Disco Elysium
Review

Disco Elysium (2019) The Final Cut is a role-playing game set in the fictional city of Revachol where you play Harrier "Harry" Du Bois who must solve a complex murder. Unusually, your choices and actions not only determine how the story unfolds but affect Harry's mental cacophony of competing personalities. What starts as a whodunnit, soon evolves into an exploration of human brokenness, empathy and how mental health affects everyday life.

Harry wakes up in a run-down cafeteria with a hangover and amnesia, and must solve the case of the lynching of an unidentified man. The world has a rich history evoked by its watercolour visuals. You explore, talking to characters, gleaning information and collecting clues. You can choose to help characters with side quests or stick to the adventure. These extra tasks help you to piece together your checkered past and ulterior motives, betrayal and jealousy. Ultimately, the conclusion depends on the choices you make along the way.

The game stands out for its unique skill and character development system. As you talk to suspects, thoughts lodge in your psyche in a way that affects your personality. You might, for example, consider living on the street to save money. This thought affects your identity, making you more compassionate. This grants new abilities that enable you to progress in new ways.

As this continues, these thoughts become interwoven in your head, debating and questioning each other endlessly. It's an impactful way to experience the interior mental instability of your character, but also enables you to advance the story.

Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Disco Elysium 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 3 months ago.