Published by EastAsiaSoft, Purpose 1951 is the exact definition of a “walking simulator.” Without combat, interactivity, or a way to lose, the player simply uses the left stick to move at one slow unchangeable pace and the right stick to adjust viewing angle. Unfortunately, the uneventful, one-note experience leaves much to be desired.
Apparently, this game is supposed to take place in 1951 but you wouldn’t really know it other than one brief stage in a post-war cityscape. Every other stage takes place in a repeating forest environment close to a large body of water. As the player walks forward, voice narration tells the story of a doctor who was caught in a sticky situation out of his control and winds up losing everything. The writing is trying to be much more dramatic than it really is, so it only comes across as cheesy, eye-rolling, and even laughable at times. The worst part is the amateur voice narration that sounds like Butthead… which cannot be taken seriously at any point.
The gameplay is boring and uneventful. You literally just walk through a forest that looks exactly the same at every turn. On a rare occasion, the path will split and can lead to a glowing box that will magically open if you walk near it. These boxes are linked to most of the game’s easily unlockable Achievements. However, at the final area of a few maps, the game creepily switches to a weird black and white static noise setting with odd glowing objects floating in the sky. For a while, I was confused and couldn’t figure out what to do. Then I read the Achievement list and noticed there were “sky puzzles” that needed to be completed. After wandering for a bit, I realized you need to align your perspective so each floating objects will align perfectly in the sky, then the game advances. So I fear if you play this on Switch, where there are no Achievements or Trophies, you might miss this obscure clue to help you advance this dead end.
Made using the Unreal Engine, each piece of the environment looks like it is a stock asset just copy-pasted through each short stage. Having everything look the same is also confusing because it is easy to get turned around in the earlier areas, tediously backtracking without a sprint button. Invisible walls are all over the place too and the only animation comes from frogs jumping without motion.
Purpose 1951’s gimmick is its plot and how this story is told but it falls horribly flat. While it is admirable for trying something different, the presentation is generic, the narrative tries way too hard, and there is zero replay value. The only reason to play this is to snag all 1,000 Achievement points, which are almost unmissable, in the 45 minutes it takes to complete this “walk forward to win” simulator.
Not As Good As: going outside and walking on the edge of lake in real life
Not As Deep As: other walking simulators
Wait For It: Purpose 2024 where everyone just walks head down looking at their phone
By: Zachary Gasiorowski, Editor in Chief myGamer.com
X/Twitter: @ZackGaz
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RATING
SCORE - 3
3
SCORE
A literal walking simulator, narrated by Butthead from Beavis and Butthead, without interactivity that boringly misses the mark.