The once strict definition of what constituted a video game has taken a massive beating over the past couple years. There’s been numerous releases that just weren’t different enough to be excluded from the game genre but yet also didn’t feel like they had enough game-like aspects to be included. For me these types of games are quite intriguing as their lake of gameplay is usually made up for in story or the gameplay itself is what builds the story. Velvet Sundown is one such title, including some of the basic elements of game but feels more like a digital version of a murder mystery party. It’s hard to describe how I feel about it as whilst I think the concept is novel the execution, one that relies on other players playing their part, is both the best and worst thing about it.

Velvet Sundown Review Screenshot Wallpaper Lobby

You’re aboard the Velvet Sundown, a private yacht that caters to the rich and famous. You’ll find yourself in control of one of many characters in the game ranging from crew members all the way up to famous tennis players or wealthy socialites looking for a good time. However everyone aboard this ship has a secret, maybe something about them or a desire they want to fulfill, and your interactions will determine whether those secrets come to life or if those desires will be fulfilled. How will you play your role? Will you seek out your goal with reckless abandon or will you be the troll that tries to fellate everyone aboard?

Velvet Sundown has this kind of Second Life vibe to it which I think mostly stems from its graphics. The environment, that is to say the ship that you can walk around on, is pretty barren in terms of detail and feels quite sterile. This is only amplified by the rigid animations that all the characters have, especially when they’re walking around. It seems this might be due to the fact that Velvet Sundown is built upon an engine called Dramagame which appears to be geared more towards social simulation rather than something with game play. Usually I wouldn’t hold this against a game, especially one which focuses on other things, however when they’re asking for a monthly subscription fee for premium content I do expect a little more bang for my buck.

Velvet Sundown Review Screenshot Wallpaper SEDUCE ME

A the beginning of each scenario you’ll be randomly assigned a character to play and then given a background blurb on who they are, what their motivations might be and usually a goal to start you off. After that you’re essentially in a 3D chat room with a bunch of other players which, depending on how lucky you are, will be filled with a mix of serious players and trolls. You can engage people in conversation (and, if you’ve got premium access, you can hear them talk in wonderfully horrible text-to-speech) to try and figure out who might be the right person to talk to regarding your objective or use various items to progress the scenarios story. For some characters you’ll receive prompts every so often about your changing motivations, hopefully inducing a bit more drama into the overall experience.

As a concept I think the idea is really strong. You get given what’s essentially a character breakdown but how that character plays out is all up to the players behind them. I had some pretty fun scenarios where other people played to their characters aptly, like the Nigerian prince who spoke in slightly broken English and tried to get everyone to welcome Nigeria into their hearts. However at the same time if people don’t play to the story exactly the scenario doesn’t really go anywhere and then you usually end up in boring conversation that inevitably leads onto someone trolling. The best example of this was my last scenario whereby one person, playing Lora, tried to get everyone on the ship to do sexual things to her. Whilst it was funny at first it just ended up distracting from the overall game, and it eventually went no where.

Velvet Sundown could be vastly improved by adding in a little more interactivity and freedom into the game in order to generate more interesting narrative. The rigid structure that the story requires to be followed in order to progress it means that there’s really no freedom outside of it, even if you’re allowed to say whatever you want to anyone. Adding in some other interactions that you could apply to anyone else in the game would mean that, even if the original story wasn’t panning out, players would be able to create their own stories within the bounds of the scenario. I’m not suggesting they put in full cyber-sex animations for everyone (like the slutty Lora in my last game would love) however a few more interactions would go a long way.

Velvet Sundown Review Screenshot Wallpaper Admiring the Sunset

Velvet Sundown is an interesting concept, taking the idea of a murder mystery party and translating that into a digital playground for players to fool around in. However it feels like a beta product, with all the environments feeling sterile and the character animations making them all look like robots with back problems. The player to player interactions are the main source of entertainment however and whilst they can be amusing at times if everyone doesn’t stick to their story exactly the scenario just ends up going no where. I feel with a couple years worth of polish Velvet Sundown could really be something but for now it’s just a curiosity that simply not worth paying for.

Rating 5/10

Velvet Sundown is available on PC right now. It is free to play with an optional subscription fee for premium content.

About the Author

David Klemke

David is an avid gamer and technology enthusiast in Australia. He got his first taste for both of those passions when his father, a radio engineer from the University of Melbourne, gave him an old DOS box to play games on.

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