Preview: Early Thoughts On We Happy Few
Despite its relative success on crowdfunding site Kickstarter, which managed to raise $266,000 of a $200,000 target, We Happy View managed to escape mainstream attention and fly somewhat under the radar. That is until it was shown during Microsoft’s E3 and Gamescon press conferences earlier in the summer as part of an exclusivity deal that will see the title have it console debut exclusively on the Xbox One. This brought with it a lot more attention and got a far greater number of people interested in what looks like a weird and wacky game.
Well, players now have a chance to get their hands on the game for the first time and experience the bizarre story. However, there is one caveat – this is an early access title that is nowhere near complete yet. In fact, developer Compulsion Games is incredibly keen to remind everyone that this is a preview build and doesn’t represent the final game, either in terms of gameplay mechanics, story, available characters or the visuals. That doesn’t mean it isn’t possible to get a feel for We Happy Few and begin to soak in the atmosphere of the world you inhabit.
The basic premise of We Happy View is that you take control of Arthur Hastings, a man who lives in a fictional British village that somehow fought back German invaders in an alternate universe where Germany won World War II and took control of the UK. They did this by doing an unspecified terrible thing that is so traumatic that the people living there now have to take a drug called Joy in order to continue to live there. Joy suppresses bad memories and all residents are required to take it, otherwise they are branded a Downer and beaten by people from the village. Arthur stops taking the drug and the final game will see the player attempt to escape Wellington Wells.
The preview currently lets you play through the opening sequence of We Happy Few as Arthur discovers a newspaper article that brings back some painful childhood memories. The story then begins to slowly unfold until you are discovered to have become a Downer and have to move into the open world as you keep undercover as you plan your escape attempts.
The gameplay feels like some sort of combination between an RPG such as The Elder Scrolls series and a survival game like Rust. The combat is fairly simple and the majority of time spent in the game basically involves trying to collect supplies, carrying out some questions, and avoiding enemies. This is something of a shift from the trailer and opening, which suggest a more plot heavy and surreal experience.
There is still plenty to think about though. You have to manage all of your resources very carefully, ensuring that you don’t become too fatigued or die of hunger. Other problems arise from becoming sick from eating diseased food and getting access to water. The biggest issue though is a dependency on the drug Joy. Being stealthy isn’t enough to avoid the villagers who will be all too happy to be you to death, instead, you have to also take Joy to pass as someone who isn’t a Downer.
This manifests itself as a rather unique mechanic that really requires the player to think about the consequences of their actions. Not taking any Joy will make you much more susceptible to being discovered but take too much and the game will end as you slip into a drug-induced stupor. There are other costs associated with taking the drug too, as it causes some hallucinogenic effects so that you see things that aren’t really there as well as leading to some withdrawal symptoms that need to be carefully managed.
While the gameplay associated with Joy is certainly an interesting idea, it is the only real bit of innovation in We Happy Few right now. Obviously, as this is a preview, there are plenty of things that are missing from the game that will bring more life, character, and fun to the overall experience but right now things feel a little stale. The concepts introduced in this build could well be expanded upon and develop into a great game, though there is a lot of work left to do. Even the game world becomes a bit repetitious after a while, thanks in part to the fact that it is procedurally generated.
With the addition of extra content, We Happy Few gas the potential to become a truly distinct game that can be a hugely enjoyable experience. As of yet, it is far from achieving that goal – which shouldn’t be that surprising considering this is an incredibly early build that will be built upon over the coming months.