Life in the D-Topia facility is perfect. You don’t have any responsibilities other than enjoying life, and your job is as easy as solving a few number puzzles to get paid. Who wouldn’t want a life like that? Except it might not be all that simple.
D-Topia is a new “gentle-paced” puzzle adventure from publisher Annapurna, and after playing a quick demo of the game, there’s certainly a specific vibe it’s going for. This is an experience that’s laid back, almost cozy in some ways – but with a dark undercurrent. What results in an experience that not only looks jaw-droppingly gorgeous, but hooks you with an intriguing premise oozing with intrigue. And it’s that blend of cozy charm and subversive darkness that has me eager to see more.
In D-Topia, you play as a nameless young man who’s just arrived in the idyllic facility – where humans go to live out the rest of their days in bliss. But something in your disposition has made you a perfect match for the AI-powered utopia, granting you the job of “Faciliator.” Essentially, a handyman who fixes various problems around D-Topia, whether they be mechanical or emotional.
“It’s a fascinating premise to be sure, and what’s immediately striking about D-Topia is its art design.”
It’s a fascinating premise to be sure, and what’s immediately striking about D-Topia is its art design. Spartan white plastic halls give the facility a sterile feel, even though they’re adorned with various decorations and plant life. It’s a bit like stepping into a doctor’s office, where it ostensibly looks clean and welcoming, but anxiety-inducing all the same.
And admittedly, I might be more invested in D-Topia than most because it reminds me of one of my favourite guilty pleasure films, Michael Bay’s The Island. Both share extremely similar concepts and visual identities, with that edge of unease permeating every corner and nook. But it’s like if you took that film and put it in a blender with the relationship mechanics of Persona.
Ostensibly, D-Topia’s entire experience is mostly narrative-driven. In my roughly 30-minute demo, I wandered around the facility talking to inhabitants, meeting a cast of real weirdos who each have their own complex bonding system, and solving a few mechanical issues via number puzzles.
“It’s apparent that D-Topia is trying to take some big swings.”
Simply exploring the world is a fascinating endeavour, but the layers started to reveal themselves when I had to fix a shop kiosk, forcing me to enter the “Block Side” to do the maintenance. In that moment, the shiny veneer of the world drops away, and you see D-Topia for what it really is: a dark and dingy mechanical facility that feels utterly lifeless. The demo ends on that stinger, clearly intentionally hoping to make me think about the truth of D-Topia.
But there are some more interesting thematic questions the game seems to raise: what it means to have free will, what you’re willing to give up for happiness, and even a hard look at how a society functions. It’s apparent that D-Topia is trying to take some big swings.
There’s a real trend in gaming right now of taking “cozy” ideas and putting a twisted, subversive spin on them. Grave Seasons does it with farming simulators, and I’m now willing to bet that D-Topia is taking the same approach but with the narrative adventure. I think pacing is really going to be key to how this story plays out, and if D-Topia can keep the mystery going long enough. But I can at least say I’m willing to buy a ticket for the ride.
