein is Scarlett’s constant bobbing, often resulting in having to reposition yourself three or four times before being able to interact with objects as desired. The dropped frames that happen here and there certainly don’t help proceedings, either.

If Scarlett’s bobbing doesn’t get to you, then her lead-boots-at-the-bottom-of-Lake-Treacle movement surely will. Many of the puzzles require you to listen to each member of the supporting cast, matching their lines of dialogue with another cast member to create a conversation. Honestly, we loved this approach to puzzle solving, but often the characters are quite spread out (especially in the last Island scene) only highlighting how irritatingly slow Scarlett moves. All extremities crossed for a patch to sort these issues out ASAP.

Yet in spite of its limitations, Blackwood Crossing kept us glued to the screen. Even the predictable ending still left us deeply moved, and for that reason alone we thoroughly recommend you pick it up. The game can be finished in 2-3 hours, which at its current price of £12.79 may raise an eyebrow or two, especially given the lack of replay value. Don’t let that dissuade you though, penny-pinchers, as Blackwood Crossing will make even the most stoic tin-man have feelings again.

Pros

• Gorgeous art style
• Believable characters and story
• Fun puzzles
• Bewitching music
• Sumptuous game world

Cons

• Scarlett’s slow movement and bobbing
• Framerate issues
• Predictable ending
• Not much replay value

Score 7/10