State of Mind- Nintendo Switch Review

    I have enjoyed Cyberpunk games over the years, some with RPG elements mixed with action like Omikron: The Nomad Soul (Sega Dreamcast version), or those with more action like Ghost In the Shell Stand Alone Complex and Oni (PS2 versions). Hell, I am a tech-worshipper from way back and consider myself a cyberpunk (with emphasis on the “punk”). I am a big fan of movies like Blade Runner and The Matrix. I love the imagery and the “technology-of-the-near-future” presented in the games and movies of this genre.

Because of this I was immediately drawn in by the description of State of Mind on the Nintendo Switch. Reading and looking at the pictures, as well as looking online outside of the E-Shop I was able to determine that this would probably be a good download game, even though it had a $40+ price tag.

     I was pleased, the whole way through the game. It delivered solid game play, which in all honesty should have been easy as there was very little action. The game is mostly asking questions, seeking and finding, unraveling a complicated mystery, and ending up with a brain-melting experience.

     The graphics are a mix of quite detailed environments and backgrounds and polygon-rendered characters (no real texture-mapping to be seen on them). Honestly, it looks like an HD version of something that might have appeared on the PS1 (or even the Atari Jaguar, had they added the “other chip”). But don’t let me confuse you into thinking the graphics are somehow “weak”. They are absolutely beautiful.

     The story is compelling, although somewhat confusing. I won’t spoil here, but I will say it has to do with a cyber taxi-cab accident, followed by a man’s wife and child being uploaded into a virtual world, and now he is trying to find them. As you play the game (and I suggest you do if you have a Switch), you will experience the level of detail that the story presents. As you progress, I promise your mind will melt and you will be intrigued.

     The puzzle and mystery-solving aspects of the game are equally compelling. There were times when I wanted to look up a walkthough and find my way through the more difficult spots, but I did not, and the ending was that much sweeter.

     And that ending was incredible, as well as a bit disturbing. There are choices to be made there. So choose well, although I only played through once, so perhaps the same ending comes about no matter how you choose. But it does come. When it does, you will feel it, and it will make you think.

     I am giving State of Mind a 7.5/10.