Backbone is a noir-themed narrative game following Howard Lotor, a raccoon private detective in a dystopian Vancouver ruled by apes and surrounded by the Wall. One morning he takes a seemingly average case from a lady who wants evidence of her husband’s misdeeds after he has been acting strangely and doesn’t return home the previous night. However by investigating him, Howard becomes unexpectedly involved in a larger plot involving murder, blackmail, government conspiracy and the beginnings of a revolution.
STORY
*contains mild spoilers
In taking the case, Howard must find a way to infiltrate The Bite, a club that his client’s husband is found to frequent. Clarissa Bloodworth, the club’s owner and a powerful member of a notorious crime family, catches on to his suspicious behaviour very quickly. During his investigation Howard finds several disturbing things going on within the club. Horrified, he escapes but has drawn the attention of Bloodworth’s thugs, who later attack him. Renee Wilson, an ambitious writer and journalist who witnessed Howard’s actions at The Bite, follows and saves him, asking him to work with her in finding evidence to bring Bloodworth down.
Working together with Renee, Howard travels around the city to investigate suspicious activities and the powerful people that are involved in an even wider conspiracy. In Act 3 the game takes more of a science-fiction turn as Howard learns of a government experiment involving DNA and an alien-like being found outside of the Wall called “the Artifact.” With this discovery the danger he finds himself in escalates, making his and Renee’s mission all the more important.
VISUALS
Backbone’s visual style is very striking, and was the first thing that caught my eye about the game. Characters are rendered and animated in a simplified pixel style that for the most part looks great. Backgrounds look amazing, with buildings looking realistically worn or overgrown, with lifelike lighting effects and water reflections. Raindrops splatter on the screen, people walk past you on the street, and it all feels wonderfully immersive. Between chapters there are also cutscenes of dialogue between characters in a more realistic, limited-palette style that I enjoyed. Act 3’s harrowing parade sequence was both incredibly visually interesting and brimming with symbolic imagery, and I wanted to get a closer look at each float as I passed by.
The only minor gripe I had was that sometimes details can get lost in the shadows, and while high contrast lighting fits the dark dystopian theme, I’d love to be able to see and appreciate as much of the art as I can.
GAMEPLAY
Gameplay is composed of exploration and interaction. There is a main story objective in each area for Howard to complete, and he can traverse the area, look at and interact with objects, and speak with people to progress.
I found conversations to be the most interesting part. The interface for conversations is very clean and easy to navigate, with a log keeping track of what each character says. Howard can choose how he speaks to other characters – like whether or not to lie, be cynical or optimistic, fearful or aggressive – giving them an impression of what kind of person Howard is. What you say can have an effect on how willing the character is to help you or what information you can glean from them. These choices won’t influence the overall ending, but some of the answers or choices he makes are referenced later in the game. My favourite of these was choosing what tea you brew for Renee in one of the earlier chapters, and if you make the same one again later she remarks on it.
While following your main objective, there are also little side stories that you can engage with that don’t really impact the story but are still fun to do. I went out of my way to bring two people together, spend money on books, and helped a snack seller run off a newsstand operator. My personal favourite was the talking tuna that spews fun (sometimes nonsensical) facts until it runs out of things to say and explodes.
Music, and lack thereof is used to great effect in Backbone. Early on in the game there is less background music, instead you can hear every footstep and patter of rain, making you feel immersed in the setting. Later during more intense or suspenseful moments the music hits a lot harder. There are even songs with lyrics at certain points, evoking a sort of introspective vibe.
SETTING/THEMES
The way Backbone’s setting is established is very well done. As a dystopia, the world feels like a darker, more troubled version of a somewhat familiar setting. I admit I didn’t know the game was set in Vancouver until after completing it, but knowing so after the fact did make me notice things I hadn’t really considered while playing. I really should have realized it sooner when I read that the currency was called “loons” that the story took place in Canada at the very least. Most of the animals featured are ones you could find in Canada with the exception of apes, and the presence of Canadian geese, called “geezers” in the game, which I initially thought was just a fun inclusion, should have put me over the edge.
To have geezers deliver things was a great idea, and I laughed when I automatically walked Howard to the door when he was told the takeout had arrived, not expecting it to be at the window. Having such large birds deliver messages and items just felt so novel and amusing to me.
Apart from this, the game feeds you bits and pieces of lore about the world, first seen on the map in Howard’s home where you can look at the different regions of the city and he will narrate his thoughts on each one. Other things like computer files or documents throughout the game can also be read and commented upon, and there is even a tour late in the game describing the fundamentals of their society, technological advancements and religion.
Classism and racism are very prevalent topics in Backbone. Using anthropomorphic animals to represent real-world social issues like these is not a new concept but I think it does decently, if rather straightforward in some places to really hammer home the problem it is referring to. Characters often make comments about Kind, and you gather that in addition to Apes being the dominant ruling class that controls the government, rodents and mustelids are often portrayed as lower class, with felines, canines and bears being primarily middle to upper class. From conversations you gather that raccoons are not generally well respected, often referred to as “stripers” or similar terms by others. A rabbit scientist remarks that as a rodent she had to work especially hard to get to where she is, and is willing to go to great lengths to ensure she does not lose her position.
In the latter Acts of the game, much of the dialogue surrounds philosophy and existentialism. Each conversation Howard has with the Artifact involves several introspective questions about the meaning of self and individuality interspersed with the commonly repeated phrase “We are.” I won’t pretend to have understood all of what was said concerning the philosophical topics, but it was thought-provoking nonetheless, and for some could be a major highlight of the game.
ISSUES
The only issues I had playing Backbone involved having to wait for long stretches of time for scenes to play out. I can understand that narratively, playing the full length of a song is meant to be meaningful and reflect Howard’s state of mind, and even make the player take some time to think. However, I found myself getting impatient during these music playing sections where I was unable to move and simply had to stare at the screen and wait for it to be over.
This problem also led to me not knowing that my game had gotten stuck (as far as I could tell) in a section where Howard pretends to be unconscious. I waited for a long while, thinking it was a purposefully long scene where I would later be able to act. This didn’t end up being the case, and thankfully an autosave reverted to before that point.
CONCLUSION
Backbone was an excellent linear narrative game with a stunning art style that strives to tackle many different themes. The tonal change in the second half can be divisive but I still thought it was an interesting move to make, and diverges from what one would expect from a typical noir detective story. There is only one definitive ending but the interactivity and worldbuilding make the journey to get there engaging. I would definitely like to see more stories set in this world nonetheless, and am excited to see what comes next.
