All Walls Must Fall
Developer(s)Inbetweengames
Publisher(s)
  • Inbetweengames
  • Ultimate Games (Switch)
EngineUnreal Engine[1]
Platform(s)
Release
  • WIN, MAC, LIN
    • WW: February 23, 2018
  • Switch
    • WW: January 20, 2021
Genre(s)Turn-based tactics
Mode(s)Single-player

All Walls Must Fall is a turn-based tactics video game developed by Inbetweengames, who published it in 2018 for Windows, macOS, and Linux. Ultimate Games published it on Switch in 2021. It received mixed reviews.

Gameplay

In 2089, time-traveling agents attempt to stop a nuclear attack in a version of Berlin where the Cold War never ended.[2] In each mission, players must infiltrate a gay dance club. Players can bluff, hack, or fight their way in. If they anger someone by choosing incorrect dialogue choices or are discovered, they can go back in time and try again. Players may also stay in place as time reverses around them, which gives the impression to outsiders that they are teleporting.[3]

Players can thus repeatedly guess responses to talk their way into the club, disregarding wrong responses. Then they can trigger alarms and fight battles to get into well-guarded areas. Once there, they can reverse time around themselves so that the alarm never rang and battle never took place, though they remain in the restricted area.[4]

Combat is turn-based. After the battle, players can see a real-time re-enactment of the combat aligned with the beats of the music in the club.[4] If the player's agent is fatally wounded, they can reverse time to try again. In combat, this can also cause bullets to reverse their trajectory, saving the player's life, or have ejected bullets re-enter the gun, making a reload unnecessary. Between missions, players can purchase advanced time-travel abilities and new weapons.[3]

Development

Inbetweengames was founded by three developers who formerly worked for Yager Development. When their publisher abruptly moved Dead Island 2 to another developer, they decided to develop games independently.[2] The maps combine handmade pieces using procedural generation.[2] The music-related elements were inspired by Rez,[2] Crypt of the NecroDancer, and John Wick.[5] Inbetweengames was inspired to make a turn-based tactics game using an isometric point of view by X-COM: UFO Defense, Syndicate, and Fallout. Time-travel was initially implemented so players could undo actions, and it was expanded into a core mechanic as development continued.[1]

All Walls Must Fall was crowdfunded via Kickstarter in March 2017[6] and entered early access in August.[7] It was released on Linux, macOS, and Windows on February 23, 2018.[8] Ultimate Games published a Nintendo Switch port on January 20, 2021.[9]

Reception

All Walls Must Fall received mixed reviews on Metacritic.[10] Rock Paper Shotgun called it "a bloody good time-troubling tactical shooter". They felt the game's narrow focus gave it a better cyberpunk atmosphere than other contemporary works but said it also limited the game's replay value. They also found some bugs but recommended the game regardless.[3] In recommending the game, Eurogamer wrote, "Witty and wonderfully scrappy, turn-based combat has never looked quite like this before."[4] Though they praised the atmosphere and theme, PC Gamer called it "a terrific elevator pitch with a wonky execution".[11]

References

  1. 1 2 Horvath, Lee (2017-07-06). "Revving the Engine: All Walls Must Fall". Unreal Engine. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Mahoney, Mary Ann (2017-04-03). "Interview with inbetweengames, Creators of All Walls Must Fall". PreviousMagazine.com. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  3. 1 2 3 Smith, Adam (2018-03-06). "Wot I Think: All Walls Must Fall". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  4. 1 2 3 Donlan, Christian (2018-04-12). "All Walls Must Fall review - the tactics genre gets a quirky new treat". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  5. ↑ Wong, Alistair (2017-04-13). "All Walls Must Fall Developers Talk Time Traveling Tactical Battles In Cold War Nightclubs". Siliconera. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  6. ↑ Smith, Adam (2017-03-22). "Techno-noir tactics: All Walls Must Fall hits Kickstarter". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  7. ↑ Yin-Poole, Wesley (2017-08-08). "All Walls Must Fall hits Steam Early Access today". Eurogamer. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  8. ↑ Fuller, Alex (2018-02-20) [2018-02-18]. "All Walls Must Fall Launches This Week". RPGamer. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  9. ↑ "All Walls Must Fall (Switch eShop) 2021". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  10. ↑ "All Walls Must Fall (PC)". Metacritic. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
  11. ↑ Hatfield, Tom (2018-02-23). "All Walls Must Fall review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 2023-06-13.
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