Goblin Noir: Cement Shoes are Highly Unfashionable

"Goblin Noir: Cement Shoes are Highly Unfashionable" is a RPG visual novel made for the IGMC 2014, it is the updated version with bugfixes.
It can be beaten in about 40 minutes.

RPG visual novel means in this case that you can still run around and interact with the environment, battle whatever stands your way (even if only a few) while you follow the huge plot that fuels a simple fetch-quest.

It has great, funny dialogue, an interesting take on battle and a really immersive gameworld thanks to the music and references.

We are in an urban fantasy of the 20th century, with prohibition and mafia going on Sheila just had the luck to lose her gang comrades in an enemy raid. Worse yet, their cash was stolen. And now she has to get it back, because if she didn't die during the raid, she obviously was at fault for not saving her mates.
So it's either getting new cement shoes, thus giving the title its name, or getting back that cash.



Sheila is a rather exaggerated character, both in her fashion-sense and in her aggressive goblin manner which are her main character traits.
She is abusive, has a tendency to insult, but is also fairly intelligent and indeed, very well-versed in the world of fashion.


Rule 1 - Dirty clothes = No clothes


This contrast alone makes for some hilarious dialogue and makes sure to have interesting interactions.

What makes this game so great is not only the dialogue on its own, but the world surrounding it.
The time-period is depicted very well. There are jokes about the use of cheap covers such as "bookshops" for bars, jokes about contemporary literature, and especially the jazzy, classic music throughout the game makes it not only wonderful to listen to, it makes it all very atmospheric.

And the fantasy falls not short, either. In addition to the contemporary feeling you get are the different races, their conflict between each other and even the use and decline of magic are described very well. It is coherent and fascinating.
It also pays homage to the downsides of our fantasies, such as feeding wyrms or cleaning after sparkling Pixies. Or makes fun of fantasy tropes such as treasure chests.

Reaching even further, throughout the journey Sheila shows that conflict between different races can be overcome just as well, and while there are certain stereotypes, these are not exclusive. Some character will break it and we could all get along just as well.
Goblin Noir also gracefully demonstrates that violence is not always the answer, although you have the option of using a gun.
Which is, given the setting of a gang fight, a great feat.


Never..

The story-progression is very good, as you slowly but surely get to discover what happened until it is all cleared up. The ending was a little bit lacking, but was properly foreshadowed. It seemed rushed altogether, but it has at least made some sense. While a few events are only briefly explained, the explanations are there and the chain of events is clear.
As the usual short visual novel goes, you have a clear path. There are no real choices.



The battles are a rather interesing part of Goblin Noir. In them, you have different dialogue tactics, namely "chat", "sass", "intimidate", "flirt" and "joke", to reduce your enemies to a sobby mess.
While these option all need to be exploited and rediscovered each fight, the pattern for each indivual fight is set.
You basically have just one exact way to win, even if this way is different for each enemy you encounter.

As such, it felt little like an RPG battle, it was rather an orchestration of dialogue.
And indeed, lines are only repeated when you meet a dead end. Otherwise, you always get a different response which then makes it possible to deduce the next step. While you follow a set path, you can logically approach it as long as you pay attention. Which makes it interesting on both a strategic and a reading experience level.

The shortcomings of this game have little impact on the gaming experience.
As already mentioned, the ending feels very rushed. There were many details that could be fleshed out more.
There were some minor typos across the game and while the character portraits are beautiful, the custom sprites collide with the standard ones and the mapping is generally a little bit bare. Choice would've been nice, but is certainly not required.

It comes down to a wonderful and immersive experience.
I can highly recommend it.