Dustborn requires patience and an open mind, but if you don’t have either, what’s the point of trying? … (+)
Born of dust is one of the most unrepentantly liberal and left-leaning games around. If you’ve ever spent 20 seconds watching YouTube comments or social media posts, you probably already know this – hundreds of people have distanced themselves from the game without even playing it. Such is the year 2024, and again, it’s a shame – there’s a lot to like about this strange adventure.
At a fundamental level Born of dust has refined and nearly perfected Telltale Games’ classic episodic graphic adventure formula, admittedly ten years after it was at the height of its popularity. It takes time to gain momentum, but once you understand everything this cross-country, almost post-apocalyptic story has to offer, you’re in it for the long haul.
But even if you belong to the clear target group, Born of dustThe rocky start, strange mechanics, and odd characters elicit some strong initial opinions, and there are a few missteps along the way. On a fundamental level, developer Red Thread Games has created something that is a test of patience – not just to get into it, but to enjoy the experience as intended.
A road trip with your three favorite allies
Born of dust It starts in medias res, while you, Pax – a 30-year-old conman and mutated “anomalous” with the ability to use language as a weapon – are nursing a gunshot wound after a semi-successful robbery. You have seized an important USB stick in the nation state of Pacifica in 2030 – California in this universe – and must bring it to Nova Scotia.
Things are different here; it’s implied that the timeline diverges from ours, with Jackie O., not JFK, being assassinated in Deeley Plaza in 1963. Kennedy takes Marilyn Monroe as his second wife, and together they turn the country into a semi-fascist state full of law-abiding robots, tearing the Union apart and giving rise to highly advanced versions of modern subcultures and groups. Cool!
It is almost as if a US politician had developed a personality cult
As Pax – one of the four initial misfits – you can use your vocal talents to make people feel guilty (“it’s like negging, only more brutal”). Noam, your former lover, manipulates people to make them feel better (a “verbal tranquilizer”). Sai, the artistic, self-critical and openly swearing team bitch, can literally make herself strong as a rock. Then there’s Theo, a regular guy with no powers but a thoroughly nice guy and potential father of the group. Together you traverse a divided former America disguised as a punk rock band, combining chat, rhythm-action music sections and a few fights.
From the first moments of your journey on the motorway, Born of dust is immaculately presented. The cameras are movable but occupy cleverly curated fixed positions, allowing you to view your developing conversations from excellent, regularly adjusting angles, like any classic single-camera sitcom setup. It’s just as good –Born of dust revels in the chat, whether you want it or not.
The camera angles are perfectly prepared; they are a Dustborn KSP all its own.
Find your voice
The first few conversations feel easy at best – good and bad decisions are too binary, meaning you are either calm and collected or an idiot. But stick with it: this is Born of dust‘s somewhat clumsy tutorial explanation of the chat mechanics and your own abilities. You can time your conversations, choose safe replies, or stun your friends with your angry Vox ability whenever you want – not that you would do that, because you would feel terrible.
The conversational dynamics unfold at a dramatic pace, however, as you work through the first two chapters and begin to trust your judgement. In some conversations, answer options are added or removed over time; in others, things are best left unsaid, even if Born of dust seems to imply that you should talk. Skipping dialogue isn’t an option either, but it does make you realize that this is about words, not actions. Sure, some sections can drag, but you feel compelled to make the most of each conversation, even if your approach only ends up making things worse.
Your choices will affect whether your compatriots exhibit one of three dominant traits you can keep an eye on – important if you want to know how best to approach them before another big discussion looms. It’s not clear if or what you want, but as the chapters progress you get a feel for the traits you like.
Theo felt like my buddy above all, but you can understand those who want him as their boss. Or … (+)
The interactions are surprisingly sensitive and carefully arranged, aided by absolutely superb voice acting – Dominique Tipper and Safiyya Ingar as Pax and Sai are outstanding – but the cast is occasionally let down by dodgy dialogue. You might want to immediately take it out on the fact that the characters are unlikable in different ways, but that’s kind of the point, as they have their imperfections, but it sometimes feels like Born of dust does not fully trust your intelligence.
Hit with a brick
If you want to convey subliminal messages, you have to rely on subtlety – it is very powerful – and this is especially true for Born of dust. It rightly wears its heart on its sleeve, but still has a habit of mishandling strong allegories by dictating them to you, to the point where you can feel a little patronized. Given its obvious audience, it’s far from ideal.
Early in the game, after finding the potentially world-changing, Tamagotchi-like “Me-em” that becomes one of the most important tools in the game, you come across Echoes. These disembodied, angry voices spew bile about conspiracy theories, “mutilation,” fears of atypical people, and more. Echoes hang invisibly in the landscape, but can be heard by people, influencing their behavior or even taking over their minds, to the point of mental illness. It’s a spectacular visual metaphor for social media, and this is conveyed with the perfect level of nuance.
That is, until you explain this phenomenon to Sai, who almost shrugs at the idea and immediately says: “Ah, like social media!” Great, thanks, the satisfaction is ruined. When you suck the echoes into your ego – in a movement like the proton pack from Ghost Hunters–you are reminded that “it’s like ghost hunting!” OK, we get it, you must be sure we made that connection. This happens more often than you hope, and each time, the happiness you get from interpreting things on your own gets washed out in line with The price is hot‘s loser horn.
Variety
With all the ups and downs of his conversation-heavy core experience, Born of dust provides a nice mix of other elements that add some spice and further refine the episodic adventure format that needs more to carry it through the 2020s.
It takes some getting used to being a fake band.
First, the rhythm action sections where your band pretends to be musicians are a nice touch and respond well – although the oddly placed and angled crosshairs and super move inputs make them hard to follow at first. It helps that the original soundtrack is solid and the songs are consistently woven into the wider story, offering more insight as you go along.
At the end of the first chapter, combat is introduced. Pax arms himself with a baseball bat and faces off against a group of Horned Riders. Borderland Gang element to the action. It’s not perfect – my first two combat segments had significant glitches – but these sections contain easy-to-understand dodge and attack mechanics, with upgrades, voice skills, team play, timing, and further storytelling after each fight. Don’t like that? After your first skirmish, you can choose to fight more or less for the rest of the game, which is a great touch.
The combat sections may not be to everyone’s taste, but they are quite fun.
There’s also a gamification of conversations through collected items. You’ll regularly come across team-friendly trinkets while exploring, but you can’t just make someone happy again by gifting them – it’s all about the right time and place. If you hit the sweet spot by handing something to Sai, Theo, or Noam at the right time, you’ll unlock new dialogue and backstory. This makes you appreciate the craft behind the dialogue even more; you might feel condescension in certain parts of the storytelling, but you’ll feel richly rewarded if you get this right.
Wait and see
Born of dust gets better and feels more rewarding the more you play. The dodgy opening chapters will return double what you put in, with a well-developing story and character development – even if so much lore and explanation is left on the table. Perhaps Dustborn 2 will help us understand this strange, warlike vision of the US in 2030 (unless real life does it first, *probably a giant satire horn*).
If you are open and willing to give your mind time to grow, Born of dust is an entertaining ride, even if it sometimes feels like it’s being a bit too provocative – especially for the kind of people who immediately understand his sociopolitical views. Of course I know them – they’re me.
It does not try The Walking Dead: A treacherous series or About Jammer Lammy or Devil May Cry or Ox free; Born of dust is truly its own thing and the fact that Quantic Dream is giving indie developers like Red Thread Games this platform to be exactly what it wants to be is absolutely fantastic. Anyone who refuses to play it on principle doesn’t know what they’re missing out on. Born of dust Patience and an open mind may be required, but if you don’t have either, what’s the point of trying something new?
