Game Thoughts: Dreamfall Chapters

So after 8 years, the sequel to Dreamfall: The Longest Journey has finally been released. It started as a Kickstarter campaign. Red Thread games is the new company developing the game made up of most of the original team. Instead of the full game, they are going for the episodic gaming route.
So this will be a look at the first chapter which is the only one out at this time.

Synopsis

We return to Zoe Castillo who is still in a coma and living in a world between called Storytime. She wakes up and starts her new life after her coma. She's starting a new job, volunteering for a political campaign and got back together with her boyfriend Reza. Meanwhile, Kian is in prison awaiting his execution. He is assisted in an escape. The first chapter closes with another between world's location where you play as a baby named Saga.

Virtues

Choice system affects later events in the game. It's similar to some of the aspects in The Wolf Among Us, where choices selected will affect later chapters.

Lovely graphics, beautiful scenery, and a great soundtrack. The atmosphere in every location is well crafted and detailed. The character models have improved, but we still have that familiar voice acting.

Female lead, not overly sexualized. Lots of strong female characters. Good diversity in characters.

Puzzles make sense so far.

Vices

There's lots of rough language, f-bombs, and a few instances of the Lord's name taken in vain.

Co-habitation. Look I'm Catholic, I take issue with this although it's common. Granted the relationship is portrayed realistically. Sex is only discussed never shown.

Performance issues. Maybe it's because I'm on a laptop...but hey, I was able to play Mass Effect 3 without lag. A patch did go in to help though. It worked for me. But the framrate would really chug and drop in a lot of places.

Bugs here and there. People floating, characters getting lost/stuck in the geometry. No lip sync or improper lip sync.

Having to wait for the next episode.

Did Kian get whiter? I thought he was black. I'll blame the lighting.

Conclusion

I'm invested in the series, but personally it might be worth waiting for a couple episodes to be out. The stories flow better when they're done all at once. But that's okay too. I enjoyed it very much and I wonder what themes will come out of this one. It's also worth playing through a few times.