4.5/5 ★ – YogiEisbar's review of Pentiment.

A gem of a game that surprised me with how much it gripped me and drew me in and didn't let go. It was all I thought about for days. It's a game that's hard to talk about without spoiling things, you could, and probably will, have different choices that shape things through your multiple trips to Tassing and Kiersau over 25 years. You get to see how your actions impact the people over decades and this is an absolutely genius storytelling tactic. You feel the weight of your own actions and decisions as you get to see how you impacted the town and its population. It is sold as a murder mystery and while there are mysterious murders the main selling point for me is actually living through the time period and see this period of uncertainty and how all the different levels and aspects of society are reacting to potential change and unrest. You start off just meeting people, making friends, learning who's around town. It quickly becomes a game where you find yourself questioning the very human reasons for the things people may or may not have done. Your initial gut reaction may not be the whole truth and uncovering the details while using your time wisely is a terrific balance. Pentiment is one of the most beautiful games around, the presentation is just top tier, the beautiful handwritten script used for dialogue and the painterly style is just a treat. The music helps to sell the suspense or the peace or the melancholy of a situation perfectly. You can also pet various cats and dogs, very cute. There is a lot of religious talk and symbolism and it is used as the reason for people's opinions and actions. It started off as something that made me kind of uneasy with my own opinions on religion but it's a very important story telling tool and you have multiple ways to react to it in game so not a deal breaker at all. It's not preaching to you, it's sharing a view into the past and what it was like. The reality of being scared to blaspheme or go against the church for fear of damnation. It drives a lot of the characters. I would recommend this to anyone who doesn't mind a slow paced game with a fair chunk of reading. Pentiment surprised me and ate up my time in the best way, it didn't feel like I played for 12 hours at all, I was engrossed the whole time. After finishing act 1 I was planning another playthrough already which is a mark of a great game to me. Play it and marvel in Obsidian's strongest point, their writing.