Users are the best gauge for finding out if a game is worth purchasing. The rational reviews that are hewn through the praise and criticisms of a level-headed gamer are usually the best way to see what a game is really like. In the case of the indie project Cibele, the game is panned for its lack of gameplay but some Steam users praised it for its honest depiction of cringe-worthy teenage love.
The game is supposedly autobiographical, based around a 19-year-old named Nina who attempts to fall in love over the internet with some guy. The game consists of intertwining multiple short films with an in-game MMO game that Nina plays, which in turn sees players playing this MMO. Yes, there are segments where you play a game within a game. You can see some of the gameplay from YourApps Info below.
Star Maid Games’ Cibele was praised by some for its “honest” depiction of teenage love. Wbarobinson liked the idea that the game isn’t replayable, and that it’s just a 90-minute title, stating…
Gelfling le Sage was also more inclined to give the title a thumbs up based on its narrative rather than its gameplay, writing…
Archurro pointed out the cringe-worthy aspects of the character depictions but still seemed to like it, writing…
Skinnyghost seemed to agree, writing…
There are a couple of reviews sharing sentiments with Cibele in terms of personal experiences with online dating and real life heartbreak. Ewokskick was someone who was unfamiliar with these kind of experiences and found it somewhat enlightening…
Many of the positive reviews are downvoted and have less than 35% of the average Steam user finding the reviews helpful. Why? Well, the more upvoted reviews point out something that the positive reviews skip over: the gameplay.
Peach honestly joked…
Xtrava concurs, pointing out that players never will get to do much in the way of actually playing the game, writing…
Genocide Dat MF Like Button was turned off with the game despite not having anything against walking simulators, pointing out that the MMO is a thinly veiled “vagina metaphor” and that the grinding in the in-game MMO was not fun…
TonyLoaf was more angered at the abrupt ending, stating…
Falconeer‘s review was very different from the others, mostly as a review of encouragement rather than that of a critic tearing down a piece of art they didn’t enjoy. In fact, the Falconeer claims that they are the target audience for games like Cibele but it still didn’t deliver due to reducing the characters to cliches and hurrying the conclusion of the story…
MissYouSatoruIwata had a lengthy review but summed up most of it with the following…
Jamiltron tried balancing out the pros with the cons, but ultimately settled on letting the public know that this project is rough around the edges and you have to be prepared for that if you do decide to make the leap into Cibele, writing…
If you want a game that isn’t very replayable, doesn’t have very deep mechanics, isn’t very rich with gameplay and has an abrupt ending, but tells a story that may affect a lot of young people dealing with online dating, you can check out Cibele on Steam for $8.99.
