Backbone has attracted the attention of a massive audience ever since its release on June 8th, 2021. Part of this is because of its typical indie-game lure, but it's also because it lives up to the promises of the creators and the expectations of fans. From the incredible soundtrack to the perfectly crafted story, everything fits perfectly in the world of Backbone.
Players step into the shoes of a raccoon investigator who stumbles across a gruesome murder. As the game unfolds, the intention and concept of the game become clear, making it a story players will remember long after finishing the game. Due to the unique structure of the gameplay, most people might feel disoriented at first when they try the game. But after getting used to the basics, it's easy to get lost in it. To make this easy and quick, we've compiled a list of basic things beginners should know before starting Backbone.
6 Interact With & Observe Everything
Playing with the environment is crucial in Backbone. Everything is there for a reason, and will either come in handy as a clue for the murder, or a clue for understanding the world it took place in. This makes the game somewhat slower, as players need to take the time to look around and observe the environment, interacting with everything possible.
The game takes this very seriously, and so players shouldn't rush through the game. Because the protagonist is a private investigator, the game places clues almost everywhere, which offer explanations for everything. They can explain the dystopian world the characters are in, as well as the backstories of all side and main characters in the game.
5 Be As Sneaky As Possible
Using the sneaking system in Backbone is vital to the gameplay. And because the game doesn't explain any of this, it might be hard to get used to the mechanics at first, or even to fully understand how necessary it is. The character players control is a private investigator, not a WWII veteran. He doesn't have any weapons, or skills to defend himself in a physical confrontation.
Every time the character needs to flee an area or needs to get past anyone, the solution will always be to crouch and sneak past them unnoticed. And although the game offers frequent auto-save checkpoints, it's best to learn this at the beginning of the game to avoid losing progress.
4 Consider The Protagonist As An Anti-Hero
The player character in this game is far from perfect. This might cause some scenes and scenarios to seem conflicting, especially when players need to choose from two options, neither of which is ever ideal. The game will go out of its way to share the past mistakes of Howard the raccoon with the player, and of course, the protagonist will continue to make mistakes in the future.
Sometimes the game will offer to be awful to characters who don't deserve it, and players just have to go with it. Of course, at the end of the day, players will get the chance to turn this around. Still, it's best to throw any and all expectations of what a hero looks like out the window before getting started with Backbone.
3 Dialogue Choices Matter
For the aforementioned reasons, dialogue choices matter throughout the story. They form the behavior and nature of the protagonist, and more importantly, they unlock some hidden secrets in the game's story. The dialogue choices don't last until the end of the game like Detroit: Become Human, so players can take a deep breath and let go of that pressure.
But in the overall gameplay, dialogue does matter. They determine whether Howard is a closed-off detective, or more of an open and curious person. And of course, it will determine how much players know of the world when the game ends, and therefore how they interpret the entire experience. As mentioned before, don't rush — take the time to talk to everyone and carefully choose dialogue options.
2 Focus On The Story
The mechanics of the game are incredibly simple, which allows players to focus mainly on the theme and story. That is why the soundtrack and graphics are executed perfectly, to submerge the players into the world of Backbone completely. Don't expect complex gameplay; focus on the narrative.
Once players learn the basic mechanics and tricks of the gameplay (like sneaking and exploring), everything is about piecing together the incredibly complex backstory of how this all came to be. It makes the game feel effortless and therefore the story shines through perfectly.
1 The Game Won't Hold The Player's Hand
One of the best (and worst) things about Backbone is that it refuses to spoon-feed anything to players. The main story will be presented in the scenes players go through, and the backstory can be unlocked by investigating. The side characters and main character don't get any explanation; it's up to the player to find out as much as they please about them.
And lastly, the mechanics aren't explained either, which means players must learn on the job. And even though the mechanics are incredibly easy, in the first half of the game, there will be a definite learning curve. Be prepared to fail a few times in practice.
Backbone is available now on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S